Leaders you Admire Description: 'Leaders you admire' is helpful for learning about leadership characteristics as its based around groups discussing leaders they've previously (or currently) know and why they admire them. It builds good team bonding and communication skills. Purposes: Learning leadership characteristics, team bonding, improving communication. Time and Materials: this one can be done pretty much anywhere and with few requirements. You do want to put time-limits on your groups but thats negotiable to circumstances.

Instructions: Leadership Game - Leaders you Admire1. Make sure there's enough space for groups to be split up and have space to discuss the leaders they've known.2. Communicate the parameters and boundaries to your group. (i.e. what they need to discuss, our many people per group and what time to come back and meet in your room.)3. Either allow your group to choose their own groups or assign teams by numbers or filing them off.4. When they're in groups ask them to assign a representative that will 'lead' the discussion and communicate to the larger group at the end.5. Let the groups go and find a seperate space to discuss and share stories. Give them a couple of minutes and then start walking around and listening in on some of the conversation to make sure its moving in the right direction.6. When everyone comes back from their time in smaller groups - ask the leader of each group to come to the front to be a spokes person.7. Ask each group leader to share what was discussed briefly (make sure you say 2,3 or 5 minutes etc) they can talk about the types of leadership characteristics which were discussed or highlight a certain leader etc.8. If you have time and deem is useful - ask the entire group if there were particular stories of 'special' leaders which could be expanded upon in front of the entire group.9. Summarise what has been learnt for the entire group and the importance of this exercise and thats it.We hope that this game 'leaders you admire' will be of great benefit to your group training sessions. Some people suggest you could turn it around and discuss negative characteristics about leaders. If you want to do this then I would suggest shortening the time for the positive aspects and sending the teams out a second time to discuss this. It's probably not beneficial to mix the two.-----------------------------------------------------

A Career Path, Vision and Dream - This icebreaker is designed for usually teenagers, creative individuals or people involved in a really interesting field of study or work. It usually doesn't go well with stiff-professionals or 'suits' as it can be a little ethereal and not hugely constructive. A Career Path, Vision and Dream - Always share your name at the beginning so people know who to refer to you as. You have to share three particulars about yourself starting with a career path you want to pursue or be involved with, a vision which is either related to your career path or life (usually what you want to achieve) and a dream about either your future career or life (usually something crazy and what others might think 'un-achievable i.e. World Peace or Making Poverty History etc.) - See more at: http://www.leadershiplime.com/free-leadership-games.html#sthash.tYJYvbqu.dpuf

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Business Simulation Games Description:This business simulation game can be played by as little as 2 people or as many as you like. The more the better but if you're limited that's ok, the game forces people to come into community and use there team skills as well as creativity. Purposes:This strategic game is meant for business people to think quickly and sharply to engage in a problem and use a team to find the solution. However, this game is so creative that any team could use it to build innovative thinking, team-building qualities and better communication. Time and Materials:As stated before it can be around 20 minutes if you want to put people under pressure (or if you don't have much time) and it could even fill a couple of hours depending on the detail you give to them. Materials are variable also, if your group are really technological then you could use laptops, presentation software and a digital projector if available. Otherwise some simple paper and pens should be enough (and make it more creative!).Instructions: Business Simulation Games1. Be organized for this game - Know whether you need paper and pens or whether people are bringing technology (Laptops, IPads etc) and know the resources you have in the space you're training.2. When people arrive or when you feel appropriate communicate the purpose and role of the game, along with instructions as follows;- Each team needs to put together a Business. The business type will be given to them (i.e. a coffee shop, website company, construction company etc.)- The team must elect a style of leadership and work out how they're going to make decisions.- The leadership must then assign roles to the team. There must be a marketing team who will work out a good marketing strategy, a HR team who will work out growth and positions and a vision team (probably the leadership) who work out where the company is going and what they're going to do.)- All the teams must work cohesively to bring one presentation together at the end to explain the company, the roles and the results of all the teams.3. Give them a time limit and let them go. While they are planning, go around and observe how everything goes, so that you can contribute as an observer when you debrief.4. When everyone comes back let someone volunteer to go first and give there presentation. Make sure for each one you comment and bring clarity if they struggle to communicate something and at the end of each bring out the positives and some negatives.5 At the end of them all start a discussion about what they all learnt and what could have been done better etc as all the teams can learn from each other. Make this time constructive and at the end give a brief overview about what was learnt.- See more at: http://www.leadershiplime.com/business-simulation-games.html#sthash.zvQRNlIo.dpuf-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

organizational models exercise (teambuilding, teamwork, working relationships, networks and systems)This is a simple and sophisticated modelling/modeling exercise, using very basic materials, for understanding and improving work structures of all sorts.Group size:Any size, subject to splitting large groups into self-facilitating teams. Teams of three are usually optimal for speed and simplicity where several models are to be created. Groups bigger than five people typically require close facilitation if trying to agree a single model, (explained more below).Duration:Briefing 5mins. Activity 15-30mins depending on complexity of organization/model. Review 10mins plus 5mins per team/model. These timings are minimums and can be extended easily for more complexity and depth of debate/learning/workshop.Preparation:A basic minimal approach requires zero preparation of materials.The idea of this activity is for the group to create a model of their (or a relevant) organization using 'bits and pieces' from their pockets, bags, cases, etc. The organization(s) can be anything which fits the purpose of the training/group session, for example a business or service organization, a sales network, or a supply bid, or a school.The use of random bits and pieces such as keys, combs, phones, tissues, etc., challenge and liberate people to think creatively and incisively about how an organization is structured and operating, including the crucial relationships/communications between working parts. Using visual tactile symbolic things enables a level of thinking and expression that's impossible with conventional language.Models of complex work/business organizational situations should ideally include symbolization of non-physical aspects (e.g., communications, workflow, responsibility/authority, etc) especially relationships between units within the model. Paper (torn, folded, cut, drawn on, etc) may be used to show these factors.The sourcing of 'bits and pieces' can be extended to office stationery and other small items which are available in the venue, or potentially outside too (stones, twigs, leaves, etc).N.B. Limit the time to source 'bits and pieces', or this will take longer than the exercise itself... Optionally prepare a box of 'bits and pieces' beforehand (which is described in the unrelated'this is me'exercise below this).This is a similar activity to the'organizational modelling' gameonteambuilding games page 1, which requires construction kit bricks/components such as Lego.This 'bits and pieces' version requires no preparation/materials, and offers greater creative potential.For example, to make it very quick and creative indeed, limit the bits and pieces to the items which people have in their pockets.The activity is for groups of any size, and depending on the situation and purpose can be run as one whole group, or a number of smaller teams. Teams can work on models of the same organization (for comparative/mutual understanding purposes), or of different organizations, or 'in theory' vs 'in reality', or any other approach that suits the situation. The organization(s) to be modelled depends on the facilitator's aims, and the group's interests/needs.This activity would fit very well within an organizationaldevelopment workshop, where a group is expected to analyse a systemic structure/organization, and identify improvements which they'd agree at the workshop and implement after the group sessions.Other types of organizational structures which can be modelled are for example: a number of related/interconnected work departments supplier/customer relationships marketing/sales networks and 'routes to market' or sales channels manufacturing/production/distribution/logistics structures and processes supply chains new business start-ups (business models, strategies, etc) stakeholder analysis/development mixed agency/contractors supply arrangements international management/distribution systems computerized systems and web/online development project management and product development and institutions such as schools, colleges, associations, etc.Time limits are at the discretion of the facilitator, although note that this activity can grow to become highly engaging, complex and time-consuming. Therefore facilitators should be very clear about aims and limits before briefing the group/teams.Consider also that the larger the group is, then the more the group will learn about each other's views and the structural problems and potential improvementswhile the activity is happening(i.e., before the review). This is because generally group size is inversely proportionate to group agreement (Large groups tend to find it more difficult to reach agreement than small teams.) So having one big group working on one big model requires more facilitative help during the activity, than having a few pairs or threes working on different models, which will generate relatively more learning in the review stage.Review:The major aim/outcome of this activity is to enable thinking, discussion and improved mutual understanding of how the organization (or more than one organization, or a sales network, etc) is structured, including its communications, relationships, processes, responsibilities, and decision-making.Significantly the activity enables a radically new view of things: how structures and connections should/could be how they actually are what needs fixing how to fix it, etc etcWhere two or more teams are creating different models there is an opportunity for teams to guess the meaning of the other team's model.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'sell a region' diversity game (diversity awareness, teambuilding, presentations, research, understanding other cultures)For group sizes of nine and upwards ideally. A group of eight split into four pairs is probably the minimum. Whatever, split the group into the teams you'd like to work together. Team sizes can be between two and five people. Teams of three generally work well. For larger events bigger teams will work well, subject to finding roles for everyone. Consider the total presentation time available and the total group size to arrive at optimum size of teams.For example - three teams of three would be fine for a small group event, or ten groups of five would be okay for a conference. For groups of more than 50 you can devise supporting roles (coordinator, props, equipment, MC, scheduler, creative, etc) within teams to enable bigger team sizes.This activity requires that people are given time before the event to research and prepare. It is possible to run the exercise in a 'lite' version by offering research facilities at the event, but the benefits of the activity are much increased if people and teams have the opportunity to discover information.The exercise can also be adapted for individuals to work alone, and could potentially be used in a group selection recruitment event, in which case group members people should be given time for research and preparation before the presentation day. A smaller group size, say four or five people, is viable for the exercise if based on individual presentations.Having determined the teams, allocate a part of the world to each team (logically relating to the regions/countries that chiefly feature in your diversity issues) - or invite the the teams to choose their own countries/regions, subject to your guidelines and situation.Each team's task is to prepare and then deliver a team presentation 'selling' their region to the group or conference, imagining the audience to be seeking a holiday home or the holiday of a lifetime.Team members are responsible for researching and preparing the following aspects for their presentation. The number of aspects is variable and at the facilitator's discretion, and should ensure there is sufficient for each team member to be involved: leisure and sport entertainment history and culture food and drink places to visit language and custom industry and commerce transport and travel people and places connections with other parts of the world amazing facts you never knew about (the region/country)During the presentations, for which you should issue appropriate timescales, the members of the conference or group vote on the best presentations according to pre-announced criteria (examples below), and as an additional incentive you can ask each team to buy a prize (representing their region up to a stipulated value, depending on your budget.The winners of each category can choose their prize from the pool.Awards categories examples: overall Wow! factor presentation style and quality star presenter specialist categories according to above presentation criteria, e.g., best historical item, best entertainment item, best amazing fact, etc.The activity offers lots of flexibility for adaptation to suit your particular circumstances and development aims. It challenges people to discover new positive things about other parts of the world, to work in teams, and then to share their discoveries with the group.A neat addition to the exercise, if the situation allows, is to appoint some team members as roving 'cultural advisors' to other teams if among the group you have people with background or knowledge in the allocated regions, and if you are very clever you could actually select and allocate the regions with this in mind. To achieve a competitive balance each team should be able both to offer an adviser and to benefit from the help of an advisor from another team.This exercise can also be adapted to provide a more modern and meaningful interpretation of thedesert island or plane crash stranded survival exercise, which essentially encourages group members to identify resources and to formulate a plan of action.To do this, adapt the presentation instructions thus:Purpose of the presentation: to identify a plan for surviving and thriving on a personal or business level (in your allocated region/country).