Fundamental Leadership Workshop exercises
Leading a meeting with the FOW exercise:
Break into groups of 4 (A,B,C,D). Person A picks a Fundamental and leads a brief
discussion with B,C,& D by asking good questions. Then rotate the leader so each gets
a chance. 3-4 mins per role play. Have them practice asking specific questions of
specific people.
Asking questions vs Telling exercise:
Break into triads. A = mgr, B = employee, C = observer. Facilitator reads the scenario.
A & B role play asking questions to create more ownership. 3 min role play. Then B
gives A feedback – 1 min – 1 thing did well, 1 thing could improve. Then C also gives
feedback based on observation – 1 min – 1 thing did well, 1 thing could improve. Rotate
through 3 scenarios so each gets a chance at each role. Debrief at the end.
Scenarios:
1. One of your team members is frequently late to work. You need to address the
situation. Role play the conversation by asking questions more than telling.
2. You go on a sales call with one of your reps. During the call you notice the rep
asking good questions, but then interrupting the customer during their answer.
Role play the coaching you give the rep by asking questions more than telling.
3. One of your team members seems to do the absolute minimum necessary to get
by, while others always seem to go the extra mile. Role play the coaching you
give the rep by asking questions more than telling.
Listen generously exercise:
Break people into triads. A = mgr, B = employee, C = observer. Facilitator reads the
scenario. A & B role play using generous listening for better understanding. 3 min role
play. Then B gives A feedback – 1 min – 1 thing did well, 1 thing could improve. Then C
also gives feedback based on observation – 1 min – 1 thing did well, 1 thing could
improve. Rotate through 3 scenarios so each gets a chance at each role. Debrief at the
end.
Scenarios:
1. One of your team members comes to you complaining that they’re overloaded,
don’t have time to do the work they’ve been assigned, and are feeling stressed
out. His coworkers, though, seem to be able to handle a similar workload without
complaint.
2. A team member comes to you frustrated that the new process that just got
pushed down from corporate is actually slowing down their work and making it
harder to accomplish the job. They tell you it seems stupid and want to know if
you can get the policy changed.
3. A team member comes to you frustrated that they’ve been working hard lately,
putting in a lot of extra effort, and they don’t feel appreciated. Even worse,
others on the team got recognized at a recent meeting, and this person has been
working even harder and got ignored.
Straight speaking exercise:
Break people into triads. A = mgr, B = employee, C = observer. Facilitator reads the
scenario. A & B role play using straight speaking for clearer communication and better
understanding. 3 min role play. Then B gives A feedback – 1 min – 1 thing did well, 1
thing could improve. Then C also gives feedback based on observation – 1 min – 1
thing did well, 1 thing could improve. Rotate through 3 scenarios so each gets a chance
at each role. Debrief at the end.
Scenarios:
1. One of your team members has been making a lot of mistakes lately and you
need to speak to them about their performance. You know that they can be
pretty sensitive and they’re often quick to be defensive. Role play the
conversation.
2. You’ve been working really hard and don’t feel like you’re being compensated
fairly. You have a meeting with your own boss next week and feel like you want
to say something, but you don’t want to come across as a malcontent. Role play
the conversation.
3. One of your team members is constantly late in submitting required reports.
You’ve spoken to them before about this, and it hasn’t improved. Role play the
conversation.
Blameless problem-solving exercise:
At the table, the group can discuss how to handle. Then select a spokesperson and
several groups can share what they came up with. 3-4 mins per scenario for table
discussion, 3-4 mins group discussion.
1. You take a call from an irate customer, complaining that one of your team
members had promised that a product would get delivered by last Wed. It still
hasn’t come in, and they’ve left 3 messages for the team member with not even a
return call. What do you do? What conversation do you have with your team
member?
2. You get word that the shipping department sent out the wrong product to a
customer. The product is not what was ordered and can’t be used in this
application. What do you do?
3. One of your team members shared confidential information about one customer
with another. What do you do?
4. One of your inside sales reps is constantly lagging behind his peers in terms of
his results. You’ve warned him several times that he has to do better but it hasn’t
seemed to help. How would you use the 3 reasons people struggle to help
determine the appropriate next steps?
Get clear on expectations exercise:
Part 1: Brainstorm typical unclear statements (e.g., the part will ship soon, I’ll do it when
I get a moment, it shouldn’t take much longer, etc.). Write them on a flip chart. Discuss
what happens when we use these kinds of statements.
Part 2: At each table, have the group come up with the best example of a real story that
happened to them where the lack of clarity of expectations led do a serious
misunderstanding. Could be with family member, friend, customer, co-worker, supplier,
etc. Give groups approx. 3-5 mins. Then go around the room and have each table
share their best story. Debrief about what could be done differently (setting clearer
expectations) to avoid this misunderstanding.
Celebrate success exercise:
Break into circles of 4-6 people. Start with person whose last name comes last in the
alphabet (Person A). Starting with the person to his/her right, each person gives A a
meaningful acknowledgment – using all 3 elements – limited to 1 min. Then each other
person in the circle acknowledges that same person for 1 min. Person being
acknowledged practices graceful receiving. Repeat the process for each person in the
circle. Debrief as a large group after the exercise. Note: it’s important to remind people
to use all 3 elements: honest, specific, impact. It’s also good to remind the recipient to
practice learning to accept acknowledgment gracefully.
In the debrief, see what people noticed. Ask them to consider how this could impact
their teams. Also, emphasize the impact of getting an acknowledgment from your boss
or supervisor.