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Exercise: Toy TycoonsYou’ve formed a new company and joined the highly lucrative children’s toy development industry. Competition in this industry is stiff, and everyone is rushing to develop the hottest new toys for the holiday season. Each factory consists of one CEO, one Product Manager, 1+ Designer(s), and 1+ Product Developer(s). Instructions will be passed down from role to role, but the message will be delivered through multiple mediums (verbal instructions, written instructions, drawings, and final products made of clay). Below is a list of roles and responsibilities for the people in your company:RoleResponsibilitiesCEOYou are the visionary of the company. You are responsible for communicating your vision (through clear verbal instructions) to the Product Manager. Product ManagerYou are responsible for documenting the vision of the CEO using clear, written instructions and passing those instructions on to the Designer(s). Designer(s)You are responsible for translating the written instructions (provided by the Product Manager) into drawings that the Developer(s) will use to build your final product. Product Developer(s)You are responsible for using the drawing provided by the Designer(s) to build the final product out of clay. Your goal is to ensure that your end-product encompasses the CEO’s vision. Get into groups of 4 or more and determine who will be the CEO, Product Manager, Designer(s), and Product Developer(s). Once you have assigned roles within your company send your CEO to the Exercise Facilitator to select your company’s “product vision”.KEEP IN MIND: The company that gets the most toys to market will have the edge on the competition and will be more likely to succeed!BUT don’t lose sight of your product vision in the process! FACILITATOR INSTRUCTIONSStage 1 (3 mins.)I will hand your CEO a “vision” cardCEO and Product Manager exit the room for a “closed-door” vision meetingCEO verbally describes (but does not show) their vision card to their Product ManagerProduct Manager writes down the CEO’s visionStage 2 (5 mins.)Product Manager hands the written description to the Designer(s)Designer(s) creates a drawing of the visionStage 3 (5 mins.) Designer(s) hand their drawing to the Developer(s)Developer(s) make as many toys as they can out of clayEnsure roles are assignedMake sure to use a timer to effectively timebox each stage of the exerciseWhen the time is up, collect the products and display at the front of the room (along with the drawings, descriptions, and vision cards) GAME CONTENTThe instructions can be printed out and distributed to each participant. The objective is to beat the competition. The roles and accountabilities are meant to be clear, but the greater lesson of the game should be vague and will be revealed afterwards.OVERARCHING LESSONSThe exercise was meant to be chaotic and mirror a real working environment where the “rules of the game” are vague and confusing. At any point anyone could’ve ignored the initial “rules” and fostered an environment of communication, collaboration, and inclusion on their team. At no point did I mention that the roles/responsibilities were hard and fast “rules” that must be followed. We enter new organizations all the time where the “rules” that are in place might not be conducive with a truly effective and collaborative working environment, and it is up to us to change that. We all have different communication styles. What might work best for one group might not work for another. Rather than getting mad at one group for using a specific communication style, seek to understand and listen to what they have to say. WRAP UP & DISCUSSIONAfter everyone sees each other’s work, discuss: CEO - What was the original vision card? Product Manager - How did you translate vision? Designer(s) - Did you feel confident that your drawings captured the vision and written instructions? Product Developer(s) - Tell us about the end product and if you think it achieved the vision.Open-ended QuestionsWhat worked? What didn’t work?What would you have done differently? ................
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