Teamwork

Teamwork Challenge!

The all-time Northgate classic. Ideal for team development - shows forming , storming, norming and performing in action.


How it works

The objective is to get across an aircraft hangar. Teams have a floorplan of the hangar, showing the position of some oil drums, and a set of 'planks' (5cm long!) with which to bridge the oil drums and form a route across. Also at various places on the plan are red and green lines. Teams first have to plan their route, knowing that if they cross a green line they have an ‘easy’ task to complete - a red line means a ‘difficult’ task. The race is then on to be the first across. Finding right answers to tasks involves managing information on a series of datacards - a great opportunity for a well-organised team to get ahead - and some very chaotic beginnings often end in highly successful performances, as the team learns to pull together.

What it does

A highly motivating activity to demonstrate good teamwork skills. By organising the group well, participants are able to complete all their tasks and reach their objective. An effective team will nominate a leader, plan, review progress and, if necessary, change their way of working. The exercise highlights strengths and weaknesses in team roles and leads on to a discussion of how team performance can be improved.

Customer feedback

  • Ideal! I thoroughly enjoy running it - and it works really well. Thanks very much for the advice and help.

    – K. Redman, HBG Construction

  • An excellent exercise for showing the effectiveness of well-coordinated teams.

    – S. Hancox, Warwickshire Education Business Partnership

  • Excellent value for money! Highly engaging teamwork activity that promotes learning in a fun and interactive manner.

    – J. Caven, SageGreen Ltd