Why are we using these activities to train our managers?
Shifts in the way we organise our companies and manage our people have forced us to look again at how we develop our managers. Qualities such as leadership, team building, initiative and customer care are just as important as technical knowledge and skills. However, these attributes are much harder to develop in people and almost impossible to bring out in traditional “talk and chalk” programmes based on presentations and reading matter. Hence the rise of the “wacky” management course or, more commonly, the “wacky” management game that is incorporated into a more traditional course.
How can games help?
When you lift people out of a work situation, they will hang on to their work roles. This may inhibit them from using behaviour they are unsure about or think might meet with disapproval. Games are useful in breaking down barriers and enabling people to exhibit characteristics that do not fit with their work role. They feel more confident doing so because “it’s just a game” and, therefore, there is no risk.
Outward bound courses used to be all the rage. Are they any good?
Outward bound courses have declined in popularity, probably because managers are reluctant to forsake a nice centrally heated office for a cold mountainside. However, most are quite civilised. Provided they are properly supervised and no one is forced to go beyond their physical capabilities, they can be quite successful. They can encourage colleagues to trust each other and recognise each other’s unique skills. They can also help to create a lasting team spirit and forge relationships that will improve communication.
Employees coerced to abseil down a mountain are unlikely to reap any benefits from the experience
So, should firms be following the latest training trends?
No, the problem with following fashion is that, often, the fashionable training activity is not the best option for everyone. Some group exercises that were popular in the 1970s have now been exposed by psychologists as potentially damaging to mental health. In these exercises, groups were encouraged to identify all the things they did and did not like about their colleagues. The objective was to get everything out in the open and build people’s confidence. Unfortunately, individuals unfamiliar with this kind of experience often found it very distressing.
What is the most unusual training activity you have ever heard of?
One of my favourite examples is the group of trainee managers who were taken to a foreign city and cast adrift for a few days with only limited resources. The objective of the game was to survive as well as possible. Of course, a few slept in the bus station and lived on bread and water, but some showed immense ingenuity and resourcefulness. These people not only “survived” but had a good time as well. In terms of developing entrepreneurial spirit and the ability to deal with the unexpected, this exercise was deemed a success. However, such an exercise has to be considered very carefully. Otherwise, it risks damaging people more than it develops them.
Any more advice?
