WorkSMART Blog

Through our Trainers Warehouse Show & Share sessions, we’ve gathered practical insights from facilitation expert Cornelius “Nelius” Dowdell on how leaders can uncover and shape company culture. His approach is straightforward: start with honest input, create space for dialogue, and pay close attention to the behaviors you reinforce. Set up "Aha" Moments Dowdell started the conversation by asking the group to describe their culture in one word. Using Aha Slides to synthesize results into a word cloud, in real time, he could then direct the conversation to the most common and/or pressing responses. What emerges is not the polished version of culture found in mission statements, but a more candid reflection of how people actually experience the organization. If leaders want to influence culture, they first need to understand it—and that requires broad, unfiltered input. Try a Feelings Wheel  Another effective way to deepen the conversation is by asking people how they’re feeling. While the question sounds simple, many struggle to find the right words. A Feelings or Emotions Wheel provides the language people need to express themselves more precisely. Keep it simple with the Emotions Wheel available on the Zoom whiteboard templates, or go deeper with a more detailed feelings wheel. Alternatively, grab an Emotions Card Deck, where players choose a card that describes how they're feeling right now, or how they wish they felt at work. Whether using a basic visual or a more detailed tool, a quick emotional check-in can set the stage for more meaningful dialogue later. Start a Dialogue and Listen Get groups talking... and hear what they have to say After a quick feelings check, one of Neil's favorite ways to kick off a leadership culture session is to use a Trainers Warehouse Thumball. Even before introducing himself, he might set a ball or two play to get people thinking, connecting, and talking about the learning topic. With the Thumball, he simply tosses the ball and asks the catcher to read the topic under their right thumb. "Wherever the thumb lands is the topic we discuss," he says. Alternatively, he'll play a rapid-fire game, asking each person to respond to the prompt in just 10 seconds before tossing the ball to another player. In bigger groups, he might break into smaller teams. It's yet another way to initiate dialogue so people feel more comfortable sharing deeper thoughts as the session progresses. Just as important as getting people talking is what leaders do next. As Dowdell puts it, "imagine the impact on culture if a leader simply takes the time to find out where people are—and listens. Model Sharing and Vulnerability Part of getting employees to open up and share is creating a psychologically safe environment to make that happen. Those environments don't just happen, however. They result when organizational leaders open up and share their own foibles, mistakes, and frustrations. If you want others to share, then begin by demonstrating your own errors, learning moments, or needs for assistance.   PRACTICE ASKING AND ANSWERING QUESTIONS When talking about organizational culture, coaching people to ask questions, answer, and listen is critical. Rather than simply saying "yes" all the time, healthy corporate cultures welcome conversation and questioning as a way to build clarity and understanding. For this, Dowdell often turns to UNZIP-it! Card Decks. Participants can answer a simple question about "favorites," and partners can practice asking follow-up questions to learn more. Sure, a facilitator could talk about the importance of coaches asking questions, but using tools to help participants get to the meat and potatoes of the substance on their own is generally more effective, he explains. EXPLORE WHAT BEHAVIORS YOU ARE REINFORCING BEHAVIOR CHANGE At the heart of Dowdell’s message is a critical truth: company culture is revealed through behavior. Organizations often define their values clearly, but the real question is whether those values show up in practice. Where does the culture break under pressure? What behaviors are tolerated, even when they contradict stated values? Culture is not what we say—it’s what we reinforce. What gets rewarded, ignored, or repeated ultimately defines how people behave. UNWRITTEN RULES One effective way to explore this is by examining unwritten rules. These informal norms—what people really do and expect—offer valuable insight into how the organization operates. Some may be lighthearted (i.e. food left on the counter is for sharing; if it's in the fridge, it's not), but others reveal deeper truths about expectations, communication, and accountability. Surfacing these rules helps teams identify gaps between stated values and lived experience, making company culture more visible and actionable. They can also be good new-hire tips, that wouldn't be found in an employee handbook! MAKING CULTURE REAL Dowell explains four steps necessary to make culture real. First, you need to identify the goals. Perhaps, for instance, it's showing up to meetings on time. If you don't know what you're striving for, it's impossible to get there. Next, identify how that behavior will be modeled and reinforced—through processes, accountability, or peer support. Encourage individuals to self-assess how they're performing with regard to company values. Ask where they feel their strengths lie, and where they see room for improvement. Don't forget to reward those successes and cultural shifts using I Noticed notes, Kudos for Values, or peer-to-peer recognition tools. And, suggest that individuals treat themselves when they've hit a personal goal. Equally important is giving people time to practice. Scenarios, team challenges, and structured activities create opportunities to build new habits and reflect on outcomes. Save time using Trainers Warehouse's WorkPlays scenarios and ready-to-go teambuilding games that promise rich debriefs--about process improvement, roles, communication, team dynamics, and the like. OVERCOMING LEADERS' RESISTANCE TO CULTURE CHANGE Culture change frequently faces resistance, not just from teams asked to abide by the company culture, but also from leaders themselves.  When asked why, the top response is typically ambiguity. When cultural initiatives lack clarity, ownership, or measurable outcomes, they are difficult to sustain. To overcome this, organizations must connect company culture to strategic priorities. Define the behaviors, track them consistently, and measure their impact. Engagement is not a one-time event. It’s an ongoing leadership commitment. CONCLUSION Company culture is often discussed in broad, aspirational terms, but Dowdell’s approach brings it back to something far more concrete: conversations, behaviors, and reinforcement. When leaders take the time to listen, model openness, and align what they reward with what they say they value, culture begins to shift in visible ways. The real work of culture isn’t found in statements or slogans—it’s found in the everyday moments where people choose how to speak, act, and respond. Over time, those moments add up, shaping not just how work gets done, but how people experience being part of the organization.  

In her new book Designing and Facilitating Workshops with Intentionality, author Dr. Tolu Noah offers ten principles to help focus workshop design efforts. It’s all wrapped up into a tool she refers to as the Workshop Wheel. In her recent Show & Share session with Trainers Warehouse, Tolu focused on two of the ten — ACTIVE and INCLUSIVE, and boy, did she practice what she preached. Following are some of the tools she used to build activity and inclusivity into the session. TRY MENTIMETER – TO BUILD INTERACTIVITY Ask participants to share their input through Mentimeter.com. In Tolu’s example, she began our session by asking participants to share their “training hopes and dreams.” Rather than relying simply on a Chat board, she used Mentimeter. She posted a single QR code that could be scanned by phone, as well as a URL link and code, for computer access. Quickly, participants could weigh in and share their input. Although accessing a code like that may take a tad more time than a simple chat, it also felt more interactive for a few reasons: It was much more interesting to view visually Responses were easier to read Use of the phone invited a more tactile experience than just interfacing with the computer and keyboard. Most importantly, Mentimeter’s AI can synthesize the group’s results just by clicking the space bar. After that, if you want to dig deeper into a specific response, just click that box and see all the associated responses.   EMBED SOME FUN INTO YOUR SLIDES Dr. Noah used a handful of extremely accessible tools to manage the time and ambiance during breakout or reflection moments. For instance, she embedded these resources: Bensound – Music clips for presentation audio. Embedding the sound clips made them easy to access with the click of a button. Great for thinking time during work exercises. 30-second timer – Search for “acoustic guitar timers, find the amount of time you need, and embed it into your slide. Two recommended YouTube channels are Adam Eschborn and Gentle Acoustic Guitar. EXPLORE SLIDE DECKS BEYOND POWERPOINT Google Slides: Tolu shared that she prefers to use Google Slides for presentations. She explained that if you like to navigate to multiple other websites and flip from presentation to links, it’s very convenient. You can also “pin” tabs so they’re easy to find and navigate. Aha Slides: at a prior Show & Share, Cornelius “Nelius” Dowdell, expert facilitator and founder of The Best Workplace, used AhaSlide as an alternative to PowerPoint. Also web-based, Aha Slides allowed him to seamlessly embed word clouds, live polls, spinners, and more. TRY PADLET FOR COLLABORATION ACTIVITIES While asking chat-based questions and polling participants is better than not checking in with the group at all, a better approach is to draw on a wonderful suite of interactive tools from an online platform like Padlet. Facilitators can easily customize visually pleasing templates that allow participants to consider questions and share responses to thought-provoking questions in a myriad of ways that are more fun and accessible than standard whiteboards. They have two basic tools that allow you to make: Boards: blank slates to which you can add text, music, videos, and more. They have dozens of templates ready-to-go for discussion boards, polls, Q&A, surveys, brainstorming, feedback, breakout groups, etc. Sandboxes: collaborative digital canvases with tools for drawing, writing, and adding media. Sandbox templates are available for lessons, brainstorming, Jeopardy, interactive documents, group activities, and more. Don’t be put off by the graphics. At first glance, Padlet appears to be geared toward K-12 instructors, but because each Board and Sandbox starts with a blank slate, you can easily customize the look and feel. When you click into a template, it does not look juvenile, as the website graphics might lead you to assume. It also allows you to welcome participants to add comments by typing, sharing a video, recording audio, or even capturing a screen record. ACRONYMS & MNEMONICS Tolu shared the A.P.A. acronym as a way to engage participants throughout a learning session. For each part, she offered an array of tools. Some used the resources mentioned above; others drew on “old school” approaches. A. Activate prior knowledge, as learning always builds on a scaffolding of prior knowledge. P. Process new information. Give time to synthesize, ask questions, make connections, etc. A. Apply learning, because practice with feedback enables improvement. OLD SCHOOL ACTIVITIES Retrieval and Writing After introducing the 10 principles, Tolu asked us to recall as many as possible by writing them down on paper or opening a writing app on an electronic device, without looking at notes we might have taken. She reminded us that the retrieval process is an important part of long-term memory processes. Although most of us could recall only three to five of the 10 design principles after her very quick overview, the exercise served as an important lesson about the importance of analog approaches and retrieval activities. She introduced a handful of other approaches as well: 1. HANDOUT: Anticipation Guide (Activation) To explore what people already know and begin to activate prior knowledge, Dr. Noah suggests preparing an “Anticipation Guide” containing 5-7 statements about the topic at hand. To facilitate this activity, ask attendees to record if they believe the statement is True or False. Before putting their notes to the side, have them team up with a colleague to discuss their answers. At the very end of the session, revisit the participants’ Anticipation Guides, and ask them to reflect on how their prior understanding grew or evolved. CREDIT: This strategy comes from several sources, including Frederick A. Duffelmeyer and Facing History & Ourselves. 2. HANDOUT: Knowledge (or Skills) Rating (Activation) Another great worksheet to help learners consider prior knowledge is one that asks them to self-assess their knowledge before a session starts. It’s like a “Before Report-card.” With each concept on the learning agenda, they can check a box that says, “I don’t know what this means,” “I have seen or heard of this, but don’t know the meaning,” “I can explain the meaning of this,” or ” I could teach someone else about this topic.” CREDIT: Jonathan Bifield, Eberly Center at Carnegie Melon University, and others. 3. T.Q.E. PAUSES: Elicit Thoughts, Questions, and Epiphanies Pause and ask attendees to share their thoughts, questions, and epiphanies about the training topic! You can use sticky notes, chat, or really any tool, digital whiteboarding tool, verbally (sticky notes, chat, a digital whiteboard tool, or have attendees share verbally). Be sure to process these replies before you move on! CREDIT: Adapted from an approach used by Marisa Thompson. 4. PARTNERING CARDS Rather than finding partners on the fly, take a few minutes at the start for folks to fill out their Discussion Partners Card, finding a different person to partner with for each of the upcoming discussion chunks. When those junctures arrive, have them find that partner. 5. WOW-HOW-NOW REFLECTION ACTIVITY Using a Padlet Sandbox with three pages for input, Tolu led us in an inclusive activity that drew out important learning points and action items. If you’re looking for another reflection tool to add to your repertoire, this is a great one! Wow – key takeaway How – remaining question Now – action item CREDIT: Letitica Citizen and Kia Turner CONCLUSION At its core, effective training isn’t about adding more tools—it’s about being intentional with the ones we choose. As Dr. Tolu Noah’s session demonstrated so clearly, when we design with purpose—prioritizing activity and inclusivity—we create experiences that learners don’t just attend, but truly engage with. Whether it’s leveraging digital tools like Mentimeter and Padlet, or incorporating “old school” strategies like retrieval, writing, and structured reflection, the goal remains the same: help learners think, connect, and apply. Because, as we know from brain science, people remember what they take time to process. The real takeaway? Small shifts in design can lead to big shifts in learning. RESOURCES Tolu’s Session Resources Watch Tolu's Trainers Warehouse Show & Share

This collection of ommunication exercises and listening activities is culled from a variety of LinkedIN discussions. 

Teach, energize, and engage learners with 5 terrific games and learning events using the Trainers Warehouse Me First! Buzzer System.