Team Building

Gather Insight and Experience with 53 amazing experiential games! That's only $68 per game!

This incredible kit is loaded with game parts and notes for 53 highly effective experiential activities provide participants with a broad range of learning opportunities. Each learning game comes with amazing facilitation notes, participant briefs, review questions, and learning reinforcement sheets.

*Please allow up to 2 weeks for shipping

• Easy game selection– games are categorized by focus and learning objectives so you choose the right corporate learning game for your group’s needs
• Clear facilitation notes– comprehensive notes make it easy for trainers and managers to lead each game
• Engaging experiences – developmental games are so engrossing that participants will get lost in the activity
• Insightful learning reviews – facilitate lively and thought-provoking discussions
• Real life learning – link experiences back to real work issues

FEATURES

• 53 activities – choose from a huge library of active learning games
• 240 game pieces – packed into two smart travel bags
• 9 binders – full of facilitation notes
• 10 minutes to 3 hours – make the most of however much time you have
• Introductory to advanced – engage anyone in your organization from apprentices to executives
• 5 to 20 participants per kit

TRAINING DEVELOPMENT GAMES

• Team Development (18 games)
• Problem Solving (6 games)
• Communication (7 games)
• Leadership
• Decision Making (6 games)
• Stakeholder Alignment

53 GAMES -- FOR ALL YOUR CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT NEEDS

** SEE GAME DESCRIPTIONS BELOW **

18 Team-Building Games and Activities

Introduce and develop the skills, abilities and attitudes frequently associated with effective team dynamics. Deepen and broaden individuals’ understanding of effective team working, whether groups are forming, storming, norming or performing. Team effectiveness qualities include:

• Listening
• Building on ideas
• Planning
• Questioning

6 Problem-Solving Experiences

Help participants understand the key elements of effective problem solving and the perceptual, emotional, cultural, as well as the intellectual blocks that might inhibit performance by individual team members. Develop skills such as:

• Problem identification, analysis and resolution
• Questioning self and others
• Success orientation

Communication (7 activities)

Effective communication, verbal and non-verbal, requires practice, feedback, and listening. These communication games will help you develop smart attitudes and behaviors that support effective communication:

• Succinctly explaining
• Effective instructing
• Unambiguous language

Performance Improvement & Negotiation Skills (6 activities)

This set of performance improvement activities encompasses a range of more complex leadership and team performance skills. These intellectually demanding activities will challenge your groups, and help you develop the attitudes and attributes required of top performers, such as:

• Followership and leadership
• Negotiation
• Strategic awareness

Leadership 1, 2 & 3 (4 long activities and 5 short activities)

The leadership games and activities in the MTa Insights Kit will help you develop those who are already effective team players into effective organizational leaders. Each activity provides opportunities for participants to experience different aspects of leadership and consider how the leader’s approach affects their followers. For instance:

• Gaining commitment
• Delegating
• Setting targets for others
• Styles of leadership
• Project management

Business Priorities (7 activities)

People and organizations are most successful when they produce and deliver something of value to others. These 7 activities introduce this reality. While they vary in difficulty from relatively-simple to quite-demanding, each assists in the development of these skills:

• Business acumen
• Customer focus
• Selling (product or ideas)

SEE WHAT’S INCLUDED IN EACH GUIDE

• Comprehensive facilitator’s notes
• Participant briefs
• Thought provoking review questionnaires
• Learning transfer sheets
• Online access to review questions and learning transfer documentation.

INCLUDES

• 240 Insight parts in 2 smart travel bags
• Facilitator guides for 53 activities
• MTa user license
• MTa participant worksheet

GAME DESCRIPTIONS

MTa's JAMIE THOMPSON TALKS ABOUT CHOOSING THE RIGHT GAME

This is an amazing collection of team building games that come to us direct from our friends in the UK. Each game draws from a unique collection of specially-crafted building materials. The complete suite of team building experiences is perfect for every stage of team development.

If it seems expensive... it's not! Each game is appropriately challenging and promises to generate a plethora of learning points pertinent to the real life worlds of your participants. And, it's only $168 per game!

*Please allow up to 2 weeks for shipping

Six team development exercises encourage and support participants to explore, understand and develop a wide range of interpersonal and team skills:

• Collaboration
• Communication
• Achieving objectives
• Influencing
• Motivation and Engagement

Ten short activities (10-15 minute, plus debrief) to introduce team development concepts, break the ice, or energize flagging groups. All involve lots of action and most an element of competition. Each is quite different, and despite being quick, will raise salient points about the way individuals in the group are working with each other. Use these quick activities to:

• Stimulate fresh thinking
• Introduce new topics
• Energize your group
• Practice effective teamwork

6 TEAM DEVELOPMENT EXPERIENCES

Engaging activities and thought-provoking review questionnaires make it easy for facilitators to develop learning opportunities. Each activity is designed with specific discussion topics in mind:

1. Over the Bridge – learn and practice basic team development skills

In this energizing activity, the task of making a bridge and a car should be easy, but the instructions are intentionally ambiguous. How effectively will teams question the key stakeholders, clarify their objectives, and develop plans before starting work? In the first part of Over the Bridge, team learn basic team working concepts. Part two provides an opportunity to apply that learning.

2. Rectangle – explore different of styles of communication

Playing Rectangle – creating the largest rectangle they can with the given game pieces – is an interesting challenge. Success requires effective communication and highlights differing personality styles (i.e., conscientious vs. dominating). The task seems to be straightforward but necessitates planning, listening, and recognizing one another's needs.

3. The Frame – focus on inter-team communication and big-picture thinking

In The Frame, facilitators are guided to break a team into two rooms or spaces that are out of sight of one another. The "instructors" in one room must coach the "constructors" in another room to build a complex structure. The team's shared task would be easy if they were in full site of each other and could work together to solve the problem. Frustration mounts until groups, step back, think, reconsider their assumptions, and overcome the obstacle that separates them.

4. Digital Display – discuss the interplay of individual and team success

Digital Display is a powerful activity experienced in complete silence. Everyone has an individual task—to form a unique number or letter with a handful of game pieces. Will each member of their team be successful? Or, will players be tempted to complete their personal task without regard for the rest of the group. Tending to personal needs first is tempting but may have unintended and unwelcome consequences that inhibit team success, require work to be redone, and harm relationships.

5. The Trailer – practice delegation, leadership, and team empowerment

See what happens when your team leaders have an overview of a task, but don't provide their teams with everything they need to complete the task. In The Trailer game, teams are divided into "designers" and "builders," and moved to separate locations. Each subgroup is working on a different part of the same project. Teams wrestle with delegation, incomplete information, and uncertainty until they are joined together later in the exercise.

6. The Tower – develop negotiation, conflict resolution, and inter-team cooperation skills

The Tower is a unique "coopetition" activity in which teams are challenged to build a tower as tall as they can. Teams tend to seek individual success over win-win solutions, but their ultimate success requires them to share ideas, work together, develop trust, and accept suboptimal height on their own tower construction. If a team works against another or tries to beat another, everyone loses out. The Tower demands effective analysis, clear and effective communication, leadership between teams, planning, building, and retaining trust and negotiating.

10 QUICK EXERCISES TO INTRODUCE, ENGAGE, & SET THE STAGE FOR LEARNING

Each of these last 10 activities can be played in just 10 to 15 minutes, plus debrief. Intersperse one or more into your training day to build peer relationships and keep groups energized:

1. Where's the Chair – identify what helps and hinders teamwork
2. The Stack – consider the impact of competition on teamwork and practice group decision making
3. Getting to Know You – establish relationships and differentiate between assumptions, expectations, and facts
4. Through the Bolt Hole – practice team problem solving, planning, consensus building and decision making
5. Domino Theory – understand the value of developing and testing multiple ideas, changing your mind, and learning from others.
6. Hold Everything – challenge assumptions, consider how success is measured, and differentiate between working to requirements vs personal preferences.
7. Rectangles – differentiate between customer requirements and personal standards when focusing on quality, goals, and expectations.
8. Roulette Wheel – explore the challenges of giving and receiving instructions, whether leading or following.
9. Playhouse – consider assumptions about competition and collaboration as teams race to be the first to enclose all team members in a 3-dimensional playhouse structure.
10. Creating Obstacles - each team designs an obstacle course to be completed by another team. Themes of communication and leadership emerge as they create hurdles, hoops, and more.

WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE ACTIVITY GUIDES

• Comprehensive facilitator's notes
• Participant briefs
• Thought provoking review
• Questionnaires
• Learning transfer sheets
• Online access to review questions and learning transfer documentation.

TEAM BUILDING ACTIVITY INFORMATION

• Time: 10 mins - 2 hours
• Levels: Introductory to Advanced
• Participants: 6 - 12

MTa's JAMIE THOMPSON TALKS ABOUT CHOOSING THE RIGHT GAME

Gone are the days of mailing pre-work to participants, shuffling paperwork, and tabulating scores in your head. Here is a streamlined solution that will transform the way you prepare for and deliver training with assessments, whether your audience is 20 or 20,000.

The HRDQ Online Assessment portal gives you complete control over the entire process, from distribution, to administration, scoring, and data management, all with just a few clicks of a mouse.

ONLINE ASSESSMENT CENTER REQUIRED!

If you'll be conducting online assessments* regularly, add on this One-Time Online Assessment Administration Fee to create an HRDQ Assessment Center Account for ongoing tracking, administration and support.

This is a ONE-TIME ADMINISTRATION FEE. After purchase of the Online Assessment Account, you will receive instructions on how to set up the account and administer the online assessments. Personality Style at Work, What's My Communication Style, and What's My Leadership Style.

DOWNLOAD PRODUCTS

This is a downloadable product. You will receive emailed instructions on how to download the software. It may take 1-3 days to receive this email, depending on the day of the week that the order is placed.

FACILITATOR FEATURES

As a trainer, the Assessment Center enables you to:

• Distribute assessments simultaneously to a global audience
• Manage and track participant progress and completion
• Access scores immediately and control the release of results
• Provide full color results to your audience
• Print interpretive reports on demand

PARTICIPANT BENEFITS

There are benefits for your audience as well, including:

• 24/7 access to a secure personal account
• The ability to complete assessments from any location, at any time
• Automatic scoring and instant results
• Personalized, full color interpretive reports

Getting started with online assessments is easy!

Mars Rover Challenge (formerly Mars Surface Rover) provides a powerful, unique hands-on experience that allows participants to connect with the concept of collaboration at a deep and personal level. Participants are immersed in a team construction activity, whereby they are tasked by the World Space Agency to build a prototype rover for traversing Mars' rocky terrain.

TWO VERSIONS OF MARS ROVER

• Leadership module
• Team module

BOTH VERSIONS are included in this deluxe kit, Mars Rover Game series by HRDQ. The differences lie only in the lens through which collaboration is viewed—either from the perspective of leadership or teamwork. While each game has been designed to function independently, using them in tandem presents a more thorough, holistic picture of collaboration and the positive effects it has on employee engagement and productivity.

HOW IT WORKS

The Deluxe Game Kit brings you both versions of the game for a considerable saving on the individual price of either version ($699/ each). It includes all of the required components to facilitate both games, as well as an initial supply of workbooks for up to 36 participants—18 for the leader version and 18 for the team version.

All components -- except for the participant workbooks -- are reusable, although additional workbooks can be individually purchased. (See product code #GAMARLW and #GAMARTW)

TEAM VERSION

The Teamwork version is designed to help individuals become more effective team members by allowing them to experience the differences between working collaboratively and working in "silos."

The program is ideal for established teams who are looking to increase their productivity, efficiency, and innovation and who may need to break free from unhealthy work habits. It is equally well suited for new teams who are striving to integrate collaboration into their developing team dynamic. This version introduces basic concepts such as interdependence, common goals, and diversity with an unconventional simulation.

How it Works: In the Teamwork version, the game is split into two rounds. In both rounds participants work in teams to construct a rover, but with varying approaches to work. In the first round, they simulate working in "silos" as they withhold information and complete their assigned tasks individually. In the second round, participants simulate working collaboratively as they communicate information and tasks openly and work together to design the rover they think has the best chance of completing its mission. The end result in each round usually is markedly different, and the process and outcomes make for lively discussion and usually quite a few "Ah-Ahs!" as they realize the effects the two different approaches to work have on morale, motivation, and performance.

Time required: 4 hours

Learning Outcomes: Recognize the distinction between a team and a group, understand how teammates' responsibilities
are interdependent, and realize the importance of continual communication within the team.

LEADERSHIP VERSION

The Leadership version is designed to help individuals become more effective leaders by allowing them to experience the differences between three contrasting styles of leadership—traditional (command-and-control), passive, and collaborative.

The program is ideal for new and seasoned leaders as it provides them with a hands-on way to explore the three styles in depth and assess their advantages/disadvantages. This version introduces basic concepts such as communication, influence, and change management.

How it Works: In the Leadership version, participants work in teams to construct a rover, led by team member who (unknown to the rest of the team) adopts the traits of one of three contrasting leadership styles—traditional, passive, or collaborative. Each of the three styles engenders very different feelings and emotions among team members. And together, they provide a very real demonstration of the effects different styles can have on morale, motivation, and performance.

Time required: 4 hours

Learning Outcomes: Experience the concept and benefits of facilitative leadership, learn how a facilitative leadership style generates a team atmosphere, discover the drawbacks of traditional (autocratic) or passive (uninvolved) styles
of leadership, and recognize the balance between too much and too little authority.

The Leadership Game Kit includes all of the required components to facilitate the game, as well as an initial supply of workbooks for up to 18 participants.

DELUXE GAME KIT CONTENTS

• 2 Facilitator Guides (Teamwork and Leadership) in a Single Binder
• 36 Workbooks (18 for Teamwork and 18 for Leadership)
• 3 Game Parts Bags with K'NEX® Pieces
• 1 Clear Plastic Wallet with Extra K'NEX® Pieces
• 6 Blueprints
• 1 Set of 3 Leader Role Cards
• 3 Sets of 6 Task cards
• 1 set of 3 Now or Never Cards
• 1 Poster
• 1 Set of 3 Team Color Cards
• 19 HRDQue Cards
• 1 Tote Bag
• 1 USB FLASH DRIVE, which includes:
• • Leadership Learning Overview
  • Teamwork Learning Overview
  • Leadership PowerPoint Presentation
  • Teamwork PowerPoint Presentation
  • Leadership Theory Background
  • Teamwork Theory Background
  • Leadership FAQ
  • Teamwork FAQ

The Expedition Online is a teamwork and planning activity supplied digitally, for use in virtual or face-to-face training sessions.

THE ACTIVITY

Their mission is to travel to a location deep in the desert to collect a vitally important letter (that could mean the difference between life and death). They have a map, a vehicle to travel in and a coded message that will reveal the location - but little else. What data do they need in order to plan the expedition? They must formulate eight carefully constructed questions in order to get that critical information.

Now they can start planning in earnest. They’ll see there are three possible routes – all need investigating. Who does what? Do they demonstrate attention to detail? Are they conscious of time?

They must also choose four people to go on the expedition itself. What attributes are they looking for? They can select members of their own team or candidates whose details are supplied in the Team Brief – or a mixture of both.

Their vehicle is subject to strict weight restrictions, 900 Kg max, so fuel, water, food, first aid, tools etc must be carefully chosen for each stage of the journey. Emergency supplies MUST be carried; other items are optional - but all have weight implications. Teams use Checklists to plan the packing of the vehicle and ascertain total weights. Get it badly wrong – and the expedition fails!

If all safety precautions are adhered to, of the three possible routes, only one is realistic. Will teams realise this or will they take unjustifiable risks to get back to base ahead of their competitors?

TRAINER'S ROLE

1. Briefly introduce the session, divide the group into teams and issues team briefs, a map of the Gozo Desert and a Data Request Form.
2. Teams have 15 minutes to brainstorm eight questions that will give them the data they need to plan the expedition. They note these on the Data Request Form.
3. After 15 minutes collect the Data Request Forms and hold them until the Debrief (for analysis/discussion).
4. Whatever data was requested, issue each team with a Critical Information Sheet. This gives teams all the information they need to plan their expedition.
5. Observe teams in action. Make notes on their teamwork, delegation, leadership, planning skills and time management.
6. After 90 minutes call a halt. After a break issue copies of the Team Review Sheet for teams to work through.
7. Ask each team EITHER to give brief feedback on how they worked together and what their final decision was, OR, if time allows, ask teams to prepare a more substantial presentation.
8. Lead a general debrief on the activity – there are lots of issues. Summarise the key lessons learned. Relate these to the workplace and how improvements might be made in real life.

Full instructions, discussion notes and learning points in the Trainer’s Notes.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• how, as a team, to address the overall planning process
• to ask the right questions early on, to identify key issues
• the importance of accuracy and attention to detail
• basic logistics
• to select the best personnel for the job
• to evaluate different options

CONTENTS

• Trainer’s Guide (supplied as a PDF)
• Team Brief (supplied as a PDF)
• Gozo Desert Map (supplied as a PDF)
• Handout: Critical Information (supplied as a PDF)
• Handout: Team Review Form (supplied as a PDF)
• Checklist (supplied as a PDF)
• Data Request Form (supplied as a PDF)

This Northgate training activity is delivered through an online portal and comes with a five-year licence for repeat use with up to 24 participants per training session within the license-holding organization.

The Expedition is designed by Northgate Training Activities.

This is a downloadable product. You will receive emailed instructions on how to download the software. It may take 1-3 days to receive this email, depending on the day of the week that the order is placed.

What's your Negotiation Style?

Defeating?

Accommodating?

Collaborating?

Withdrawing?

Compromising?

Everybody negotiates. Whether people are striving to hit their monthly sales quota, campaigning for a deadline extension, or pitching ideas to a team, the same principles apply.

There's more to effective negotiating than the outcome alone. In fact, building productive relationships is equally important. Skillful negotiators know this is the key to their success - and its what sets them apart from the rest.

Based on Ury and Fishers collaborative win-win model, and heavily influenced by the highly-respected Thomas-Kilmann conflict resolution model, the offers a simple framework for determining ones negotiating style and the likely effect it has in negotiating situations.

A powerful combination of self-assessment, 180 peer feedback, and classroom training, the Negotiating Style Profile identifies a preference for one of five negotiating styles: Defeating, Accommodating, Collaborating, Withdrawing, or Compromising.

Learning Outcomes

• Learn five styles of negotiating
• Identify personal negotiating style
• Discover why a win-win approach is most effective
• Learn how ones negotiating style is perceived by others
• Develop an action plan to improve negotiating-style strengths

The Negotiating Style Profile is an excellent starting point for anyone in your organization, from front-line employees to management team members and everyone in between.

How it Works

The Negotiating Style Profile self-assessment presents individuals with 30 statements. Their task is to choose one of seven possible responses, ranging from Completely Characteristic to Completely Uncharacteristic. Scores reveal a preference for one of five negotiating styles: Defeating, Accommodating, Collaborating, Withdrawing, or Compromising.

One self-assessment is needed for each particpant. The facilitator kit provides a sample and the self-assessment can be purchased separately (#RBSNSG).

The Negotiating Style Profile also offers a 180 feedback component that enables individuals to see how they are perceived by their peers. Combining the results of the self-assessment and the feedback provides individuals with an in-depth understanding of their natural tendencies as well as a starting point for improvement. Both pieces take approximately 20 minutes to complete. One hour is recommended for the interpretation of results, debrief, and goal setting.

The Negotiating Style Profile Facilitator Set includes tools to lead a 1 -hour classroom training workshop, including comprehensive background information, step-by-step instructions, optional activities, alternative training options, a reproducible article, and a professional Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. Trainer certification is not required to administer or facilitate the Negotiating Style Profile.

Uses and Applications

The Negotiating Style Profile can be used as a stand-alone learning instrument or part of a more comprehensive curriculum on topics such as negotiating, selling, communication, and conflict resolution. Its an excellent starting point to help individuals:

• Gain awareness of their current negotiating behavior.
• Prepare for an upcoming negotiation.
• Improve the planning and communication skills needed to be an effective negotiator.
• Practice negotiating with people who have different negotiating styles.
• Improve reasoning skills.

The Negotiating Style Profile is suitable for all individuals, especially supervisors, customer service representatives, managers, sales professionals, negotiators, and consultants.

3rd Edition
by Rollin Glaser, EdD and Christine Glaser, MEd

FUN INTERACTIVE ENGAGING! A TOOL FOR CREATIVITY & CONVERSATION

Piccles is a powerful, easy-to-use digital drawing tool designed to boost engagement, creativity, and collaboration in corporate training sessions. Perfect for in-person, virtual, and hybrid workshops, Piccles helps trainers facilitate interactive experiences that encourage participation, reflection, and team connection—no artistic skills required!

USE PICCLES A COLLECTIVE DRAWING EXPERIENCE FOR BRAIN-FRIENDLY TRAINING

• Break the Ice: Warm up sessions with creative, low-pressure activities that get participants thinking and sharing.
• Encourage Engagement: Replace passive learning with interactive, visual participation.
• Foster Connection: Help teams express ideas, emotions, and insights through simple drawings.
• Customize Prompts: Tailor drawing exercises to your training themes, from leadership development to DEI and team building.
• Share and Analyze: Instantly gather and display responses in real-time to spark discussions and insights.
• Engage the whole brain: Free your participants from analytical thinking, and invite more creative, divergent expression

HOW CORPORATE TRAINERS ARE USING PICCLES

Whether you’re running workshops on communication, innovation, or problem-solving, Piccles transforms training into an engaging and memorable experience. And, it's SO EASY!

1. Trainer/Facilitator sets a prompt (e.g., "Draw what success looks like to you")
2. Facilitator shares a QR code so that participants can easily access the platform
3. Participants sketch quick responses on their devices.
4. The group’s drawings are displayed together in real-time, creating a collective visual story.
5. Trainers use the images to drive discussion, reflection, and deeper learning.

Easy Setup | No Downloads Required | Works on Any Device

WATCH OUR SHOW & SHARE TO SEE IT IN ACTION

View a video explaining Piccles

All components -- except for the participant workbooks -- are reusable, although additional workbooks can be individually purchased. (See product code #GAMARLW)

The Leadership version is designed to help individuals become more effective leaders by allowing them to experience the differences between three contrasting styles of leadership --
traditional (command-and-control), passive, and collaborative.

The program is ideal for new and seasoned leaders as it provides them with a hands-on way to explore the three styles in depth and assess their advantages/disadvantages. This version introduces basic concepts such as communication, influence, and change management.

How it Works: In the Leadership version, participants work in teams to construct a rover, led by team member who (unknown to the rest of the team) adopts the traits of one of three contrasting leadership styles -- traditional, passive, or collaborative. Each of the three styles engenders very different feelings and emotions among team members. And together, they provide a very real demonstration of the effects different styles can have on morale, motivation, and performance.

Time required: 4 hours

Learning Outcomes: Experience the concept and benefits of facilitative leadership, learn how a facilitative leadership style generates a team atmosphere, discover the drawbacks of traditional (autocratic) or passive (uninvolved) styles of leadership, and recognize the balance between too much and too little authority.

The Leadership Game Kit includes all of the required components to facilitate the game, as well as an initial supply of workbooks for up to 18 participants.

Contents of Game Kit:

• Facilitator Guide
• 18 Workbooks
• 3 Game Parts Bags with K'NEX ® Pieces
• 1 Clear Plastic Wallet with Extra K'NEX ® Pieces
• 6 Blueprints
• 1 Set of 3 Leader Role Cards
• 3 Sets of 6 Task cards
• 1 set of 3 Now or Never Cards
• 1 Poster
• 1 Set of 3 Team Color Cards
• 19 HRDQue Cards
• 1 Tote Bag
• 1 USB FLASH DRIVE, which includes:
  Leadership Learning Overview
  Leadership PowerPoint Presentation
  Leadership Theory Background
  Leadership FAQ

Help teams learn how to surface, diagnose, and work through the issues that impede effective teamwork.

For more than 15 years, the Team Effectiveness Profile (TEP) has helped teams eliminate or reduce blockages in the 5 vital areas of team activity:

1. Mission, Vision, and Goals
2. Team Roles
3. Operating Processes
4. Interpersonal Relationships
5. Interteam Relationships

Learning Outcomes

• Identify issues that block effectiveness
• Reduce or eliminate problems that can drain a group's energy
• Maximize the group's productive efforts

Theory

The Team Effectiveness Profile focuses on the 5 Categories of Team Effectiveness. The first 4 of these categories are based on those presented by Richard Beckhard in Organization Development: Strategies and Models (1969). Interteam relationship theory is the basis for the fifth category.

How It Works

The TEP has been designed to function as a self-administered learning instrument. The TEP yields an overall Team Effectiveness Score as well as separate scores for each of the 5 areas indicating the general health of the group and blockages that hinder team effectiveness.

Uses for the TEP

Appropriate for any type of team and all levels of team members and leaders, the TEP can be used as a stand-alone instrument or as a component in a larger team-building program. The TEP can be used to:

• Measure pre-team building conditions
• Orient new teams to potential problems
• Unblock struggling teams
• Determine post- team-building results

We recommend administering the TEP periodically, as issues will change over a period a time.

What to Order/Product Contents

Order one Facilitator Set (#RBWTEF) per trainer and one Participant Guide (product code #RBWTEP, sold separately) per participant.

Facilitator Guide includes:

• Administrative guidelines
• Team development theory
• Experiential learning methodology
• Normative and reliability data
• Sample copy of the Participant Guide
• 2-hour workshop
• 6 optional activities
• 2 alternative training designs
• Overhead transparency masters
• Reproducible participant handouts
• Reproducible article Building a Winning Team
• CD-ROM containing all reproducible materials, certificate of achievement, training evaluation, PowerPoint presentation
• Convenient binder format

Participant Guide includes:

• 50-item profile
• Pressure-sensitive scoring form
• Interpretive information
• Descriptions of the 5 team effectiveness areas
• Discussion guide
• Action planning

The TEP is a HRDQ publication produced by Christine Glaser, Rollin Glaser, and the HRDQ Development Team.

RollaBall! is so much more than a team building activity. This multi-faceted inter-team development exercise emphasizes the need for multiple departments to work together toward a common goal. This challenge is SO fun! Each team is challenged to create one-third of a runway that will carry a ping-pong ball from the starting point to the end of the line. Each section of the runway will look different and require a different set of resources.

At first, teams won't know whether they should compete or collaborate--most assume it's a competition. At the outset, they're asked a set of multiple choice questions, which get them started in assembling the resources they'll need to build a ball slide. Over time and through a series of coordinated meetings, teams find that all they need each other in order to succeed. The dynamics of the exercise make it an excellent negotiation game, but it can also be used for communication skills training, project planning, and more.

This activity is for face-to-face classroom use. Digital files are supplied via the Northgate Trainerhub. You will receive an email within 48 hours of purchase with instructions on how to activate via the Northgate TrainerHub. You will need to supply your own hard copy contents (most of which you'll have in a work closet) and detailed below.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Practice working effectively within a team
• Uncover assumptions about competition
• Explore the advantages of collaboration with other teams
• Negotiate for limited resources
• Develop trust by sharing resources and information
• Communicate effectively
• Listening well to others

The Activity

Each team has to build one third of a runway to carry a ball from one end to the other. The three parts are:

• A tower and starting block plus the first section of the runway
• A longer piece of runway to include two curves
• An uphill section with a basket for the finish

Teams answer a set of multiple choice question to get the resources they need. Teams could share the answers with other teams but usually fail to do so. Nonetheless, each team will need to borrow resources from other groups or the complete structure will not be built. So why not share answers?

Once they have their resources, teams can begin building their runway parts - there is a meeting area where teams can discuss how the separate sections can fit together. The activity stresses the point that different departments need to work harmoniously together for success. What this means is sharing information readily and establishing good communications. Different parts of an organization are not rivals, they need to collaborate for success.

PARTICIPANTS

• 9-21 (three teams of 3-7 per team)

TIMING

• 1 hour + debrief

LEARN MORE

Trainer's Role

• Introduce the activity.
• Divide the group into three teams.
• Set up a neutral area for inter-team meetings.
• Issue Briefing Sheets and construction materials when teams answer multiple choice questions correctly.
• Observe the teams in action, noting behaviours. Often teams begin by trying to compete and by withholding information, whereas the whole point is to share information freely and work as one big team.
• Bring teams together and test the completed structure.
• Issue review forms and conduct a Debrief, rounding off with Action Plans for performance improvement.

Pack Contents

• Trainer's Notes
• Team Briefs A, B & C
• 20 Questions Forms
• Team Review Form

You will need to supply your own hard copy contents (most of which you'll have in a work closet) which include:

• 50 sheets of 8.5"x11" paper
• 3 Ping Pong Balls
• 3 rolls of Sticky-Tape
• 3 Pair of Scissors
• 3 Rulers
• Bag of Paperclips (approx. 90)
• Rubber Bands (approx. 100)

Analyzing and Improving Team Performance Just Got Easier-and More Affordable!

Quickly find out how your teams are performing with the Team Essentials Survey. It’s simple, affordable, and easily accessible. The assessment draws on the deep knowledge of Corporate Learning Institute’s Dr. Tim Buividas, and has been proven to be reliable and valid (see report).

FEATURES

• Snapshot views: see how your team performs in 6 success factors.
• Easy administration of assessment: Create an account and start launching your assessment right away. The Corporate Learning Institute is available to for support, as needed.
• Ready-to-Share Results: Clear, concise score are easy to read, and sharable instantly with others.
• Customizable: Customize your team assessment to include all 6 Team Essentials Success Factors, or just the few you want to focus on.
• Short Completion Time: It takes 10-25 mins to take the online assessment. Your exact time depends on the number of success factors you evaluate. Each trait has 3-6 subcategories and 4 questions.

6 FACTORS OF TEAM SUCCESS

Understand your strengths and weaknesses, AS A TEAM. Assess your team on 1 to 7 traits:

1. Support
2. Output
3. Effectiveness
4. Leadership
5. Individual Contributions
6. Infrastructure

TEAM ASSESSMENT REPORT PRESENTS ACTIONABLE RESULTS

• Color-coded, easy-to-read report: Includes a comprehensive 57-page Team Essentials Team Report. Each report is customized to the unique needs of your team.
• See where your team stands on each trait:
  • Blue – indicates your team’s overall score
  • Purple – shows norms of well-performing teams
  • Red – displays your opportunities for improvement
• Develop Unity – You’ll quickly see if there are areas where everyone ranks low or high, indicating group needs for growth or development
• Honor Diversity – understand where your team diverges in their approach or thinking. These indicate opportunities to discuss and bridge differences.
• Define Next Steps – develop an action plan to incorporate learning and continue to grow

INCLUDES ALL YOU NEED

• Facilitation Guide will help you conduct the assessment:
  • Administer test
  • Review results
  • Online tool to manage the team assessment
• Send pre- and post- emails, reminders, and results to team members
• Link to Assessments
• 57-page Team Assessment Report – after all team members have completed the assessment, youll receive a comprehensive, actionable report
• 1 hour Coaching/consulting support – call Corporate Learning Institute for 1 hour of support to help you get started or answer questions as you go.

Mars Rover Challenge (formerly Mars Surface Rover) provides a powerful, unique hands-on experience that allows participants to connect with the concept of collaboration at a deep and personal level. Participants are immersed in a team construction activity, whereby they are tasked by the World Space Agency to build a prototype rover for traversing Mars' rocky terrain.

All components -- except for the participant workbooks -- are reusable, although additional workbooks can be individually purchased. (See product code #GAMARTW)

The Teamwork version is designed to help individuals become more effective team members by allowing them to experience the differences between working collaboratively and working in "silos".

The program is ideal for established teams who are looking to increase their productivity, efficiency, and innovation and who may need to break free from unhealthy work habits. It is equally well suited for new teams who are striving to integrate collaboration into their developing team dynamic. This version introduces basic concepts such as interdependence, common goals, and diversity with an unconventional simulation.

How it Works: In the Teamwork version, the game is split into two rounds. In both rounds participants work in teams to construct a rover, but with varying approaches to work. In the first round, they simulate working in "silos" as they withhold information and complete their assigned tasks individually. In the second round, participants simulate working collaboratively as they communicate information and tasks openly and work together to design the rover they think has the best chance of completing its mission. The end result in each round usually is markedly different, and the process and outcomes make for lively discussion and usually quite a few "Ah-Ahs!" as they realize the effects the two different approaches to work have on morale, motivation, and performance.

Time required: 4.5 hours

Learning Outcomes: Recognize the distinction between a team and a group, understand how teammates responsibilities are interdependent, and realize the importance of continual communication within the team.

Contents of Game Kit:

• Facilitator Guide
• 18 Workbooks
• 3 Game Parts Bags with K'NEX ® Pieces
• 1 Clear Plastic Wallet with Extra K'NEX ® Pieces
• 6 Blueprints
• 3 Sets of 6 Task cards
• 1 Poster
• 1 Tote Bag
• 1 USB FLASH DRIVE, which includes:
  Teamwork Learning Overview
  Teamwork PowerPoint Presentation
  Teamwork Theory Background
  Teamwork FAQ

Part of the HRDQ game series.

The Better Teams Online Coaching Assessment is like getting a personal coach for your whole team. The 35-question assessment helps you identify on your team’s critical issues so you can work together more effectively and knock your team building out of the park! Have EVERY TEAM MEMBER take the test, then see how you stack up as a group.

ONLINE TEAM ASSESSMENT FEATURES

The Better Teams model focuses on five critical areas necessary for a high-functioning team. After each person on the team completes the assessment, you'll see a profile of your whole group's strengths and weaknesses, in terms of these 5 critial facets of team succes:

• Leadership
• Alignment
• Readiness
• Happiness
• Trust

The questionnaire includes 30-multiple choice questions (6 for each of the 5 disciplines of team effectiveness) plus 5 open-ended questions. Responses are compiled into a single, anonymous team report.

INCLUDES

• 35-question Online Assessment (takes about 15 minutes to complete)
• Leaders Guide
• 20-page Assessment Report

[NOTE: repeat purchase is required for follow-up assessments or additional teams.]

COMPLETE TEAM ASSESSMENT REPORT!

The Better Teams Online Coaching Assessment provides you with an easy-to-understand, thorough, 20-page report. Use the report to quickly understand your group’s strengths and blind spots. stimulate discussions about how the team is doing and what the team wants to do to increase their productivity, efficiency, and satisfaction. At a glance, you’ll see:

• Team’s average score for each of the 5 focus areas
• Team’s average for the 3 characteristics of each focus area
• Dimensions on which the team is polarized and lacks agreement
• Range of answers on each multiple-choice question that the team answered. If a team scored low on a certain attribute, they have an opportunity to discuss
• Synthesis of answers to open-ended questions.

Energize and engage your team by empowering them interpret the results and determine what actions to take. All you need to do is follow the simple debrief guide and facilitate the discussion to help the team create strategies and actions that they own.

[NOTE: You’ll receive the report about 48 business hours, after every person on the team has completed the assessment.]

EASY-TO-USE LEADERS GUIDE

Facilitate team discussions about the results of the assessment. Simple follow the Leaders Debrief Guide to coach your team through a productive debrief meeting that results in actions. Plan for 2-4 hours.

GROUNDED IN DECADES OF EXPERIENCE

The team assessment aligns with the Better Teams Model developed by Leigh Ann Rodgers, CPF, and is based on her experience working with teams for over 20 years.

REVIEWS & TESTIMONIALS

"The team participants found the survey easy to use and the report results equally user friendly. The “5 Qualities” of a happy and high-performing team is a useful overall framework. These characteristics are like the iceberg below the water line. Companies don’t always see them or pay attention to them on a day-to-day basis. When the team adds comments on the survey for each question, it opens the door in the live review session to bring up sensitive but important conversations that team members are unlikely to bring up on their own in a live meeting. The facilitator guide is a great help in preparing for the actual review meeting with the team." ~ September Spore, Consultant, Meeting Facilitator, Change Coach

"As an LD/OD consultant I have always looked for an assessment that spoke to teams and their leaders about the impact of trust on their success. Trust is the 'wrapper' of the Better Teams Assessment model and provides real time speak without the buzzwords to help each team member leverage themselves and each other more productively. The Better Teams Model helps teams and their leaders gain real alignment on what they need from each other by encouraging conversation about what may be getting in the way of a trusting working environment." ~ Beverly Winkler, President, Inspire Leadership Now, LLC

"Helping people work effectively as a team is a core aspect of my group process facilitation business. When I searched for a team model and assessment, I found that the Better Teams Model was exactly what I wanted! It helps teams assess their work and relationships and gives me a rich way to support them." ~ Barbara Pedersen, CPF, Barbara Pedersen Facilitation Services Inc.

What's your Negotiation Style?

Defeating? Accommodating? Collaborating? Withdrawing? Compromising?

Use the Negotiating Style Profile Self-assessment and Participant Book to find out!

This assessment accompanies the Negotiating Style Profile Facilitator Guide (#RBSNSF), which is sold separately. The program requires 1 Self-Assessment per participant in a session.

11 pages, paperbound

Everybody negotiates. Whether people are striving to hit their monthly sales quota, campaigning for a deadline extension, or pitching ideas to a team, the same principles apply.

There's more to effective negotiating than the outcome alone. In fact, building productive relationships is equally important. Skillful negotiators know this is the key to their success - and its what sets them apart from the rest.

Based on Ury and Fishers collaborative win-win model, and heavily influenced by the highly-respected Thomas-Kilmann conflict resolution model, the offers a simple framework for determining ones negotiating style and the likely effect it has in negotiating situations.

A powerful combination of self-assessment, 180 peer feedback, and classroom training, the Negotiating Style Profile identifies a preference for one of five negotiating styles: Defeating, Accommodating, Collaborating, Withdrawing, or Compromising.

Learning Outcomes

• Learn five styles of negotiating
• Identify personal negotiating style
• Discover why a win-win approach is most effective
• Learn how ones negotiating style is perceived by others
• Develop an action plan to improve negotiating-style strengths

The Negotiating Style Profile is an excellent starting point for anyone in your organization, from front-line employees to management team members and everyone in between.

In this interactive session, we'll explore why building relationships is difficult for adults, discuss the different types of relationships you might want to build and then identify some concrete ways to do it - by asking the right questions, setting ground rules when needed, and having meaningful conversations! Topics covered include the dreaded icebreaker; defining relationship goals; the interdependence of communication, relationships, and trust; the need to ask questions and the "right" types of questions to ask; and the importance of making yourself vulnerable. Attendees will come away with fresh thinking and concrete tools to help them foster communication and relationships with their teams and colleagues.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Enhance facilitation techniques for breaking the ice
2. Develop skills to foster communication
3. Improve ability to ask probing questions
4. Understand the dynamics of building trust and strengthening relationships
5. Better navigate difficult conversations
6. Explore the Pillar of Trust, the power of Vulnerability, and the Certainty/Curiosity Continuum

WHAT TO EXPECT

We practice what we preach! Expect a session that is:

• CUSTOMIZED: Each session is tailored to the needs of the group
• INTERACTIVE- engaging, participator, brain friendly, and active
• ONLINE: Sessions are delivered online (unless in the Boston area)
• PLATFORM: Sessions are typically delivered on Zoom
• TIME: 45-minutes (give or take). If you need a 30- or 60-minute session, we will adapt to your needs

To learn more or schedule a session, click here: https://calendly.com/susan-trainerswarehouse/30min

Additional Workbooks to go with Mars Rover Challenge Deluxe Game Kit (#GAMARD)

The Mars Rover Challenge Teamwork Module gives audiences firsthand experience with the power of collaboration and allows participants to explore how their approach to accomplishing tasks affects team dynamics, productivity and results.

The Mars Rover Challenge Teamwork Module Workbook deepens participants' understanding of the content and is used both before and after the game. Organized and easy to follow, it includes participants' mission in the game, individual and group activities, and a personal development plan — plus a bonus HRDQue Card.

Order one Workbook for each participant.

New! – The EQ Game for Healthcare – Virtual Build 

This new game contains 20 all-new situations unique to health care environments—medical office, hospital, health care teams.

Emotional Intelligence—wherever you are! Whether you're running a team meeting, virtual classroom, or remote training session, this online version of The EQ Game for Healthcare makes it easy to build emotional intelligence skills from anywhere.

THE EQ GAME * OVERVIEW

• Purpose: Build emotional intelligence by exploring real-world challenges and identifying skills to navigate them. Foster deep conversations and team connection. EQ Game makes learning the skill of emotional intelligence fun, interactive, and memorable.

• Format: Online/virtual game—perfect for Zoom, Teams, or other video platforms

• Time Required: Up to 90 minutes for Parts 1 and 2 combined. However, those with less time can use just a handful of the situations, adapting to their specific needs.

EQ GAME FOR HEALTHCARE VIRTUAL EDITION * INCLUDES

These 7 files (conveniently compressed into a single .ZIP file) will give you all you need to conduct the game as a single large group experiences, or in the format of 4 breakout groups:

FACILITATING THE EQ GAME VIRTUAL EDITION

The game is facilitated in two parts. Part 1 builds the first two Emotional Intelligence skills and Part 2 helps develop the second two skills.

PART 1: SELF-AWARENESS & SELF-MANAGEMENT

Focusing on the first two pillars of emotional intelligence, PART 1 presents 20 typical situations that anyone might encounter at work. Each situation includes two slides:

• Slide 1: shows a scenario with two questions—

  • How are you feeling?
  • What will you do to manage your feelings?—plus sample responses.

• Slide 2: answers the questions - by offering additional answers for both questions, players can compare their answers to other typical responses. Reiterate that the answers shown on the slides are there as suggestions. There are never "right" feelings. The goal instead is to grow more familiar with noticing and labeling feelings.

PART 2: SOCIAL AWARENESS & RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

Part 2 adds to Part 1 by asking participants to focus on the second two skills associated with Emotional Intelligence: Social Awareness and Relationship Management. Part 2 presents 20 typical work situations, with the goal of moving from identifying and managing feelings to taking action in ways that reflect social awareness and strengthen relationships.

• Introduction slides
• Slide 1: shows a scenario with four questions
  • How are you feeling?
  • What will you do to manage your feelings?
  • How can you tune into your co-worker?
  • What relationship skills can you use?
• Slide 2: answers the questions - as noted above, suggested answers are offered for guidance, not as "final say."

FACILITATING & SCORING THE GAME

FLOW OF THE GAME

1. Show the first slide and ask participants to put themselves in the scenario. Read the sample feelings and actions.
2. Then ask, “What else are you feeling?”, empahsizing that feelings are one-word emotions (e.g., angry, happy), not thoughts or interpretations.
3. After players list their feelings, ask: “How will you manage those feelings?” Read the example.
4. Then ask, “What else can you do?” Keep the focus on Self-Management, not problem-solving the situation itself.
5. Finally, have teams self-score the round, based on the scoring protocols below.

PLAY AS A GROUP OR IN BREAK-OUTS

LARGE GROUP - If you're playing as one big group, you'll present the Situations one at a time. You can either follow the game sequence or pick and choose your favorites.

BREAKOUTS - Alternatively, participants can work through a subset of Situations in small groups. Each of the four groups will get 5 situations in Part 1 and 4 situations in Part 2.

SCORING THE EQ GAME

• Each time a participant names a feeling or a self-management technique, they get 1 point.
• Each time a participant provides a social awareness action or relationship management technique, they get 1 point.
• Participants can win additional points by:
  • Giving an example of a situation they have experienced – 2 points
  • Giving an example of an empathetic statement – 2 points
• Participants keep track of their own points.

The Intentional Collaboration Game takes players on a journey from working alone to true co-creation — exploring the full spectrum from Isolation to Cooperation to genuine Collaboration. This one-of-a-kind, LEGO-based learning experience unfolds in three engaging rounds:

Round 1 – Isolation: Each player works independently, building "something useful" using only their own set of single-colored LEGO bricks, hidden behind a paper divider.

Round 2 – Cooperation: Players invite a partner to offer suggestions — and even share their own uniquely colored pieces — to enhance and improve each other's creations. This simulates both the pros of focused, undistracted work, and the cons of limited resources and ideas. Each still works on their own project, but now they share ideas and resources.

Round 3 – Collaboration: Groups of three (or more) now move into true co-creation, sharing ideas and combining all of the LEGOs into a unified, shared vision.

By the end, what began as three separate, single-hued builds evolves into a vibrant, multi-colored expression of collective creativity. Each team member can literally see what they contributed to the collaborative creation!

WHAT MAKES IT POWERFUL?

Throughout the exercise, participants experience a full range of reactions — focus, admiration, inspiration, confusion, disappointment, excitement, frustration, and more. Along the way, they'll discover firsthand the pros and cons of each engagement style:

• Isolation: Team members enjoy full autonomy, "flow," and freedom of expression — but quickly encounter the limits of working with only their own resources, perspective, and ideas.
• Cooperation: Team members experience resource sharing, synergy, and flexibility emerge as real benefits of working together— as well as the challenges of communication, conflicting ideas, and compromise.
• Collaboration: Unexpected innovation and shared ownership become possible — alongside the complexities of joint decision-making, personality differences, and group dynamics.

KEY TAKE-AWAYS

This experience gives groups a compelling, hands-on way to explore:

• Balancing quiet focus and “flow” with dynamics of input and feedback – when are each necessary
• Ownership of ideas – independent and/or shared
• Differences in style (who likes/dislikes working alone)
• Differentiating “Cooperation” from “Collaboration.”
• Unequal allocation of resources — and what that means for equity and fairness
  
• Negotiating for additional resources
• Competition vs. Collaboration – is sharing resources hard?
• Leadership / Communication dynamics (who speaks a lot/little)
• Dismantling work you’ve already done to accommodate others
• Group decision making
• Team identity: Me vs. the Team
• Time Management
• Evaluating Multiple Options and Visions
  
• Being intentional about independence vs. collaboration

WHAT'S INCLUDED

Everything you need for three participants:

• 1 Set of Facilitator Notes (available 5/20/2026)
• 3 Participant Workbooks
• 3 Bags of LEGO pieces (each a different single color — one per player; NOTE: color packs will be selected randomly from 7 different options –red/purple, yellow/green, blue, white, brown, black))
• 4 LEGO minifigures (distributed to one player only)
• 4–6 LEGO wheel sets (distributed to one player only)
• 3 Paper Dividers (for privacy during Round 1)

Developer, John Riordan, Explains the Experience

Note: Players do not receive identical sets of bricks — and that's intentional. Differences in piece type, quantity, and shape naturally spark conversations about resource scarcity, inequity, and fairness.

by John Newstrom (Author), Edward Scannell (Author)

Did you know that games can be a terrifically effective way to build team spirit, communication, and trust among people who work together day in and day out? Now you can spark morale in any work group by choosing from 70 stimulating games and activities specifically designed for the manager who's looking to raise sagging morale in a department, liven up boring staff meetings, enable team members to collaborate smoothly and effectively, and much more

Back Jacket

The fun way to lift morale in any work group!

Did you know that games can be a terrifically effective way to build team spirit, communication, and trust among people who work together day in and day out? Team-building games and activities are so stimulating and enjoyable that everyone in the department actually looks forward to them! Now you can choose from 70 varied and imaginative games and activities that have been specifically designed for the manager who's looking to:

• Raise sagging morale in a department
• Liven up boring staff meetings
• Improve communication
• Promote a culture of harmony and cooperation
• Have fun with your work team

Each of these games is fast, creative, easy-to-lead, and will help you accomplish your team building goals. Learn valuable tips on how to present games and how to select activities for particular situations. Get essential advice on what not to do when leading games, and much more!

Author Biography

Dr. John W. Newstrom and Edward E. Scannell are respected authors, professional speakers, and seminar leaders. They are the coauthors of McGraw-Hill's best-selling Games Trainers Play series, which has sold more than 250,000 copies.

by Mary Scannell (Author), Michael Abrams (Author), Mike Mulvihill (Author)

Get remote team members to interact as if they're in the same room

Whether you're videoconferencing with team members across the world or e-mailing a colleague sitting ten feet away, the truth is evident: technology has permanently altered the way we communicate. The virtual workplace can facilitate quicker decision making and reduced overhead. But the lack of face-to-face interaction can also impede trust, innovation, and creativity among team members.

The Big Book of Virtual Team-Building Games is packed with games and activities for developing productive virtual teams across all digital platforms, including e-mail, mobile devices, web-based conferencing tools, and social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Skype.

The Big Book of Virtual Team-Building Games helps you:

• Build a greater sense of community and reduce conflict
• Increase levels of engagement
• Get the most out of more-introverted team members
• Boost team members' productivity

Make sure that the only thing separating your people is distance. The Big Book of Virtual Team-Building Games is just the tool you need to develop trusting relationships, foster clear communication, and use technology to enhance the team's connections.

Author Biography

Mary Scannell has worked as a consultant, speaker, writer, and trainer for the past twenty years. She is coauthor of The Big Book of Team-Motivating Games and author of The Big Book of Conflict-Resolution Games.
Michael Abrams is senior director of talent optimization for Banner Healthcare and founder of LearnCamp Phoenix.
Mike Mulvihill is the founder of PossibiliTEAMS Corporate Team Building & Training.

by Mary Scannell (Author), Jim Cain (Author)

Make training a game that everyone can win!

Featuring activities and exercises designed for groups of any size, The Big Book of Low-Cost Training Games proves that training can still deliver outstanding results, even when you're watching the bottom line.

Whether you're a trainer or facilitator, a group leader or manager, you'll find the games in this book are excellent tools for building trust, exploring character, fostering collaboration, and demonstrating more effective communication techniques. Better still, with minimal props like index cards and markers, these activities are not just cost-effective but are also simple to set up and can be done virtually anywhere.

From painless icebreakers to group challenges to meaningful community-building projects, The Big Book of Low-Cost Training Games is your winning game plan for maximizing group engagement and getting the most ROI from your training budget.

Author Biography

MARY SCANNELL has worked as a consultant, speaker, writer, and trainer for the past 20 years. She is coauthor of several books, including The Big Book of Brainstorming Games and The Big Book of Virtual Team-Building Games.
JIM CAIN is the author of nine books of team and community-building activities, including Teamwork & Teamplay and Essential Staff Training Activities.

by Craig McFadyen (Author), Derek Good (Author)

Black & White Version.If you are a people manager, trainer, coach or just someone who has to engage people this book is for you. This book of 101 activities, energizers, icebreakers and stories has been designed with over 30 years joint training experience by two corporate trainers who know how hard it can be to keep teams and groups engaged. Whether you are looking to spice up your training courses, energise your team meetings, raise team morale or simply have some fun with your teams this book will help you achieve that. Each activity has a consistent format and is broken down into categories to make it quick and easy for you to find the one that will suit your needs. Activities range from full-on team building and communication activities down to quick fun energisers you can do on the spot. With each activity carefully chosen and laid out to ensure you have maximum opportunity of success, we have also ensured you won't break the bank by needing lots of expensive or complicated materials to run these activities. You may not have the time or budget to run full blown training courses but by using this book there is nothing stopping you from creating more engagement, energy and fun with your teams or groups.

by Doni Tamblyn (Author), Sharyn Weiss (Author)

To produce changes that last beyond the classroom, training games must engage restless audiences, keep them interested­­and make learning fun!

The Big Book of Humorous Training Games uses witty, engaging games to create memorable lessons in numerous basic training topics, including customer service, teambuilding, creative problem solving, time management, and more. Step-by-step instructions work with dozens of reproducible handouts and worksheets help trainers and speakers minimize preparation time­­and maximized training success.

Back Jacket

The latest mind-brain research confirms something every trainer has long suspected: that people think and learn better when the process is fun. The Big Book of Humorous Training Games features 50 unique experiential training activities that create memorable learning on topics ranging from management skills, change, and emotional intelligence to dealing with difficult people.

This easy-to-read manual gives step-by-step directions that will help new and veteran trainers infuse their workshops with humor, fun and creativity. Each chapter in the book offers fie games to teach a popular, business-related topic. You get:

• Theoretical background on the topic
• A suggested amusing introduction for each activity
• Step-by-step directions
• Reproducible handouts
• Recommended debriefing questions

The book is peppered throughout with comic delivery tips to enhance your comfort with the material.

The Big Book of Humorous Training Games will help you to tap into your natural ability to use humor. Find out how to hold your learners' attention, and design training sessions that will drive home the essential skills they need.

Author Biography

Doni Tamblyn, is President of the San Francisco based training company, Humor Rules. Over the past 10 years she has delivered hundreds of seminars and presentations to organizations around the world.

Sharyn Weiss, is a performance consultant and trainer with 15 years of experience working with non-profit and corporate groups. she has an MA in Training and Development. This is her second book on experiential training.

45 science-backed practices to move a room from stressed to steady

Your learners walk in carrying whatever the morning handed them — the tense commute, the hard conversation, challenges at home, the inbox they didn't finish. Before any real learning lands, their nervous systems have to feel settled enough to engage. Calm Cards give you a fast, credible way to help them get there.

Developed by Holstee with nervous-system specialist Jonny Miller, each of the 45 cards distills one evidence-based practice — breathwork, somatic techniques, mindfulness, reflection — into something a person can actually do in two to five minutes. The through-line is real physiology: these practices help activate the parasympathetic "rest-and-digest" response, ease the cortisol surge that comes with fight-flight-freeze, and bring the thinking brain back online. Which is exactly the state you want people in before you ask them to learn, collaborate, or lead.

The deck sorts into five entry points — Body, Awareness, Emotions, Connection, and Reflection — so you can match the practice to the moment instead of hoping one generic "take a breath" works for everyone.

What's in the box

• 45 practices on oversized 4" × 6" cards
• Five categories: Body, Awareness, Emotions, Connection, Reflection
• Soft-touch box that travels well and lives easily on a desk
• Folded guide with five core principles and a plain-language glossary
• Bonus access to Jonny Miller's guided-audio app for practices you can extend beyond the room

Put them to work

Resilience training. Resilience isn't the absence of stress — it's how fast you recover from it. Have participants use the Awareness cards to name their own early warning signs, then build a personal "reset kit" of three or four Body or Emotion cards they'll genuinely reach for. In a multi-session program, revisit the kit each time: what did they actually use, what worked, what do they swap in? You're teaching recovery as a trainable skill, not a mindset poster.

Stress management. Skip the lecture on the amygdala and let them feel it instead. Deal a Body or Awareness card to each table, give everyone three minutes to try the practice, then debrief: what shifted, what didn't, what surprised you? The physiology teaches itself. Leave cards on the tables as between-session resets, or send people home with one to test-drive before the next module.

Team building & leadership. The Connection cards are built for co-regulation — and a team that can down-shift together handles conflict and pressure far better than one that can't. Use a draw-and-share card as a meeting or workshop check-in ritual. For leaders, the move is modeling: open a high-stakes conversation with a grounding practice, and coach them to read their own state before they react. A leader who can catch their own fight-flight-freeze is a leader people stay calm around.

One facilitation note: these practices are trauma-informed by design, so keep participation invitational. Offer the practice, never require it — and let people opt out of body-based or sharing exercises without explanation. That "you choose" framing is what keeps the room feeling safe enough to actually try.