Learning Activity 11-1: Ice-Breaker Mini-Project for One- and Two-Day Session

GOALS

The goals of this activity are:

• to introduce workshop participants to one another

• to demonstrate the estimation and completion of a mini-project

• to discuss models for evaluating project success.

MATERIALS

• Training Instrument 11-1: Scoring Grid for Team Projects

• flipchart and marker for instructor

• notepaper or Post-It notes for participants.

TIME

• approximately 25 minutes

INSTRUCTIONS

Let the participants know they will be working on a mini-project to gather information about the people in the room. When they have completed the project, each team should be able to introduce any person in the room* and provide the following pieces of information:

• name

• department and job title

• city of birth

• favorite movie

• what he or she considers to be the greatest project ever completed in history.

Each team will elect a project manager in any way they choose (often by whoever is slowest at pointing across the table!). The project manager and team will have three minutes to discuss their strategies for completing the project and will provide the facilitator with a ‚“sealed bid ‚½ indicating how long it will take their team to complete.

On the flipchart, draw a copy of Training Instrument 11-1 and explain the scoring model:

The participants ‚ final score will be their actual completion time plus half of the difference between their estimated and actual times. For example, if they estimate 10 minutes to complete the project and finish two minutes late (at 12 minutes), their score will be:

If they estimate 10 minutes to complete and actually take only eight minutes, their score will be:

After presenting the scoring model, give them their three minutes of strategy time and collect the ‚“sealed bids ‚½ for the estimate.

Tell them ‚“Go! ‚½ and note the lapsed time using Post-It notes on the top of the flipchart.

When a team completes the project, verify the following:

• they have collected all of the data

• they have included everyone in the room (including you).

Allow every team to complete the project if possible.

Assign each team to introduce the team at the table clockwise from them. Ask participants to stand when introduced so everyone can see them. Note any particularly interesting facts uncovered, especially about the project they thought the greatest of all time.

Debrief the project as follows :

• How was it like a real project?

• What worked especially well?

• What would they do differently if they were to conduct a similar project in the future?

• What do they think of the scoring model? (Why, for instance, is it fair to incur a slight penalty for completing early?)