I have posted 2 exercises so far exercise1 and exercise2, this is my third one.

Tennis Balls: Divide the participants up into small groups of about eight to ten people and have them arrange themselves in a circle. Give a tennis ball to one person and explain the rules of the game:

1. Each group is in competition with the other groups in the room. The group who can complete the most “circuits” in a given time will be the winner.
2. A completed circuit occurs when every person in the group has touched the tennis ball.
3. Only one person in the group can touch the tennis ball at one time (therefore the ball must be tossed rather than passed.)
4. If the ball ever touches the floor, then production must stop for one-minute.
5. Tell the team to imagine the ball as project and tell them they have to handle this project very well.
   

Have the teams complete a few circuits to get comfortable and begin creating patterns that make them more efficient. The facilitator may want to stop the groups and get feedback as to how they are becoming more efficient and help them understand that this is a natural progression in business as well. Have the groups continue to complete circuits, but as time progresses, the facilitator will add additional rules to make the process more difficult.

• A Co-Worker calls in Sick–Remove one of the group participants and tell the group that the participant called in sick. After they complete a few circuits, remind them that just because someone calls in sick, doesn’t mean that that person’s work doesn’t need to be completed. (They will probably have just continued to complete the circuit just as they had before the person left.) Remind them that each of their last few circuits have had one fewer touches than before, so they do not count. Someone will have to pick up the slack for the absent person. After a new pattern is established, have the person come back.
• Double Production–Throw a second ball into the mix and tell the group that our client wants us to double production. Only one ball can be held by any one person at a time. You can add a third or even fourth ball later.

Use your imagination to come up with other rules and be sure to have a prize for the winning team. At the end of the game, ask the group how did the game relate to things they face in the business world.

Last time I posted the first exercise I took in my team building session. This is the second one.

Set up numbered paper plates in the following pattern on the floor or take a printout of this pattern and pass it to each team.

The rules of this exercise are:

1. The exercise is completed when all plates are touched in numerical order.
2. If any plate is touched out of order, then the participants must begin again at one.
3. Only one plate can be touched at a time.
4. Coaching from the team is encouraged.
5. The exercise will be timed.

Solutions:

1. Pattern: After a few times through the exercise, this pattern will begin to develop.

9	41	33	29	1		10	42	34	30	2
49	17	13	21	53		50	18	14	22	54
5	25	37	45	57		6	26	38	46	58
12	44	36	32	4		11	43	35	31	3
52	20	16	24	56		51	19	15	23	55
8	28	40	48	60		7	27	39	47	59

2. Rearrange Plates: Creative teams may decide to rearrange the plate into an easier order. As the facilitator, you must tell them to restart the exercise every time they touch a plate out of order. Teams really thinking outside the box will ignore this distraction and continue putting plates in an easier order.

3. Other solutions your team may invent.