Supply Chain
Supply Chain is a medium-energy team building activity for groups of 8–32 people.
What it is
While the exercise is technically simple, there is the need for quality of performance and efficiency. Many of the group's norms and unwritten 'rules' will put barriers in the way and will decrease performance.
As the participants become more practiced at accomplishing the task, many strange events begin to happen. Here are just a few:
Leadership may change once the planning has been accomplished and the task needs to be accomplished quickly. Are there some team members who only like to plan, but not implement the details? This event will let the participants experience both.
Many times, if the plan is not working, new ideas are squelched because they are new and there is a time deadline. How often does this happen at work?
Integrity is sacrificed because of the timeline. Many individuals and groups sacrifice their integrity to achieve the larger goal. This brings that difficult subject to light as participants 'cheat' in order to finish in the shortest amount of time. If this is a simple game, what happens at work when the stakes are much higher? This exercise provides a safe space to discuss this difficult topic.
This event is also a good way to examine individual team member's sense of value , accountability and commitment to their team. This is an incredibly valuable exercise.
This exercise is run equally well indoors and out.
What happens
Giving each participant a 'link' in the chain, the group must pass marbles from point A to point B through each participant's' link' without touching the marbles. The distance between A and B can be either far, which allows the game to be run equally well inside or out.
Who it's for
Groups who would benefit from seeing how each person plays a valuable role.
Especially useful to show interdepartmental dependence, i.e. sales, admin, warehouse. The game shows how each group plays a valuable, and necessary, role.
What the group learns
from Supply Chain?
A sense of commitment to the group.
The need for quality as well as quantity.
Variations
- For a more difficult version, don't allow the Supply Chain to touch together when transferring the marbles.
- Allow each participant to use only one hand.
- Use a lighter object (bead, bean, etc.) or heavier object (small steel ball).
- Have them share a track with a partner.
- Put the team on silence or blindfold one or more of the members.
- Put the tracks very close together.