Ice breakers for senior leaders that aren't cringeworthy
The best ice breakers for senior leaders do real work: they get everyone talking within minutes and surface something useful for the day, rather than asking people to share a fun fact.
Senior leaders can spot a forced ice breaker from the car park. These ones are quick, purposeful and tell you something you need for the rest of the day.
For leadership away days, SLT offsites, strategy days and retreats.
Eight that work with senior teams
One thing I would stop
5 minutes
Everyone names one thing the business should stop doing. Write them up. You now have half your afternoon agenda.
The headline or press release
10 to 15 minutes
Write the newspaper headline, or a short press release, about your company a year from now, if this year goes brilliantly. Read them out. Spot the patterns.
What I am protecting
10 minutes
Each person says what they will be quietly defending today: a team, a budget, a project. Naming it takes the heat out.
Two truths and a bet
10 minutes
Two true things about your area this year, and one bet you would make on next year. The bets are the interesting part.
My user manual
15 minutes
How I like to receive bad news, how I make decisions, what frustrates me. Useful for new teams.
Rose, thorn, bud
10 minutes
Something going well, something painful, something with potential. Quick, honest, and it sets the tone.
The confidence vote warm-up
10 minutes
Read a bold statement about the business and vote one to five. Ask the ones and fives why. Instant debate.
The terrible trophy
2 minutes
A truly awful, nearly worthless trophy goes on the table. It is only won if, by the end of the day, the team has created a good strategy it believes in. Everyone wants it.
What to avoid
Fun facts
Nobody remembers them, and senior people resent the time.
Anything physical without warning
Not everyone wants to stand up, hold hands or be blindfolded.
Forced confession
Personal stories should be invited, never required.
Or let us warm the room up
Serious planning. Silly props.
Our four-hour warm-up opens away days and retreats. Inflatable unicorns, sacks of gold and a car dealer's coat, in service of a plan your team believes in. People arrive relaxed, honest and thinking strategically, and the rest of the event moves faster.
Questions people ask first
Do senior leaders need ice breakers?
Not the cheesy kind. They do need a quick way to get every voice in early, because whoever speaks first tends to set the frame for the rest of the day.
How long should an ice breaker take?
Five to fifteen minutes. If it runs longer, it should be doing real work for the agenda.
Related
Last updated
Tell us what has to be decided.
Thirty minutes with Matt Roberts. Tell us who'll be in the room and what you need by the end, and we'll tell you how we'd run it.