Lego & Kelloggs

Lego

Lego almost needs no introduction as many of us as children played with the brightly colored building pieces. With these pieces many of us built castles, dream homes, and entire cities. Those that were industrious could fabricate elaborate animals, people and even machines. As these little pieces of plastic have inspired generations of children the company also strives to inspire its leaders and employees to construct teams that are functional and empowered to plan and implement change.

The company realized that “All too often, executive, design, and management teams work sub-optimally, resulting in the following:” (Rasmussen, 2006)

• Valuable knowledge remains untapped in team members.

• The team makes poor decisions based on illusion rather than reality.

• The team reacts to events unconsciously rather than consciously and with intention.

To tackle this challenge the company has developed “LEGO Serious Play.” “The goal of LEGO Serious Play, or LSP, is to encourage each individual’s desire to make that commitment. Our job is done when:” (Rasmussen, 2006)

• New insights have been uncovered and the experience, knowledge, and understanding of each member have been accessed.

• Team members feel more confident and motivated to act on the knowledge that has been shared.

• Team members feel more committed to shared action.

• The team is better prepared to respond optimally to the unknown.

The premise behind LSP is to have the team members to build models that represent the obstacles or challenges they see within the team as well as the strategy. This gives the benign way for the participant to express their concerns, fears, suspicions and the like without repercussions.

“One can prepare for the unexpected by constructing new knowledge, by sharing meaning with others, and by maintaining an open, poised, and curious attitude toward change. LEGO Serious Play is a process tool that prepares teams emotionally to embrace change.” By allowing team members to play the company has found a way to overcome the challenges of personalities and attitudes within the team.

Kellogg’s

Chances are you have one or more Kellogg’s products in the pantry. Many have started their day with “Tony the Tiger” or “Toucan Sam” in their bowl. Being one of the most loved and largest cereal manufactures in the world does not make them immune to