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Let your hands do the thinking!: Lego bricks, strategic thinking and ideas generation within organizations
Abstract
Purpose
– The aim of this viewpoint article is to offer a reflection on the author's personal understanding and experience of using the Lego® Serious Play® methodology to help teams address core strategy and creativity challenges within their organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
– This is a viewpoint paper.
Findings
– By using metaphors, imagination and story‐making to facilitate a better understanding of core strategic challenges and defining moments in the life of organizations and teams, LSP also satiates the current organizational thirst for stories and meaning.
Originality/value
– The rewards of serious play are tangible and plentiful.
... Papert and Harel 1991). This theory states that people learn especially when they are physically involved and thus create objects (Hadida 2013). Because of the 'think through the hands' principle, both creative, spontaneous action and deeper learning are enabled. ...
... It promotes collaboration, bonding, as well as communication (e.g. Althouse and Hedges 2015; Geithner and Menzel 2016;Hadida 2013), and it offers a riskfree environment in which participants can freely experiment and interact with one another (Althouse and Hedges 2015). This stimulates fantasy, creativity, and the generation of ideas (e.g. ...
... In this respect, the LSP team training fostered the team building process. This is because building models about themselves and about good teamwork and the subsequent explaining and mutual discussion promote interaction, communication, cooperation, and commitment (Althouse and Hedges 2015;Geithner and Menzel 2016;Hadida 2013;James 2014;Lotts 2016). ...
Students are often confronted with challenging situations when working together in teams. To successfully overcome such situations, remain productive, and achieve their study goal, students need to develop resilience capabilities. However, until now, there has been only scant research on resilience in student teams and opportunities for its development. This study aims to explore how LEGO® Serious Play® (LSP) as a play-oriented training approach can help to develop resilience capabilities in student teams. We used a qualitative research approach and formed three groups of student teams that had to work on the same case study, but, in advance, each received a different type of LSP training. For data collection, we video recorded the case study work of all student teams. The qualitative content analysis of the extensive video material shows that training focused on team building and resilience achieves the best results with regard to group dynamics and resilience behavior.
... Creative methods are known to stimulate intuition and imagination, and increase insight, leading to more novel and surprising solutions to problems (Gauntlett, 2007). In addition, a small collection of recent work posits that the use of creative methods in collective activities -as employed in the Lego serious play (LSP) process -has positive effects on participants that benefit team development (DeLarge, 2004;Hadida, 2013;Kristiansen and Rasmussen, 2014). The LSP process guides participants through a structured sequence of creating individual and shared haptic models from Lego bricks and storytelling with the aim to generate shared understanding in team activities and to enhance creativity in ideation exercises (Kristiansen and Rasmussen, 2014;Schulz et al., 2015). ...
... What we mean by creative methods is "people express[ing] themselves in non-traditional ways" through crafting models or stories (Gauntlett, 2007). Such "acts of creativity involve […] a social dimension and connect us with other people" (Gauntlett, 2013), physically making an object helps team members to make sense of their social environment (Hadida, 2013), stories enhance the formation and function of a team (DeLarge, 2004) and thus, creative methods are expected to benefit team activities and team development (Gauntlett, 2007;Kristiansen and Rasmussen, 2014). However, robust scientific empirical evidence supporting the conjecture that creative methods can serve as a team building tool to benefit team development and, more specifically, team climate is sparse. ...
... As noted in the introduction, a small collection of recent research and practitioner work advocates the use of building physical models and face-to-face storytelling as a team building practice (DeLarge, 2004;Hadida, 2013;Kristiansen and Rasmussen, 2014;Schulz et al., 2015). Closely related, Gauntlett's (2007Gauntlett's ( , 2013 work notes that the use of model building and storytelling improves the understanding of identities and helps individuals connect with other people. ...
This study employs a mixed methods approach to investigate the
effect of creative methods, the combinative use of model building and
storytelling, during team initiation on team climate, a critical people-related factor in the management of collective innovation work. Qualitative analysis provides empirical evidence that creative methods benefit team initiation by raising participative confidence, engagement with the social environment as well as the team activities, friendly competition among team members, and by reducing fear of failure and habitual thinking. We also find support that the use of creative methods initiates and supports the development of positive team
climate over the span of a team’s life. A quantitative comparison with two control groups using the 14-item team climate inventory (TCI) 13 weeks after the team initiation indicates that the test group has significantly higher values in all dimensions of the TCI than the two control groups. Overall, this examination informs the work of innovation managers and scholars with vital insights about the effectiveness of using creative methods during team
initiation.
... Gauntett's findings can be supported by Hadida's (2013) concept of "cocreative settings". In other words, to create "playful experience", the individual flow should be linked to collective experience through working in a group. ...
... In other words, to create "playful experience", the individual flow should be linked to collective experience through working in a group. Hadida (2013) also emphasised the role of metaphors, imagination, story-making and micro-narrative building that help to facilitate a better understanding of core strategic business challenges. Taking into consideration business culture in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region where "acceptance to play" and manifestation of emotions at work may be treated as "blocker" more than "enabler", serious play-based learning activities are still interpreted as a high-risk initiative that suspends ordinary organizational conventions. ...
Purpose
In times of organizational thirst for employee engagement and meaning through designing corporate stories, the aim of this article is to explore and identify key sources (engines) of engagement during LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (LSP) corporate learning pre-pandemic events of various types and size in Poland.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper. The research was conducted using participant observation from the perspective of a certified facilitator of the method. This position ensures a prime access to the organizational events. Eight training sessions (four LSP and four non-LSP workshops) have been analysed using thematic analysis. The structure of thematic codes has been conceptualized and reflected as the EPIC framework.
Findings
The findings include (1) the importance of the experience of emerging realities as a key generator of engagement, (2) the significance of social collaboration and peer-to-peer interactions (experience of collective intelligence), (3) the observable rise in engagement and willingness to contribute when real business situations, especially labelled as “strategic issues” are discussed and (4) the role of image-capturing (“snapshot experience”) in creation of an engaging learning experience.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations refer to the potential conflict of interests as the researcher is also the facilitator of the workshop. To ensure the neutral point of view of the researcher, the sessions have been recorded to enable transparency of the observation and non-biased logic of key findings. The “learning experience” research is also culture- and context-sensitive, thus it may be problematic to replicate the research procedure in different countries, however, the EPIC model can be treated as a universal framework to explore and identify the engines of engagement.
Practical implications
The concept of this paper is designed from the practical point of view. The findings are adaptable to the corporate practices aimed at empowering employees and are compatible with management models such as agile, human enablement and human-centred design in organizations.
Social implications
Serious play methods of learning and experiencing are said to be of the highest importance when finding new ways of organizational learning in the pandemic situation and work from home as a standard learning environment.
Originality/value
The contribution of this paper is visible in the conceptualization of the moments that shape an engaging experience. This is also the first academic paper presenting the perspective of a certified facilitator of LSP from Central and Eastern Europe region.
... Through playful interactions that are objective and goal-oriented in professional settings and environments, practitioners apply tool-kits and artifacts (e.g. Lego blocks or bricks) to facilitate idea generation and collective creativity much more e®ectively than sketches, clay modeling or colouring pencils applied for the similar goals [Hadida (2013)]. During serious play, the mediating artifacts enable participants build symbolic or metaphorical representations of abstract concepts [McCusker (2014)]. ...
... Empirical evidence also suggests fear and timewasting considerations that generate resistance [James (2013)]. Additional anecdotal evidence suggests that although some executives may complain of limited drawing capabilities or show a lack of interest in sculpting, none of them object to serious play with Lego bricks [Hadida (2013)]. This is because no technical or artistic knowledge contributes to the process of combining and recombining preexisting blocks and shapes. ...
Although innovation laboratories offer creative and distinct physical spaces for mediating and directing innovation processes, research on their applicability for co-creative learning during serious play, particularly through Lego Serious Play (LSP) workshops remains limited. Previous studies suggest that serious play workshops tend to focus on scenarios, problem solving and reflective processes, with limited considerations for joint co-creation and learning potentials within innovation laboratories. Motivated by the creative prospects of metaphoric representations and shared stories, this study explores the possibilities of harnessing LSP for co-creative learning in innovation laboratories. This case study draws theoretical insights and practical relevance from a co-creative learning workshop involving three learning scenarios within a Middle Eastern and emerging economy context. Findings from the workshop show variability in representations, interactions and reflections, shaping possibilities for co-creative learning in innovation laboratories. Representations focus on systems, solutions and problems during fragmented, model-supported, model-mediated and integrated interactions that underpin a range of instance-based, variance-based, convergence-based and divergence-based reflections. These insights contribute to co-creation literature that views value creation as an amalgamation of open, collaborative and user innovation. The study concludes by discussing its theoretical implications, practical applications, and methodological limitations, which serve as the basis for future research directions.
... Originally designed for use in the organizational setting, recorded research affirms that LSP has been studied in large organizations, documented mostly in Europe, for team building, strategy development, and toward the generation of business models (Geithner & Menzel, 2016;Frick et al., 2013;Hadida, 2013;Grienitz & Schmidt, 2012), applied also to instructional design in educational sectors of elementary through higher education (Peabody, 2017;Barton & James, 2017; Montesa-Andres, Garrigós-Simón, & Narangajavana, 2014) and even in clinical settings (Harn, 2017). In addition to studying the theoretical models linked with LSP, other research presents concrete applications for using the LSP method (Grienitz, Schmidt, Kristiansen & Schulte, 2013;Kovaleski, 2006). ...
... While feasible, acknowledging the nostalgia associated with the Lego brick may provide a greater sense of excitement and acceptability of the process among participants (McCusker, 2014). The Lego brick and mini-figures as the focal artifact within the LSP process channels individual and collective creative thinking more effectively than the use of another article (Hadida, 2013). Some of the other artifacts or mediums used in toolkit modelling processes such as oil painting or drawing may require some specific fine art talent or a certain level of skill in order to be effective. ...
With unknown futures and a consistent series of external factors influencing today’s organization, a new mindset is needed to meet the challenges facing the workplace (Burke, 2013; Kegan & Lahey, 2001). Recent polls have rated creativity and innovative decision making among the most desired traits for leaders, yet how can the self-proclaimed linear thinking, non-creative type of person develop this trait (Carr, 2010; IBM, 2010). One answer is constructing creative confidence. This study explored if being in a state of flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 2003) and in collaboration with others (Kelley & Kelley, 2013; Brown, 2008; deBono, 1999) while engaging in hand-mind construction through play (Kristiansen & Rasmussen, 2014; Papert & Harel, 1991), namely Lego Serious Play (LSP), can inspire creative confidence.
The research was collected through a Lego Serious Play workshop intervention followed by individual semi-structured interviews with the participants. A hybrid of both qualitative deductive and qualitative inductive methods of inquiry were used with a template analysis to analyze the data collected. The study explored the idea of using Lego Serious Play to inspire creative confidence while re-introducing play, of a serious nature, into the adult vocabulary and workplace. This research project saw significant results in several areas relating to positive team dynamics and individual mindset shifts toward the way organizational problems are solved. Empathy for the other, perspective-
ii
CONSTRUCTING CONFIDENCE WITH LSP WENDI DYKES
taking, divergent thinking, deeper learning, and the presence of psychological safety all emerged from the participant data in support of positioning LSP as a tool for inspiring creative confidence which can be used for solving complex challenges in the workplace.
Key Words: Play, Serious Play, Creativity, Creative Confidence, Lego, Lego Serious Play, Constructionism, Flow, Workplace, Divergent Thinking, Organization, Hybrid Methodology, Qualitative Inductive, Qualitative Deductive, Organizational Psychology, Organization Development
... Purposeful game playing with Lego bricks has also been used as a technique by organizations to achieve various business objectives. The idea that when building the world, mental models are indeed build to make sense of the world we live and work in (Hadida 2013). For example, bank of china derived powerful insights pertaining to their corporate strategies and team dynamics by building models with Lego bricks (Hadida 2013). ...
... The idea that when building the world, mental models are indeed build to make sense of the world we live and work in (Hadida 2013). For example, bank of china derived powerful insights pertaining to their corporate strategies and team dynamics by building models with Lego bricks (Hadida 2013). Lego bricks were also used by companies like Nokia and Orange to allow participants to create shared understanding and organizational goals (Hyvönen, 2014). ...
Gamification has shown to be a valuable approach that enhances participants’ engagement. In education, enhanced student engagement has proven to increase their learning effectiveness. In business, gamification permits employee innovations and helps organizations achieve various business objectives. However, the application of gamification in public services is rather limited. While public service technologies have matured from being informational in nature towards being interactional and transactional, the last maturity stage of e-Government services has not been clearly defined. Accordingly, in this paper we call for “gamifying” public sector technologies such as e-Government systems. We argue that gamification might well be the last transformational stage in the maturity of those technologies. Gamification can play a key role in increasing citizens’ use of public service technologies and, at the same time, make them feel empowered as active participants in their societies.
... The studies conducted by David Gauntlett pioneered LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R as a research methodology around the exploration of identities (Gauntlett, 2007;Gauntlett & Holzwarth, 2006). Drawing on his work, LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R has been applied as a business method to enhance strategic thinking in organisations (Hadida, 2013) and as a brand research tool (Trebbin, 2016). Lately, the LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R methodology has been used in psychology research (Harn & Hsiao, 2018), and education research as a tool for developing individuals' learning capacities (Barton & James, 2017;Kurkovsky, 2015;Montesa-Andres, Garrig os-Sim on, & Narangajavana, 2014). ...
... The psychometric measures of DT in creativity studies such as DTT, AUT, and TTCT do not allow for the consideration of either the interactive or the manipulative aspects of idea generation with digital manipulatives. Divergent thinking assessment: from written to manipulative idea generation Verbal or written idea generation does not engage the same cognitive process as generating ideas through the construction process of building blocks (Hadida, 2013). In a self-reported creative process, Kaufman et al. (2009) recruited 3553 participants, mostly college students, to rate their creativity in different domains, leading to a three-factor solution. ...
Idea generation in interactive learning environments requires the consideration of the interactivity and materiality aspects of creativity. In educational robotics, idea generation is mediated through a technological object in a process allowing us to observe the three main components of divergent thinking: fluency, flexibility, and originality. Nevertheless, divergent thinking assessment has been mainly evaluated in the last decades through semantic idea generation tasks such the Alternative Uses Test (AUT), asking participants to write different uses for familiar objects. In our study, we aimed to analyze differences in the three divergent thinking components (fluency, flexibility, and originality) through the AUT as a semantic task and through an educational robotic task that engaged the participants in building their ideas interactively. Results show that the creative components are strongly correlated within but not between the two tasks, leading us to consider the differences in the creative processes engaged when generating ideas through building with robotic objects. The role of affordances in idea generation through educational robotics is discussed as an important difference to consider in the evaluation of creativity in interactive learning environments.
... In the process of the study the particular attention was paid to the application of the Lego® Serious Play® methodology (LSP) -a powerful facilitation tool used by organizations for involving employees in the generation of innovative ideas in an interesting and playful way [23]. It has also entered the field of higher education in recent years, showing fruitful results [24][25][26]. ...
The relationship between different aspects that challenge architectural education in Ukraine and new pedagogical strategies, in particular application of the innovative approach based on Design Thinking, are analysed and described in the paper. The case study illustrated in the article is based on author’s personal experiment held with the 3 rd year students at the Institute of Architecture, Construction and Energy (Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas, Ukraine). A qualitative analysis of the Design Thinking methodology, alongside the literature review, has been presented. Particular emphasis is put on the implementation of the Lego® Serious Play® methodology, as an effective tool for facilitating students’ creative potential, self-expression and ability to generate innovative ideas at the conceptual stage of architectural design. The suggested methodology can be successfully applied in other higher educational courses.
... The studies conducted by David Gauntlett pioneered LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R as a research methodology around the exploration of identities (Gauntlett, 2007;Gauntlett & Holzwarth, 2006). Drawing on his work, LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R has been applied as a business method to enhance strategic thinking in organisations (Hadida, 2013) and as a brand research tool (Trebbin, 2016). Lately, the LEGO V R SERIOUS PLAY V R methodology has been used in psychology research (Harn & Hsiao, 2018), and education research as a tool for developing individuals' learning capacities (Barton & James, 2017;Kurkovsky, 2015;Montesa-Andres, Garrig os-Sim on, & Narangajavana, 2014). ...
Increasingly, tourism researchers have turned their attention to the use of creative methodologies to gain deeper understandings of tourist phenomena. There is a need to challenge and creatively disrupt conventional methodological approaches as they are criticised for their inability to be participant driven, capture the co-construction of research context or to address the impact of wider social dynamics to knowledge creation in tourism studies. Based on our research focused on host–guests experiences participating in the World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) programme in New Zealand we provide a critical consideration of LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® for tourism studies. LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® is a communication tool aimed at developing creative thinking through building metaphors around identities and experiences using LEGO® bricks. To demonstrate how the method can be used in tourism studies, we draw on examples from three LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® workshops to illustrate the benefits and challenges of this methodological approach. LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® offered a metaphorical way for participants to construct creative artefacts and explain their ideal WWOOFing experience, representing sometimes complex, entrenched and emotional issues, and relationships that may have been difficult to express via traditional methods. The method enables participant driven, co-production of knowledge in a playful, free-flowing way to foster creative thinking, meanings and possible solutions. The method helps participants creatively communicate complex and sensitive issues, especially around their relationships – to objects, landscapes, people and identities – aspects that may otherwise be silenced by traditional research methods. As a novel method LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® provides opportunities for researchers who want to gain a deeper understanding of the social dimensions of tourism, to co-create spaces for knowledge exchange and develop an in-depth understanding of socially constructed relationships and realities.
... The method's strength lies both in its tangibility and unpredictability: the various shapes, sizes, and colours of LEGO® bricks allow for near-infinite combinations of three-dimensional constructs. Building something concrete forces participants to lean-in rather than out, as each construct is unique and thus offers a fresh look at the problem (Hadida, 2013). The aim is to evoke and keep participants in flowa state of deep focus or involvement (Harmat et al., 2016). ...
... In contrast to other artefacts (e.g. modelling clay, drawings, etc.), participants are not afraid to get their hands dirty, and they do not have to worry if they are not skilled at drawing (Hadida, 2013). One of the essential theoretical backgrounds to better understanding the interaction with artefacts is found in constructionism (Papert and Harel, 1991) based on Piaget's constructivism (Glasersfeld, 1982). ...
Problems resulting from the increasing complexity of today’s real-world challenges cannot be solved with standard solutions, and the need for innovation competence is more important than ever. In this societal transition, the role of higher education institutions changes, and meta-innovations in which tacit knowledge is transmitted in the context of working life, are key. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a design of an innovation course in higher education in the context of digital entrepreneurship education based almost exclusively on LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (LSP). In two classroom-based training sessions, 38 students experienced through an extraoccupational master programme the entire cycle of innovation from ideation through prototyping to future scenarios. Furthermore, LSP was used as an evaluation method to assess the LSP method itself in the context of higher education. Based on the evaluation, the main advantages of LSP included the exchange of ideas, creative thinking, representation of information, the quality of group interaction, and enjoyment. The main disadvantages were the reluctance of participants, obstacles to
implementation, criticism of the outcome, and limitations of the method. The design of the innovation courses allows researchers and practitioners to apply LSP in other higher education institutions as well as in in-house seminars in the industry.
... (Kristiansen et al., 2009) Since LSP is a more generic principle, it can be applied to a variety of problems, e.g. strategy, product or organizational development, change management processes, mergers and acquisitions (Hadida, 2013;Jentsch et al., 2011;Frick et al., 2013;Hansen et al., 2009). Considering the mechanisms and theories inherent in the LSP method, it is proven that it is also suitable for positive impacts on contexts of reengineering of any kind of processes (Dempsey et al., 2014), participative engineering , team development and knowledge sharing related to digitalization (Tawalbeh et al., 2016). ...
Improvements in innovation and quality processes can be achieved through the use of novel approaches such as LSP, which enables abstract thinking and advocates an open-mind for unconventional solutions. Within the scope of business processes and structures, the LSP methodology enables collaborative reflection on both single and complex procedures (regardless of rank) in the form of a ‘thinking space’ based on a flat hierarchy. The employment of total engagement using games and virtual worlds are used to change the working world and businesses activities. The collaborative nature of the work necessary for creating a Lego model establishes a shared comprehension of a certain problem or issue.
Hence, LSP is found to be a suitable methodology for identifying improvements by delineating the actual situation and procedures in the business structure. These initial steps involve the development of learning and comprehension of the current system through consideration of varying stakeholders’ perspectives and understanding of the challenges associated with the existing conditions and structures. LSP acts as a learning enabler by creating clarity and support mechanisms for innovation developments and improvement.
In this paper, the authors present how the LSP method can enable Business Innovation based on case studies from the authors’ own experience in industry. Therefore, the participants compose two different target groups – either a mixed group consisting of employees from different SME respectively multipliers or a group of employees from one enterprise. The group composition and the participants’ background influence the LSP workshop related to structure, procedure and results. Conditions, challenges and factors for successful LSP workshops are evaluated.
... Prototyping and creative environments have been strongly connected to the unlocking of cognitive mechanisms linked to the emergence of new knowledge, especially in engineering (Berglund and Leifer 2012). Through the use of simple and concrete physical models, people communicate, give meaning and create stories about what were previously invisible thoughts (Hadida 2013). Access to a prototyping infrastructure has already been recognized as an effective solution by numerous communities, which are setting up so-called "makerspaces" or "hackingspaces" in public places such as academic institutions and libraries (Slatter and Howard 2013;Kurti et al. 2014). ...
The purpose of this paper is to better understand the role of group-based prototyping workshops in unlocking latent creativity or stimulating creative expression in adults. Our findings indicate that hands-on exercises might be an effective way to unleash creativity in adults who perceive themselves predominantly as non-creatives. The heterogeneity of groups positively affected the level of creativity as a collective process. *** Namen tega prispevka je bolje razumeti vlogo skupinske prototipne delavnice pri spodbujanju latentne ustvarjalnosti. Rezultati nakazujejo, da so lahko praktične vaje učinkovit način za spodbujanje ustvarjalnosti pri odraslih, ki se sami sicer pretežno dojemajo kot neustvarjalne. Na stopnjo ustvarjalnosti kot skupinskega procesa je pozitivno vplivala heterogenost skupin.
... The process is to construct a narrative through building with the Lego pieces thus making a connection between the personal experience and the model and sharing it with peer group members. Research articles exploring where LSP has been introduced include programmes in business (Hadida, 2013;Grientz et al. 2012;Hansen, et al., 2009;Hatch &Schultz, 2009;Gauntlett, 2008;Gauntlett & Holzwarth, 2006;Burgi & Roos, 2003); in education, (James & Brookfield, 2013;2014;Bulmer, 2011;Bushnell, 2009) and in the National Health Service, England (Swann, 2011). Information is also available through the LSP website and other on-line communities (https://youtu.be/7B20pvfoi2E). ...
Lego Serious Play has been adopted by the Masters in Social Work students at NUIGalway during their module on ‘Supervision’ as an individual and group work exercise helping them to creatively define their training experiences. It is used as a method of encouraging students to look at their personal skills and value base and how they can take a narrative and construct it into a metaphorical Lego model of that experience. The process is to construct a narrative through building with the Lego pieces thus making a connection between the personal experience and the model and sharing it with peer group members. Research articles exploring where LSP has been introduced include programmes in business (Hadida, 2013; Grientz et al. 2012; Hansen, et al., 2009; Hatch &Schultz, 2009; Gauntlett, 2008; Gauntlett & Holzwarth, 2006; Burgi & Roos, 2003); in education, (James & Brookfield, 2013; 2014; Bulmer, 2011; Bushnell, 2009) and in the National Health Service, England (Swann, 2011). Information is also available through the LSP website and other on-line communities (https://youtu.be/7B20pvfoi2E). No current research is available of this method of narrative construction being used in a social science field.
... The LSP method has already been applied to a multitude of problems [9,10,11,12,13]. Considering the mechanisms and theories inherent in the method it can be expected that it also lends itself to positive team decisions in the context of reengineering any kind of processes. ...
As motivating and including people is a crucial aspect in any planning, design and change process there is always a need for appropriate methods and tools to support this. Lego Serious Play (LSP) is such a method which was developed to facilitate among others communication, creativity and shared mental models. In this paper the application of LSP is demonstrated for the case of re-designing a product development lifecycle process. With the case study we pursue a qualitative approach to seek for support that LSP is able to support team building and team decision processes, to avoid typical pitfalls of groupthink which will finally lead to solutions of higher quality, to efficient processes and to satisfied participants. © IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2014.
... Another important component of LSP is called mind and hands connection Allègre (2013). In essence, LSP is a projective technique, the only difference, is that you project what you are thinking with assemblye parts, which is faster. ...
... Organizations may give employees space to explore their creativity by working on their projects differently (Hamel and Breen 2007), for instance by granting " slack capacity " (Damanpour 1991; Rosner 1968) in employees' work routines to allow for creative experimenting and " jamming " with ideas (Grayson et al. 2014; Kao 1996a). Google employees are encouraged to devote some of their time to pursuing new projects, IBM launched a series of " global jam sessions " inspired by Kao (2006a), and increasing numbers of organizations stage Lego® Serious Play® workshops (Hadida 2013). The more organizations practice with improvisation, the stronger they become at it (Barton and Leonard 1995). ...
Organizational improvisation is increasingly recognized as a relevant area of management research. However, the cumulativeness of research on improvisation in organizations remains low. This paper organizes existing contributions on organizational improvisation within a new consolidating framework combining degrees (minor, bounded and structural) and levels (individual, interpersonal and organizational) of improvisation. The proposed degree/level framework allows for reviewing the existing literature on organizational improvisation in the management disciplines of strategy, organizational behaviour, organizational theory, innovation and marketing in a systematic manner. It also exposes potential areas for future research across management disciplines, research areas, organizational settings and industries, and beyond existing metaphors, most notably of jazz and improvisational theatre.
... While some articles introduce LSP in a generic way, presenting the basic principles, the core process, the benefits, etc. (Statler & Oliver, 2008;Lloyd-Smith, 2009;Hansen, Mabogunje & Haase, 2009;Schulz & Geithner, 2011;Hadida, 2013), some others are more focused on specific topics, such as the definition and peculiarities of play and serious play (Linder, Roos & Victor, 2001;Roos & Grey, 2004;Roos, Victor & Statler, 2004;Statler, Heracleous & Jacobs, 2011), the hand-mind interaction (Bürgi, Roos & Jacobs, 2001), the use of metaphors and analogical reasoning (Jacobs & Heracleous, 2004;Jacobs, Statler & Roos, 2005), the LEGO bricks and LSP as language (Said, Roos & Statler, 2001;Kristiansen, Hansen & Nielsen, 2009), the three kinds of imagination (Roos & Victor, 1999;Da Silva Correia, 2007). ...
The aim of this White Paper is to present an overview of the state-of-the-art of the use of LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (LSP) methodology among European SMEs, focusing in particular on its applications in training activities.
The White Paper is divided into three sections:
1) In the first section, LEGO SERIOUS PLAY is introduced and described, mainly through the words of its main players and of the official LSP documents. The methodology is first presented with regard to its history, main applications, basic principles and theoretical foundations.
2) In the second section, the findings of a survey of LSP facilitators in Europe are presented. The goal of the survey was to understand who is using LSP in Europe, how and what they are using LSP for, which methods and applications facilitators are using.
3) In the last section, a literature review on LSP is proposed. The main scientific literature about LSP is analyzed, focusing especially on the uses of LSP for training purposes.
Git, an open source version control software, is difficult to both teach and learn because it conceals its work in a hidden directory and is often deployed using a command line interface. Yet, version control is an essential tool of reproducible research. Two librarians formed a playful partnership to experiment with teaching Git using LEGO, an approach inspired by our Carpentries Instructor certifications and one’s LEGO Serious Play certification. Our method combines novice-centric Carpentries pedagogy with theories of play, constructionism, constructivism, conceptual metaphor, and the hand-mind connection that are foundational to LEGO Serious Play. We share details of developing, testing, and assessing this Git-LEGO combination. Our preliminary study indicates that our LEGO activity may increase learners' short-term retention of Git commands. We discuss future directions for our research and our experiences as academic librarians in a playful partnership.
Motivated by the foresight studies and scenario building using team learning and collaboration, this study explores the possibilities of applying Lego® Serious Play™ for framing different models of the future university based on collaboration among stakeholders in innovation laboratories. This paper draws on theoretical insights on scenario building and foresights techniques to re-imagine the future of higher education. Findings from the four workshops show a set of models of the future university. Representations focus on business models, open innovation, and delivery of on-demand learning in the digital era. The study concludes by outlining policy implications for education in GCC.KeywordsHigher educationForesightsEducation policySmart universityGCC
As demand for and use of interactive, experiential, and hands-on learning continues to increase and be used in entrepreneurship education, the concept of play remains elusive. This chapter reflects our strongly held belief that well-constructed play can deliver profound “aha” moments, resonant lessons, and truly rigorous learning experiences, as driven by its ability to immerse, engage, and focus students—all while enhancing or reinvigorating the joy of learning and practicing entrepreneurship. In an effort to shed light on a concept that has so long been seen as elusive, we provide a brief overview of what we know about play from a childhood development perspective and then explore what is known about play in higher education in general, as well as entrepreneurship education. We introduce a philosophical model of using play in entrepreneurship education and conclude with some sample exercises.
Esse manuscrito trata da elaboração de Projeto Estratégico Pedagógico e o uso de LEGO® Serious Play® como método de diagnóstico, envolvendo colaboradores do Banrisul na análise do modelo de Educação Corporativa e revisão de práticas e políticas pedagógicas da respectiva Universidade Corporativa. Caracteriza-se por um trabalho estudo de caso qualitativo, de estratégia exploratória. A unidade de análise foi a transformação da Universidade Corporativa em uma Universidade Corporativa em Rede. O estudo envolveu a participação de funcionários de unidades administrativas e agências bancárias. Como resultado identificou-se a ampliação do conhecimento a respeito dos próprios participantes – seus valores, suas habilidades, os processos que estão envolvidos; a troca de informações e perspectivas organizacionais quanto aos objetivos estratégicos e mercado, a identificação e relação com os stakeholders e o papel da educação corporativa frente a esses aspectos.
The aim of this chapter is to discuss the role of strategic thinking capability of leaders in managing organizational conflicts. The basic discussion in this chapter is strategic thinking capability of leaders plays a crucial role in the anticipation of conflicts and minimization of negative effects of it in the work life. The focus is on strategic thinking, its theoretical background, dimensions, why it is important for every leader and the importance of strategic thinking in conflict management. The study is based on the opinions of the managers in a public institution, the internal structure of the conflicts of the institution, the reason for the emergence of conflicts and the methods that the managers adopted in the conflicts are discussed. According to the theoretical discussions and practical determinations made in this study; organizational conflicts affect negatively the strategic thinking capacity of leaders and institutions, as well as mastery of leaders in thinking strategically plays an active role in the management of conflicts.
Although co-design is acknowledged as an emerging tool in public administration for use in program or service system design, it has not been widely applied to complex policy spheres, such as law and regulation. In the context of policy development for the field of social enterprise, we explored the use of co-design as a facilitation method to elicit end-users’ experience of regulation and to generate options for reform. Specifically, this involved the use of LEGO® Serious Play® to understand end-user views on legal structures following a push by policy advocates in Australia for a structure to serve the needs of social enterprise, similar to that available in the United Kingdom. The article makes two contributions to research on co-design in public policy. The first contribution is methodological. We offer insights into the application of co-design to a new area, law and regulation, finding that co-design is useful for generating bottom-up insights into the regulatory preferences of end-users but has certain limitations as a tool for research and policy development, notably in relation to the feasibility of the insights it may provide. The second contribution is uncovering empirical insights into end-user preferences regarding how regulatory reform might improve the policy environment for social enterprise development in Australia and beyond.
Teacher education is a space that is constantly in flux as it responds to the increasing requirements of governments to improve the quality of teachers and teaching in specific and measurable ways. The burden of this work falls to academic staff who then must balance their engagement with research, teaching and service within a higher education sector that has a different set of measures and requirements. Against this background, we (authors) have aimed to identify ways to work together to reclaim our professionalism as teacher educators. This chapter recounts one of our experiences as three teacher educators from different parts of Australia and our use of cogenerative dialogue (interactive social space for dialogic exchange) that included material objects to support our collaboration. Vygotsky’s conception of individual cognition being connected to social interactions and speech provided a theoretical context for our explorations. Using metalogue as our methodological approach, we document how using material objects during cogenerative dialogue allowed us to reflexively consider possible ways to improve our practice of research and teaching. The implications of this self-study identify the importance of cogenerative dialogue to support teacher educators to reclaim their identity and academic agency as professionals in an era of measurement.
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