Agile games to foster creativity and teamwork
You are familiar with the phrase agile. Although a new method of software development was outlined in the 2001 Manifesto for Agile Software Development, agile has now acquired popularity across a range of sectors, including marketing, finance, healthcare, and construction.
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Agile is a set of guiding ideals and guidelines for how groups should finish projects. Agile teams work quickly, self-organize, and iterate to provide value to clients more quickly. In other words, agile businesses understand that taking one bite at a time is the best approach to tackle a large task.
That seems to make sense. It’s crucial to remember, though, that agile isn’t a fast fix or something you can do in a single day. It necessitates a complete transformation in the way your team approaches their job and thinks about it. Agile games can assist in this situation.
Difficulties in making the switch to agile?
The agile shift might be intimidating, particularly when employees are sometimes infamously reluctant to change. Actually, according to the American Psychological Association, workplace change is associated with higher levels of stress, mistrust, and even employee attrition. According to Deloitte research, 60–70% of large-scale change initiatives fail, mostly due to team members’ apprehension about implementing a significant change.
So, if you’re wondering how to encourage your team to embrace the ideals and concepts of agility, an excellent place to start is with agile games.
What role do agile games play?
Remember the proverb about boiling a frog? The frog remains unaware of the temperature rise and changes in conditions if you increase the flame gradually.
That’s somewhat similar to utilizing agile games (no heat necessary, please).
They will introduce agile to your team without overburdening them at first. Here’s how they may encourage your staff to embrace the shift to agile rather than just accept it.
1. Increase accustomedness
One of the main advantages of games is that they provide an understandable and enjoyable way for teams to become familiar with agile ideas. Dr. Stuart Brown, who established the National Institute for Play, discovered via research that games are not only fun for us to play, but they also have a significant impact on cognitive growth and human development.
2. Boost interest and zeal
You may use PowerPoint slides or a dry lecture to teach agile concepts. However, agile games provide your team with far more interesting hands-on learning experiences.
3. Boost originality and problem-solving skills
The regular rigors of work often leave little time for unconventional ideas. Your team may exercise their creativity and come up with novel solutions to the current problem by playing games.
4. Foster unity among the team
The majority of agile games are non-competitive and extremely collaborative. In addition to learning a lot about how to collaborate and communicate with one another, your team will come together to take on a common issue.
When you combine all of these advantages, you’ll have a productive team that genuinely grasps the agile tenets.
Top agile games for your upcoming scrum
Now that you are aware of the effectiveness of agile games, let’s get right in. These eight agile team-building games may be used in a range of settings, with different group sizes and time constraints.
1. How to Give a Hug
How it functions
Even if your team is spread out across the globe, this easy game is a terrific way to greet everyone, break the ice, and foster a sense of community.
Utilize the How to Hug Miro board, which shows a circle’s outline. Uploading a photo of oneself and arranging it along the circle should be the team’s task.
To transfer their photo to the middle of the circle, one team member is selected. Subsequently, every team member shifts their own photographs to the center, making contact with the central photo. You have a virtual hug there. After that, each team member moves their own photo to the center in turn.
While learning how to utilize Miro collectively, your team members will laugh and create strong ties with this ridiculous yet effective activity.
2. The Ball-Point Game
How it operates
The ball point game, one of the most popular agile games available, aids in teams’ comprehension of agile projects and the agile production process. Iteration, process establishment, and self-organization are all necessary for the team. It may be played online with a Miro board and icons for each team player, or it can be played in person with actual balls to pass back and forth.
The game’s objective is straightforward: your team must pass a ball—or several balls—around the table. Each player on the squad must touch the ball once. The team scores one point when a ball completes a full round around the table.
The duration of each sprint in the game is three minutes. The team should discuss their strategy and write down how many points they want to score in the opening round in the first minute. The actual passing of the ball around the table takes up the following minute, and the last one is devoted to recording the precise amount of points they received and the lessons they discovered.
Proceed to your next sprint after that. Give each team member the option to pass as many balls as they’d want at once, as opposed to only one. As your team refines their strategy and tries to get more points, they will gain a great deal of knowledge.
