Manuela Hörbe cautiously places her white pawn on a small cross trainer with the male carrying a miniature emergency kit: "I put myself on the fitness bike because I need a lot of stamina for my current project - the first aid kit I chose because I have to take care of many things, even in an emergency. " The product manager writes her initials on the upper body of the figure with whom she is to introduce herself here in the workshop.
Her colleague Tim Beckmann paints his figure, holding a small basketball, with many pens in color: "I am known in the company like a colorful dog," he grins. He would have chosen basketball because he is involved in company sports: "That's how you know me."
Hörbe, Beckmann and four other employees of a finance company are trying out a new workshop concept on this day. Together, they sit around a large table and think about how to improve the customer experience when purchasing real estate. Help the toy figures.
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Playmobil for managersThe manufacturer geobra Brandstätter tries to develop a new market and designs figures for adults. The idea: to solve conflicts in the daily work routine, no matter whether it is now problems with the boss or is discussed about the future development of the company. With the toy figures should be rethought, what previously stagnated. Is this just a clever business idea? Or an approach with substance?
The price: four digits
Mathias Haas is convinced of the idea of playful problem-solving. Together with his colleague Celina Pflanz, the Stuttgart coach will conduct and moderate the morning. Haas runs the "Play Serious Academy", where he designs workshops with various toy systems. For him, lightness and a playful approach also have a place in the economic context: "It's a working method, such as PowerPoint or the flipchart, the difference is that we work in 3D and appeal to people's haptics."
For some outsiders, it seems strange that adults with children's toys try to reproduce workflows and work processes and play through customer discussions. And yet, as something seems to be released, the males allow a fresh look at old problems.
The unusual access is not quite cheap: For the suitcase with the special stones, the white figures, almost 500 accessories and the special pens are due 499 €. You can not buy it in the store, but only directly from the manufacturer. Add to that the costs for the moderator. According to Mathias Haas, the price, including the preliminary work, is "usually in the four-digit range."
Criticism of the suitcase
The concept, according to the manufacturer, is aimed primarily at companies, but it could also be used in all other areas. As a reference, known companies are listed, including Bosch, Siemens, Adidas and Deutsche Bank.
The case with the manager toy has certainly caused criticism. Although the concept focuses on equality and diversity, some figures and garments did not fare well. Such as indigenous headdress - some Native Americans felt insulted by the simple depiction of their culture.
"Of course, we also learned during the development phase," says Playmobil spokesman Björn Seeger, "if in German as a matter of course the image of chieftains and Indians is needed, it may be an affront to Native Americans." The corresponding articles therefore disappeared from the assortment.
"Beautiful memories"
In addition to Playmobil Lego offers a similar concept, which also has Haas in the program - and not only him. The so-called gamification, ie the playful approach to learning and development processes, has long been a topic in science as well.
Studies showed that "gamification has the potential to boost motivation and performance," says Michael Sailer, who works at the Chair of Empirical Education and Educational Psychology at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. If playful elements were used, this could "positively influence qualitative and quantitative performance indicators," says Sailer.
The participants of the Stuttgart workshop have plunged into the world of their plastic men. "Of course, an image transfer takes place here," says workshop director Haas. "People associate Playmobil with fond memories, but it's all about the association, visualization, and ideas that engage the characters in the characters." The concept also works demensprechend with other materials.
In the video: managers play with Lego
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An example: The husky with the dog sled represents a problem in the workflow. "In everyday life you pull a lot behind you," says Sophie Schlayer, "that's more of an unpleasant feeling, which we also had with the sled figure." So you could quickly agree to use this figure.
Is there a risk that the result may be suffered through playing? Moderator Haas does not commit: "This depends heavily on the participants." Some are very goal-oriented, as the result would be more important. "But for others it helps to playfully deal with the problem," he explains. The figures are a symbolic instrument, with which little thematized problems can be addressed more easily.
Difficult result assurance
One of the end-of-the-day results: Financial institutions would actually need a common database to make it easier and faster for customers to check their creditworthiness. Probably a flipchart would have been enough to come up with that. The participants are nevertheless enthusiastic: "It's so nice to get results from the playful, after all there is a child in each of us," says Tim Beckmann.
At the end the result of the workshop has to be documented. The table is now full of figures, from the top many look the same. In a word, helplessness becomes widespread: How can someone who did not attend the workshop still find their way there? At one of the participants climbs a ladder to photograph the table from above:
In the end, the question remains whether the method can really change corporate processes in a sustainable way. Michael Knorre is optimistic: "We are curious what our colleagues are saying - this is a starting point from which you have to continue on your own initiative."
One of the first tasks: to explain to the colleagues in the office what was going on at the workshop all day long - and what that has to do with everyday work.
