This open session replaces the cancelled Collaborative Management Cohort Training, but attendance is not restricted to members of that cohort. The more participants we have for the session the greater the impact. Similarly the less we have the greater the likelihood of cancellation.

From silo thinking to systems thinking

Friday Night at the ER challenges teams of four to manage a busy hospital during a simulated 24-hour period that takes just one actual hour.

Teams of four

The team’s goals are clear: to deliver high quality service at a low cost within the allocated time. But just like in any organization, the scenario is complex and how to succeed at achieving those goals isn’t so obvious at first.

Simulation learning

In the simulation, people become students of their own behaviours. They can see the big picture, naturally broadening their thinking, and learning what it takes to be successful as a system.

Simulation Game (1 hour)

The game is like a practice field. Teams see the results of their actions play out in front of them, and they have the opportunity to make changes during the game to improve performance.

Group Debrief (1.5 – 2 hours)

After scores are calculated, participants engage in a debrief that includes team reflection, guided group discussion, didactic presentation and tasks that help turn the lessons into action.

Examples of objectives

• Improve collaboration across business units
• Introduce principles and methods of Systems Thinking, Balanced Scorecards, Process Improvement, Lean, or other disciplines
• Clarify success factors and support leadership development in areas such as self-directed work teams, customer satisfaction, conflict management, change management
• Team building

Examples of outcomes

• Guiding principles for working together; improved ability to work together
• New or heightened awareness about;
  • the need to collaborate, to share responsibility for organisation performance
  • the presence of mental models and their impact on behavior and decision-making
  • the role of information and feedback in decision-making
• Insight about the underlying structure in organisations that drives behaviour and motivation for change
• Personal insight about the effectiveness of one’s management and communication practices
• Improved competence in applying a newly learned discipline