Survival Simulation Series
Survival Simulation Series
The Survival Simulations Series is designed to teach teams how to improve problem-solving through learning the interpersonal (people) and rational (task) skills and behaviours that lead to successful teamwork.
Each simulation presents an unfamiliar scenario, such as being stranded in the desert, and asks the team to rank various objects they might need for survival
The exercises ensure that all team members have the same level of knowledge about the artificial situation (not very much!), so they must rely on their ability to set objectives, analyse alternative strategies and then evaluate them, choosing a solution that will best meet the objective.
By having team members complete the exercise individually and then as a team, the difference between the individual solutions and the team’s solution can be identified. This becomes a real measure of the group’s ability to perform as a team.
Versatile
The Survival Simulations can be used as an icebreaker at the beginning of a workshop, conference, seminar, or training program, or to establish healthy norms within a new work group. And they can be used with new or established teams to introduce members to the value of synergy or to gauge their synergistic problem-solving skills.
Interactive
Set in unfamiliar locations, our survival simulations allow group members to participate as equals – regardless of rank or position. By starting on an equal footing, participants have the opportunity to participate fully, focus on group processes, and analyse their contributions to the quality of the team’s performance.
Easy to implement
A Leader’s Guides isavailable for each of the Human Synergistics Survival Simulations. The Guide contains all of the information you’ll need to design and facilitate a successful program, including the experts’ decisions and rationale, scoring instructions, program design options, and tips for discussing the skills and processes that contribute to effective team performance.
Videos are also available for most of the simulations. The videos enable participants to “see” the situation settings and the available items, making the simulations more real for them. They also relieve you of the responsibility of having to be the ‘survival expert’ by presenting the expert’s rank and rationale to participants.
Choose the Survival Simulation that’s right for you
| Simulation | The Situation | The Challenge | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Desert Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | It’s a hot August day and your plane has just crash-landed in the Sonoran Desert in the Southwestern United States. | Rank 15 items salvaged from the plane in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1.5 to 2.5 hours |
| Desert II Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | On your way home from Acapulco, your chartered plane experiences engine trouble and crash-lands somewhere in the Sonoran Desert in the Southwestern United States. | Identify your four greatest problems and the best strategy for your survival. Then, decide on the criticality of and best use for 16 items salvaged from the crash. | 2.5 to 3.5 hours |
| Bushfire Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | You and your group are on holiday in the Dandenong Ranges just east of Melbourne, Australia, when you suddenly notice a bushfire approaching. | Rank 12 items in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1.5 to 2 hours |
| Reef Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | On an excursion from Tahiti to Australia, your yacht strikes a coral reef and begins taking on water through the hull. | Rank 12 items salvaged from the yacht in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1.5 to 2 hours |
| Tsunami Sample Participant Booklet | Your group is enjoying a beach party on the coast in central Chile when a pager message alerts that a tsunami is approaching. | Rank 8 items in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1 to 2 hours |
| Subarctic Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | 22 air miles east of your intended destination, your float plane crashes on the east shore of Laura Lake, in the subarctic region of the northern Quebec-Newfoundland border. | Rank 15 items salvaged from the plane in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1.5 to 2.5 hours |
| Cascades Survival Situation™ Sample Participant Booklet | On the way back from a weekend retreat, the helicopter carrying you and your group crashes in a small clearing high in the Cascades Mountains. | Rank 12 items salvaged from the crash in the order of their importance to your team’s survival. | 1 to 1.5 hours |