Alternative plays: Dependency Mapping, Priority Mapping
Timing: Planning
Origin: Dave Gray & Mike Berman
Run time
30 minutes
Group size
3-10
Why: Solve task ambiguity and missed deadlines by ensuring all team members understand their roles, tasks, and deadlines
When: When assigning responsibilities is crucial for momentum
This workshop exercise is part of the Workshop Patterns printed card deck.
A collection of workshop exercises that will help you ditch dull meetings and facilitate with confidence. It will help you master the design process and have more productive time with your team. The card deck will be ready for purchase in the end of 2025 and is now undergoing rigorous testing.
Reserve your deck!Instructions for running this play
- Setup. On a large surface create a matrix with three columns labeled WHO, WHAT, and WHEN.
- Assign Roles. Instead of starting with tasks (the ‘What’), begin by listing all the participant names under the ‘Who’ column. Each person present is a potential action taker.
- Define Actions. Ask each participant to declare concrete next steps they can commit to. Write these commitments under the ‘What’ column. Allow participants to define multiple actions if they feel strongly about certain tasks.
- Set Deadlines. For each task, ask the responsible person to provide a specific time of completion. Write these deadlines under the ‘When’ column. This creates an accountability structure.
- Delegate further. If there’s a lot to do and few commitments, encourage those who’ve not taken up an action to either define new tasks or assist others. This step helps to distribute tasks and increases overall engagement.
Tips to perfect this play
Master and adapt the play to fit your context and needs.
Tip: Get public commitment
People are more likely to commit to actions when they are declared in front of a group.
Tip: Specific deadlines work
Encourage specific deadlines rather than vague timelines like "next week" to ensure a concrete commitment.
Tip: Reinforce commitments
Request participants to email you their commitments and send their list of tasks and deadlines to the entire group. This reinforces the commitments made.
Tip: Add WHY and HOW
Extend the matrix to include "Why" and "How", encouraging further clarity in task objectives and methods.
This workshop exercise is part of the Workshop Patterns printed card deck.
A collection of workshop exercises that will help you ditch dull meetings and facilitate with confidence. It will help you master the design process and have more productive time with your team. The card deck will be ready for purchase in the end of 2025 and is now undergoing rigorous testing.
Reserve your deck!Related plays
- Who/What/When Matrix by Dave Gray
- Who, What, When by Charles Burdett
