LEGO Serious Play is a facilitated business methodology that uses LEGO bricks to improve creative thinking, communication, and problem-solving within organizations. Participants build three-dimensional models of their ideas and use storytelling to share their insights, encouraging full engagement and innovative solutions.
Methodology and Purpose
The LEGO Serious Play (LSP) method is designed to move beyond traditional "lean backward" meetings, where only a few voices are heard, to a "lean forward" environment where everyone actively contributes. It is grounded in research from organizational development and psychology, particularly the concept of "hand knowledge," which suggests that building physically with your hands produces a deeper, more meaningful understanding of complex issues.
Key applications include:
Strategy Development: Building a shared understanding of a company's current state and vision for the future.
Team Building: Fostering collaboration and communication by ensuring all voices are heard and valued. Innovation: Stimulating creativity for new products, services, and business models.
Change Management: Helping teams navigate and commit to new directions and processes.
How It Works: The Core Process
Workshops are led by a trained facilitator who guides participants through a structured process. The core process generally follows these steps:
The Challenge: The facilitator poses a building challenge or question related to the topic at hand.
Building: Participants build a personal, metaphorical LEGO model in response to the challenge, "thinking with their hands".
Sharing: Each participant shares the meaning and story behind their model with the group.
Reflection: The group reflects on what was built and shared, extracting insights and actionable points.
History and Availability
The methodology was developed in the mid-1990s by professors Johan Roos and Bart Victor in collaboration with the LEGO Group's owner, Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, to help with the company's own strategic challenges.
Open Source: In 2010, the LEGO Group made the core methodology of LSP available under a Creative Commons license, allowing independent facilitators worldwide to use and adapt the method.
Certification: The LEGO Group no longer offers official certification, but independent organizations, such as the Association of Master Trainers in the LEGO Serious Play Method, provide training and certification for facilitators.
Products: The LEGO Group continues to sell specific "LEGO Serious Play" kits that contain a wide assortment of bricks, figures, and specialized parts ideal for use in these workshops.