Build a tower, build a team | Tom Wujec

Summary

The Marshmallow Challenge, introduced by Peter Skillman at TED, is a simple yet insightful team-building exercise where groups construct the tallest free-standing structure using spaghetti, tape, string, and a marshmallow on top. The challenge reveals deep lessons about collaboration, with kindergarteners surprisingly outperforming business school graduates by building prototypes and iterating. Architects excel due to their understanding of geometry. The exercise underscores the importance of prototyping, facilitation skills, and the impact of incentives on performance, providing a common language and experience for effective teamwork.

Takeaways

• 🏗️ The Marshmallow Challenge is a design exercise where teams build the tallest free-standing structure using spaghetti sticks, tape, string, and a marshmallow on top.
• 👥 The challenge tests collaboration skills and reveals insights about how different groups work together under time pressure.
• 📈 The average height of structures built by most people is around 20 inches, but kindergarteners and architects often outperform others due to their iterative prototyping and understanding of structural principles.
• 📊 Business school graduates tend to struggle, often due to their rigid approach to finding a single right plan and not adapting well to the iterative process.
• 🎓 Kindergarteners excel because they focus on building with the marshmallow in mind from the start, allowing for multiple iterations and learning opportunities.
• 🔍 The iterative process of prototyping is crucial for success, as it provides instant feedback and opportunities for improvement.
• 🤔 The challenge highlights the importance of not just specialized skills, but also facilitation skills in managing the collaborative process effectively.
• 💰 High stakes can have a negative impact on performance, as seen when a $10,000 prize was offered and no team succeeded in building a standing structure.
• 🛠️ Understanding the value of prototyping can dramatically improve a team's performance, as demonstrated when the same students who failed with high stakes went on to build the tallest structures.
• 🌐 The Marshmallow Challenge serves as a metaphor for identifying hidden assumptions in projects and emphasizes the need for a shared experience and language to build effective prototypes.
• 📝 The exercise is a simple yet powerful tool for teams in various fields, from car manufacturing to video game development, to learn and apply collaborative and prototyping skills.

Q & A

What is the Marshmallow Challenge?

The Marshmallow Challenge is a design challenge where teams of four must build the tallest free-standing structure using 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of tape, one yard of string, and a marshmallow, which must be placed on top of the structure.

Why is the Marshmallow Challenge considered difficult?

The Marshmallow Challenge is difficult because it requires quick collaboration and forces participants to balance planning with execution, often leading to structures collapsing under the weight of the marshmallow.

What did the speaker incorporate the Marshmallow Challenge into and why?

The speaker incorporated the Marshmallow Challenge into a design workshop because it was a huge success and revealed deep lessons about the nature of collaboration.

What is the usual process teams follow when participating in the Marshmallow Challenge?

Teams usually start by orienting themselves to the task, discussing and planning, organizing and sketching, laying out spaghetti, assembling the structure, and finally placing the marshmallow on top as time runs out.

Why do business school graduates often have more 'uh-oh' moments in the Marshmallow Challenge?

Business school graduates often have more 'uh-oh' moments because they are trained to find a single right plan and execute it, which can lead to a crisis when the marshmallow is added and the structure collapses.

How do kindergarteners approach the Marshmallow Challenge differently?

Kindergartners approach the challenge by starting with the marshmallow and building successive prototypes, always keeping the marshmallow on top, which allows them to receive instant feedback and make adjustments.

What is the average height of structures built in the Marshmallow Challenge?

The average height of structures built in the Marshmallow Challenge is around 20 inches.

Who tends to perform the best in the Marshmallow Challenge?

Architects and engineers tend to perform the best due to their understanding of stable structures and geometrical patterns.

What impact does adding a high-stakes reward have on the performance in the Marshmallow Challenge?

Adding a high-stakes reward, such as a $10,000 prize, can negatively impact performance, as it was observed that no team had a standing structure when such a reward was offered.

What is the role of an executive admin in improving a team's performance in the Marshmallow Challenge?

An executive admin can significantly improve a team's performance due to their facilitation skills, process management, and understanding of the iterative process.

What is the fundamental lesson the speaker believes the Marshmallow Challenge teaches about design?

The fundamental lesson is that design is a contact sport that requires the application of all senses, thinking, feeling, and doing to address challenges effectively, and that prototyping can turn 'uh-oh' moments into 'ta-da' moments.