# Action Needed

Groups vote on one focus area from five categories, write concrete questions or points on cards, and answer them together. The exercise produces immediate answers or assigned next steps for key blockers.

**Time:** 15 minutes. Source suggests 5 to 15 minutes. 15 minutes fits a full group of up to 24 using small-group review.
**People:** 4 to 24. Individual writing followed by whole-group triage (4 to 8 people) or small groups of 4 to 6 (groups of 3 or 7 permitted to absorb remainders for 9 to 24 people)

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Identify and triage immediate questions or obstacles in a single category chosen by the group.
**Use it when:** Use during retrospectives, transitions, or planning sessions when people need rapid triage on blockers to move work forward.
**Skip it when:** Skip when a technical issue requires deep specialized analysis rather than rapid group triage.

## Materials and tools

- Index cards or sticky notes (1 per participant)
- Pens or writing markers (1 per participant)
- Whiteboard or flip chart and markers
- Flip chart paper or large sticky pad (1 sheet per small group for 9 to 24 people)
- Collection basket or envelope
- Shared digital document structured with columns for Question, Answer/Owner, and Due Date

## Before participants arrive

1. Write the five focus categories visibly on the board: 1. Issue, 2. Challenge, 3. Idea, 4. Purpose, 5. Timing.
2. Place pens and index cards within reach of all participants.
3. For groups of 9 to 24 in person, place a sheet of flip chart paper and markers at each small-group station.
4. If meeting online or hybrid, prepare a shared digital document table with columns: Question, Answer/Owner, Due Date.

## Say this to open

To keep our work moving, we will focus on one specific angle today. Look at the five categories on the board: Issue, Challenge, Idea, Purpose, or Timing. We will vote on which area we need answers on right now, write down our exact questions, and answer as many as we can before we finish.

## How to run it

### 1. Vote on focus area (2 minutes)

Read the five categories aloud: Issue, Challenge, Idea, Purpose, Timing. Ask for a show of hands for each option. Announce the winning category with the most votes. If there is a tie, flip a coin or choose the option tied closest to an upcoming project deadline.

### 2. Write concrete questions (3 minutes)

Distribute index cards. Ask each person to write one specific question or action point related to the chosen category. For example, if Timing won: When must the phase one vendor quote be submitted? Anyone may choose to write a question or submit a blank card if they have no blocker.

### 3. Review and answer questions (6 minutes)

Collect all cards into a central basket and shuffle them thoroughly. For 4 to 8 people, draw and read up to 3 cards aloud while the room agrees on answers or assigns owners. For 9 to 24 people, form tables of 4 to 6. Hand 3 shuffled cards to each table. Each group picks a leader to read the cards, guide triage, and record answers, owners, and target dates on their flip chart.

### 4. Review commitments and debrief (4 minutes)

Bring attention back together. In small-group mode, call on up to 3 groups to share their single most critical action item and assigned owner in 30 seconds each, logging them on the main board or shared document. Spend the remaining 2.5 minutes asking the debrief questions to the room to confirm next steps.


## Debrief questions

- Which answered question removes the biggest immediate obstacle for our group?
- What question remains unresolved, and who will follow up on it after this meeting?

**Finished output:** A documented list of submitted questions within the chosen category, paired with immediate answers or assigned follow-up owners.

## Remote

Display a five-option poll for Issue, Challenge, Idea, Purpose, and Timing. Once selected, participants type questions into an anonymous form or shared document table. For 4 to 8 people, the host reads up to 3 questions and invites verbal or chat responses, logging agreed owners. For 9 to 24 people, send participants into breakout rooms of 4 to 6. Ask the person whose first name comes first alphabetically in each breakout room to act as volunteer leader. The leader shares screen, reads up to 3 questions from their assigned section, facilitates discussion, and records answers, owners, and due dates in the shared document table. Reassemble for the final review.

## Hybrid

All participants submit questions into a shared digital document formatted with columns for Question, Answer/Owner, and Due Date. In a single group up to 8, alternate reading one question from the room and one from the digital document. Both in-person and remote attendees may volunteer answers or ownership. For 9 to 24 people, form remote-only breakout rooms and in-person tables whenever possible. If mixed groups form, ask an in-person attendee to volunteer as tech buddy for that pod. The tech buddy turns a laptop screen to face the table, ensures remote members hear and speak in turn, and logs the group's answers and assigned owners into the shared digital document.

## Access and participation choices

- Facilitator collects all physical cards centrally into a basket before redistributing to small groups so handwriting is not tied to table location.
- Participants can submit a blank card or pass on writing if they have no immediate question.
- Questions can be spoken aloud or submitted in writing to accommodate different communication styles.
- Participants can decline taking ownership of an action item without justification.

## If the session gets stuck

**The selected category generates generic complaints rather than actionable questions.**

Ask the room to rephrase: What specific action or decision from leadership would resolve this?

**More cards are submitted than can be answered within the allotted time.**

Answer up to 3 cards per group immediately. Collect the remaining cards and commit to circulating written responses or owner assignments within 24 hours.


## Terms used here

- Issue: An existing defect, dispute, or operational problem currently blocking progress.
- Challenge: A difficult obstacle, constraint, or external condition requiring effort to overcome.
- Idea: A proposed concept, approach, or solution to be evaluated.
- Purpose: The core objective, rationale, or intended outcome guiding the work.
- Timing: Questions concerning deadlines, phase gates, sequencing, or turnaround expectations.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Relationship Makers Handbook, pages 26-27.

Retained the five-category mechanic (Issue, Challenge, Idea, Purpose, Timing), card writing, and collective answering from Relationship Makers Handbook. UWT standardized review to 3 cards across whole-room and small-group setups for consistency. Added central basket shuffling to ensure small-group anonymity, explicit breakout leader assignment rules, explicit tech-buddy hybrid roles, and balanced 15-minute pacing.

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/action-needed-issue-challenge-idea-purpose-timing/