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Exercises/Relationship Mapping/FOOD CHAIN
Relationship Mapping

FOOD CHAIN

FOOD CHAIN is a relationship mapping exercise that helps participants build useful connections and understand how people, roles, or ideas relate.

5 to 15 minutesTIME
Small group (4-8)GROUP SIZE
ActiveENERGY
In personSETTING
High cognitive loadCOGNITIVE LOAD
Strengthens Network Design This relationship mapping exercise strengthens Network Design, one of the eight Gathering Effectiveness pillars.

How to run it

  1. Announce the beginning of the game. Blow the whistle and start the timer. Let the participants play the game for 5 minutes.
  2. Stop the game. Blow the whistle at the end of the 5-minute period.
  3. Identify the winners. Ask members of the first two groups to count their money. Ask the members of Group 3 to count their cards. In each group, identify the winner and congratulate him or her.
  4. Debrief the participants. Link the activity to the customer-supplier chain. Relate the activity to the workplace.
Live facilitator

Run this exercise live

The facilitator console stays in this browser. Its QR handoff is a short-lived participant snapshot containing only public exercise instructions, phase, prompt, and timer state.

Prompts to use +

Announce the beginning of the game. Blow the whistle and start the timer. Let the participants play the game for 5 minutes.

Stop the game. Blow the whistle at the end of the 5-minute period.

Identify the winners. Ask members of the first two groups to count their money. Ask the members of Group 3 to count their cards. In each group, identify the winner and congratulate him or her.

Debrief the participants. Link the activity to the customer-supplier chain. Relate the activity to the workplace.

Run this with your AI assistant +

Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.

Adapt this exercise for my exact room. Exercise: FOOD CHAIN. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Announce the beginning of the game. Blow the whistle and start the timer. Let the participants play the game for 5 minutes.; Stop the game. Blow the whistle at the end of the 5-minute period.; Identify the winners. Ask members of the first two groups to count their money. Ask the members of Group 3 to count their cards. In each group, identify the winner and congratulate him or her.; Debrief the participants. Link the activity to the customer-supplier chain. Relate the activity to the workplace.. Return a concise facilitator script with timing, wording, safety notes, and remote/in-person adjustments.

Origin unverified

  • Where we observed it: The strongest current observations come from The Thiagi Group; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including The Thiagi Group.)
  • What that means: we track where an exercise has been observed in public sources. We do not claim to know who created it, or how popular it is.
  • No efficacy claims: appearing in this library is not a claim that the exercise is proven effective. Facilitator judgment and context decide whether it works for a given room.
  • Corrections: if you have evidence of an earlier or more accurate source, read our methodology and trust boundary and tell us.

Pairs well with