Survivor: The Downsizing Simulation

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Examine team reactions, voting criteria, and communication patterns under simulated organizational downsizing and peer elimination.

Use it when: Use during leadership or organizational change sessions when teams need to examine the operational and emotional dynamics of workplace downsizing.

Skip it when: Skip when the host organization is facing actual job cuts, when interpersonal trust is fragile, or when personal vulnerability creates undue risk.

Group arrangement: Teams of 5 to 7 participants (each having 1 non-solving Game Warden and 4 to 6 solvers). For 6 to 7 people, form 1 team. For 10 to 14 people, form 2 teams of 5 to 7. For 15 to 21 people, form 3 teams of 5 to 7. For 22 to 24 people, form 4 teams of 5 to 6. If total group size is 8 or 9, run as a single team of 8 or 9 with 1 Warden and 7 or 8 solvers.

Timing: Source specifies 30 to 45 minutes; structured here as a complete 35-minute run sheet.

Materials and tools

• Printed copies of Cryptograms 1, 2, and 3 (one copy per team per round)
• Printed Decoding Hint Sheet (one per team)
• Blank paper voting slips (at least 6 per participant)
• Pens or pencils for all participants
• Countdown timer
• Whistle for audible round signals
• Whiteboard, flip chart, or projector with markers for walkthrough
• Digital collaboration board or shared documents if running remote or hybrid
• Facilitator answer key for cryptograms

Before participants arrive

1. Print puzzle worksheets and decoding hint sheets for each table.
2. Cut voting slips into uniform slips and place them on tables with pens.
3. Set up the room whiteboard or screen with the sample cryptogram displayed.
4. Review the cryptogram solutions before starting.

Say this to open

Today we will run a simulation called Survivor to examine team dynamics under pressure. In your teams, you will work against the clock to solve cryptograms based on adult learning principles. Each team will have a Game Warden who enforces rules and manages voting without solving puzzles. After each puzzle round, your team will face a mandatory downsizing move. Let us look at the sample puzzle on the board together.

How to run it

1. Form teams and brief roles 5 minutes

   Divide participants into teams of 5 to 7. In each team, members choose a volunteer Game Warden by mutual agreement. Game Wardens enforce rules and manage voting without solving puzzles. Hand out the Decoding Hint Sheet. Model the sample cryptogram on the board to show letter substitutions.

2. Run puzzle round 1 and first elimination 8 minutes

   Place Cryptogram 1 face-down on each table. Blow the whistle to start the 3-minute timer. Teams decode collaboratively. Call time after 3 minutes or when a team finishes. Read the correct solution aloud. Announce that every team must downsize one member. Members secretly write one name on a slip. The Game Warden collects slips, reveals votes, and announces the eliminated person. Ties are broken by the Game Warden. The eliminated person stays as an observer.

3. Run puzzle round 2 and second elimination 7 minutes

   Place Cryptogram 2 face-down. Teams get 3 minutes to solve it. Signal stop with the whistle and announce the answer key. Remaining active solvers secretly vote to eliminate another peer. Observers from prior rounds do not vote. The Game Warden tallies slips, breaks any tie, and directs the eliminated person to observe.

4. Run final puzzle and select survivor 5 minutes

   Distribute Cryptogram 3 to the remaining active solvers on each team. Give 3 minutes to solve. Blow the whistle and read the solution. For the final vote, all previously eliminated observers rejoin the voting pool. Everyone on the team votes for the one person to eliminate next. The Game Warden tallies the slips and announces the result. The remaining non-eliminated player is the final survivor.

5. Debrief the simulation 10 minutes

   Bring the room together. Call on 3 to 4 participants across different roles: early eliminated observers, final survivors, and Game Wardens. Connect simulation feelings and elimination criteria directly to real workplace downsizing and restructuring.

Debrief questions

• How did it feel to be eliminated in the early round versus the final round?
• What explicit or unspoken criteria did you use to choose who was downsized?
• How did knowing an elimination was coming affect how you collaborated during puzzle solving?
• What parallels exist between this simulation and real workplace restructuring?

Finished output: Completed cryptogram puzzle sheets and documented team reflections on downsizing dynamics.

Remote

Create breakout rooms for each team of 5 to 7 participants. Appoint a volunteer Game Warden in each room. Distribute cryptograms via shared digital documents. Active participants send elimination votes to their Game Warden via private direct message. The Game Warden posts vote totals in room chat. Eliminated members keep webcams on and view the shared puzzle document in read-only mode, unmuting only to vote in the final round.

Hybrid

Form separate in-person tables and fully remote breakout groups rather than mixed tables. Remote teams use individual breakout rooms and direct messaging to remote Wardens; in-person teams use physical paper slips and table Wardens. Facilitator broadcasts round starts, whistle signals, and master solutions to both groups simultaneously over central meeting audio and video display. For the debrief, close breakout rooms and bring remote and in-person participants into a single plenary video call.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may choose to serve as Game Warden or neutral table observer from the beginning.
• Any participant may decline active puzzle solving or submit a blank slip to pass on voting without disclosure.

If the session gets stuck

A team ties during an elimination vote.

The Game Warden selects one of the tied names to decide the elimination, following standard game rules.

Participants get stuck trying to decode the cryptogram.

Point them to the Letter Frequency and Common Words sections of the Decoding Hint Sheet, or provide the first two decoded letters as an open hint.

Terms used here

• Cryptogram: A word puzzle made by replacing every letter of an original text with a different letter of the alphabet.
• Game Warden: A designated participant who monitors rules, manages time, and tallies elimination votes without solving puzzles.