Brain Pick

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Collect and compare practical insights from multiple experienced informants across structured interview rounds.

Use it when: Use when a group needs to tap internal or external subject-matter experts on practical challenges rather than listening to a passive lecture or panel.

Skip it when: Skip when subject-matter informants are unavailable, when the room lacks varied viewpoints, or when the topic requires confidential single-source instruction.

Group arrangement: 5 teams of 2 to 4 interviewers plus 5 designated informants (total 15 to 25 people).

Timing: Follows the 52-minute schedule established in the Thiagi GameLetter October 2010 game plan.

Materials and tools

• 5 flip chart pads or poster papers posted around the room
• Self-adhesive notes (1 pad per team)
• Felt-tip markers (1 per team)
• Printed interview sheets with 5 core questions (2 questions checked per team)
• Countdown timer or chime

Before participants arrive

1. Pre-write the 5 core interview questions across 5 flip charts, one question per chart.
2. Assign 5 designated participants or invited guests as informants and seat them near designated interview stations.
3. Pre-mark 5 sets of question sheets so each of the 5 questions is assigned to exactly two teams.

Say this to open

Today we are running Brain Pick. Rather than sitting through a traditional panel, your teams will interview five different informants directly. Each team holds two designated questions. You will conduct five-minute interviews with each informant, rotate through all five experts, and turn their insights into concrete guidelines.

How to run it

1. Form teams and brief roles 5 minutes

   Divide participants into five interview teams and seat each at a table. Introduce the five informants. Informants sit at their respective interview stations.

2. Distribute questions and prepare 5 minutes

   Hand the five-question handout to each team with two questions pre-checked. Teams formulate specific follow-up prompts for their two checked questions. Simultaneously hand the full question list to the five informants to review privately.

3. Conduct interview rotation 1 5 minutes

   Station one informant with each team. Teams interview the informant using their two checked questions and record concrete notes. Informants provide practical examples from experience. Sound a chime at five minutes.

4. Conduct interview rotations 2 through 5 20 minutes

   Rotate informants clockwise to the next team every 5 minutes for four additional rounds. Teams repeat their two assigned questions with each new informant, noting differing perspectives.

5. Synthesize guidelines 7 minutes

   Teams review notes across all five interviews. On sticky notes, teams write five actionable guidelines for each of their two assigned questions (ten total notes per team). Each guideline must state an observable action.

6. Post guidelines 2 minutes

   Teams post their written guidelines onto the flip chart sheets matching their assigned questions. Two teams will post to each flip chart sheet.

7. Conduct gallery walk and debrief 8 minutes

   Everyone walks around the room reviewing all five posted guideline sheets. Conclude with three focused debrief questions, taking two responses per question.

Debrief questions

• Where did two informants give conflicting advice on the same question, and how did your team resolve that?
• Which posted guideline surprised you or offered an unexpected practical approach?
• What is one concrete recommendation from these charts that you can test immediately?

Finished output: Five theme-based flip charts filled with participant-generated guidelines synthesized from five expert interviews.

Remote

Create five small-group breakout rooms for teams and one lobby. Assign two questions per team in a shared digital canvas with five question sections. Move the five informants across breakout rooms every 5 minutes. Teams document notes on virtual sticky notes and sort them under the five master questions.

Hybrid

Maintain physical interview tables for on-site participants and a dedicated virtual breakout room for remote interviewees. Remote informants cycle through via video kiosks or dedicated laptop stations at each physical table. All guidelines are mirrored on a shared online whiteboard.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may contribute as note-takers, interview askers, or synthesizers based on preference.
• Anyone may pass on asking questions aloud by passing the inquiry card to a peer without explanation.

If the session gets stuck

An informant dominates the five minutes with introductory speech instead of answering the target questions.

Instruct interviewers to politely interrupt with: 'In the interest of our time limit, could you focus specifically on how you handled [question]?'

A team cannot agree on five clear guidelines within the synthesis period.

Direct the team to post their top three concrete notes immediately rather than stalling over five complete consensus items.

Terms used here

• Informant: A participant or guest who shares practical experience on a topic during structured interview rounds.
• Double-coverage question design: A structure where five distinct questions are distributed so each question is assigned to exactly two separate teams.