Managing the Room — Manager Training
Course Materials

Manager & Leadership Training Series

Managing the Room

A half-day workshop on how groups actually behave — why effort quietly drops, why decisions swing to extremes, and how to lead and give feedback fairly, grounded in classic social psychology research.

Take the quiz Open the slide deck

See what's inside

Same team, before and after discussion

This is the shift Module 2 teaches managers to anticipate — and guard against.

Managers run meetings every week. Most were never taught how groups actually behave.

A bigger meeting or a longer discussion doesn't automatically produce a better decision. Effort quietly drops when contributions aren't identifiable, unique information gets buried under shared talking points, and group discussion tends to push decisions toward extremes rather than moderate them.

This workshop replaces guesswork with the specific, learnable mechanics behind group decisions, leadership fit, and fair feedback.

4 hrs
Half-day workshop, in person or virtual
4
Research-backed modules
12–24
Ideal group size per cohort

What managers walk out knowing

Four modules, each pairing a concept briefing with a live, in-room exercise.

01
Why Groups Underperform
Social loafing, process loss, and groupthink — and the structural fixes that counter them.
Source: Ch. 9 — Group Processes
02
Group Polarization & Decision-Making
Why team decisions land further from the middle than any individual's view going in.
Source: Ch. 9 — Group Processes
03
Leadership Styles & Fit
Matching task-oriented or relationship-oriented leadership to the team and situation in front of you.
Source: Ch. 9 — Group Processes (Leadership in Groups)
04
First Impressions & Attribution Errors
Catching character-based bias in feedback before it distorts a performance conversation.
Source: Ch. 4 — Social Perception
Group discussion doesn't average opinions; it amplifies the room's initial lean. Capture individual views before the discussion, not just after.
Core takeaway, Module 2

Who this is for

People managers and team leads who run meetings, make group decisions, or evaluate team performance. The exercises use live, in-room decision simulations, so the workshop works best scheduled for an intact cohort.

Runs best when…

  • Participants are at the same management level, so decision-sharing stays candid
  • Each person brings one recent team decision or feedback moment from their own team
  • Groups stay between 12 and 24 for full small-group participation
  • A 30-day manager check-in follows to reinforce the material

Try a sample question

One question from the course quiz — see how it feels before you dive in.

According to group polarization research, what tends to happen after a group discusses a decision?

Group polarization means discussion strengthens the group's average initial leaning rather than moderating it — a group already leaning cautious becomes more cautious, one leaning risky becomes riskier.
Want the full 8-question quiz? Take it here →

Course materials

Everything for this module, ready to use.

S
Slide Deck
21 slides covering all four modules — concepts, exercises, and takeaways, ready to present.
Open the slide deck
Q
Quiz
An interactive 8-question check for understanding, with explanations for every answer.
Take the quiz
A
Audio Version
A narrated walkthrough of the workshop content, for listening on the go.
Coming soon