Interesting 5 min max ice breaker for a meeting of 8 CEOs -women/men

[KingfordRun]

Any interesting ice breaker recommendations for a meeting? Delegates don’t know each other well and this will serve as an opener on a workshop re: personal growth/development. Many thanks

Agree that at CEO level icebreakers are pointless

They are pointless at any level, it doesn't become any less inane and time wasting because you aren't senior enough to feel comfortable complaining about it.

Agree with the pp's, don't bother. If they are CEOs they are capable of introducing themselves to you and their fellow attendees.

Hate them they add zero value. Nothing worse that some peppy person starting a meeting by introducing an ice-breaker. You sit there cringing rather than focusing on the real reason you are there, it just ruins the day. Serve tea/coffee and let people mingle, that’s it nothing else.

I’m a ‘c suite’ level exec and would echo others who say do not do an ice breaker. Pointless. Anyone at that stage of their career is (1) time poor (2) entirely confident to participate in a group training with virtual strangers. You might think it’s fun and helps the day, but it’s naff and boring, and honestly makes me feel like the trainer just doesn’t have experience to judge the audience.

Do the two minute speed dating thing if you must, but otherwise email round a brief bio of each participant in advance and then just ask them to introduce name/organisation/nature of business on the day.

I'll bet my house the OP won't take any notice of this!

I agree with the others - they make me cringe. Just ask them to introduce themselves and leave it at that.

CEOs are going to be perfectly capable of speaking to strangers without being cajoled. Leave them to make their own normal introductions over coffee.

Is this ice-breaker awfulness done in other countries? I wasn't a CEO but strongly resented the time-wasting that went on at courses I attended.

Group discussions when we had gone on the course to acquire information about new developments were another waste of time for everyone except the course leader. (S)he was being paid a lot of money for spinning out for a whole day what could have been covered in an hour or two.

Ask each of them to tell the rest of the group 3 things about themselves, only two of which are true, and ask the rest of the group to spot the fib
Works well

One of the best I did was very easy. We had to say who we were and where we were from, and then say something interesting about our name. Responses were things like "My name's Claire because that was the name of my mum's best friend" or "Dad wanted to call me Elizabeth but Mum was worried I wouldn't be able to spell it so called me Anne" or "My surname is really unusual - if you meet another one we're probably related".

Dead easy. Non-threatening. Everyone has something to say.

red imitate an animal, blue sing a song

Just imaging a CEO mooing like a CIA in front of seven other CEOs

Like a cow, even.

The absolute worst training course I was EVER on had a trainer who insisted on doing a "re-energiser" after lunch. He made us all stand on our seats and sing the hokey-cokey.

It was toe-curlingly awful and I still have nightmares about it. What was he THINKING! I was in my early 20s and in my first job out of Uni, if anyone tried that now I'd just refuse to humiliate myself.

The fact that so many here are suggesting 'two truths and a lie' demonstrate that it's a bit hackneyed. I've done it twice, both times more than 20 years ago.

Experienced communicators, as CEOs undoubtedly are, would find parlour games unnecessary and cringeworthy.

CEOs are going to be perfectly capable of speaking to strangers without being cajoled. Leave them to make their own normal introductions over coffee.

I couldn't have put it better.

Respect introverts and people with anxiety and don’t force them into this excruciating nonsense. Assume the people you’ve employed are capable of interacting with colleagues without enforced ‘fun’.
This ^^. Just crack on with the event & don't waste peoples' time on a load of bollocks. Very few people actually enjoy these things, most endure them because they have to, some of us find them terrifying & would gladly murder to get out of them.

I know this isn’t what you asked OP but surely CEOs don’t need an ice breaker? I’d have thought they would be professional enough to participate in a meeting without a patronising game at the beginning?

Coffee & no ice breaker is better.

I've got training days coming up & im dreading the stupid games we have to play.

Sorry no help.

Do you work at Wernham-Hogg Shots?

I had to do bingo once. Awful. Nothing helps you get to know people like desperately going round the room asking "were you born in november? Do you own a cat?"

Argghh. I've just had a memory of when we had to play 'bingo' as an ice breaker. Awful. And something with balloons, but I've blanked the exact details from my mind as it was truly terrible.

Oh god. Ice breakers. Loathe them and I can't imagine a room of CEOs will thank you for one

Take in a blender and some ice cubes.

Put the ice in the blender and switch on.

Tell them that the ice has been broken by the ice breaker machine and they can start the course.

I am senior management and I loathe them. As do the rest of the pretty large senior team in my company. I think trainers use them as utterly useless time fillers which I have no time for. Don’t do it, they’ll think much better of you and whatever training/meeting you are facilitating.

Don’t forget the OP said the C-suites have signed up for personal growth type sessions.

That’s not your usual cohort.

Not every CEO is a blue-suited corporate.. they could be creative, Fintech, language, entrepreneurial.

I love the idea of ‘eBay’ your partner.. I might nick that!

Every ice-breaker I've done has been toe-curlingly awful.
These are CEOs whose time is valuable. They will be quite capable of chatting to others.
No ice-breaker, get on with the course and try to finish early!

I am loving the ice in the blender idea.