Astronaut Rescue Mission™ | Team & Leadership Training Activity

In this exciting and immersive training activity, the clock is ticking and time is short. Having landed somewhere in the Koruk Mountains teams must reach a certain location in order to be rescued. To achieve that goal there’s a lot to do! The pressure is on.

Teams have a map but no idea where they are on that map, they’ll have to work it out - and the same applies to their pick-up point. How far away is it? How quickly can they travel? They’ll need to camp overnight - in hostile conditions. Survival equipment is in the landing capsule, but which items should they take - it all needs carrying in backpacks.

How will teams work? There’s a lot to sort out so they need to prioritise. Will anyone establish themselves as leader? Who’s good at reading maps (guidance provided in the Brief)? Which items are essential? More important, do they realise the time pressure? The longer they take to prepare, the less time they have for their journey.

10 ‘leadership trigger points' have been identified. At each, somebody has to take the lead and push the team on. Taking too long means they won't make the deadline.

Ideal for observing teams and how they interact under pressure as well as identifying those individuals who show leadership potential. Ultimately this activity leads to a useful discussion about what makes a good leader, what leadership is all about and how participants can demonstrate leadership skills back in the workplace.

• Identify 10 trigger points where leadership is required
• Show that the leader role can move between different team members
• Recognise some basic leadership traits
• See the benefits when a team is organised and well led
• Show that there is not just one style for effective leadership
• The importance of whole team collaboration
• The importance of the team supporting the leader

1. Introduce the activity as a teambuilding activity with a focus on leadership skills.
2. Divide the group into teams. Typically 3-6 per team.
3. Issue several copies of the Team Brief to each team.
4. When a team gives you the correct answer to a question in the Brief, issue them with a copy of the Koruk Mountains Map.
5. Observe team performance and note the ‘leadership triggers’ (listed in the Trainer’s Notes).
6. Issue Planning Forms and remind teams that time taken in making their initial decisions is added to their travel time. After 30 minutes remind teams of the approaching deadline.
7. Stop all teams at the 60-minute point. Issue the Review Form so they can assess their performance and reflect on examples of leadership they demonstrated during the activity.
8. Conduct a Debrief, focusing on the 10 triggers. Discuss and summarise key learning points.

Full guidance supplied in the Trainer’s Notes.

Hard & Digital Copy

• ☑️ Hard copy pack supplied
• ☑️ PDFs supplied

Digital Copy

• ☑️ PDFs supplied
  

Contents

• Trainer’s Notes
• Team Briefs
• Koruk Mountains Maps
• Handout: Planning Form
• Handout: Team Review Form

This activity is for face-to-face and virtual classroom use. The digital files are supplied via the Northgate Trainerhub.

This Northgate Training activity comes with a five-year licence for repeat use with up to 24 participants at a time, for use by Trainers based at one licence-holding site.

All Trainers physically based at the same office location can access the Northgate resources during the five-year term, including the digital resources supplied on the Trainerhub via your own site-specific Trainer Dashboard. If you have Trainers based at other locations, and/or remote workers, who would like to access and use the Northgate resources, we can advise further depending on your requirements.

For further information on our licence terms please view the Northgate Licence Agreement.