AgileRTP Meetup - Fostering Collaborative Innovation through Improv

May 6, 2025 | Presented by Tiffany Rozell

Meeting Overview

Tiffany Rozell, Principal Agile Practitioner for Red Hat in AI Engineering, led a session exploring how improvisation techniques can foster collaborative innovation in teams. The interactive meeting included practical improv exercises that participants engaged in remotely.

Introduction & Background

  • Tiffany is writing a book on Inclusive Innovation
  • She has experience with improv in academic settings (Virginia Tech and Executive MBA program)
  • Initially hesitant about improv herself, she discovered its value for workplace collaboration

Connections Between Improv & Agile

  • Improv aligns with agile principles: responding to change over following a plan
  • Key aspects of improv parallel agile practices:
    • Being present and focused (especially important in virtual settings)
    • Adaptability and quick pivoting
    • Building psychological safety
    • Bringing voices into conversations (especially those who might not normally speak up)
    • Encouraging experimentation and risk-taking

Benefits of Improv in the Workplace

  • Creativity Enhancement: Reduces pressure to have perfect ideas by encouraging quantity over quality
  • Listening & Collaboration: Reinforces true co-creation rather than competition
  • Psychological Safety: Creates environments where people feel safe to contribute
  • Energy & Morale: Reduces burnout by adding fun and boosting dopamine
  • Physiological Benefits: Laughter and engagement trigger chemical changes that improve creativity

Exercise 1: Name Game with Adjectives

Participants introduced themselves with an adjective sharing their first initial, then repeated all previous introductions before adding their own.

Example: Leslie Loudmouth → Mighty Magnus → Terrific Tiffany → Cataclysmic Catherine

Participant Insights:

  • While initially uncomfortable for some, the exercise helps with name recall
  • Creates a mnemonic device for remembering people’s names
  • Allows facilitators to gauge energy levels and personality types in the room
  • Similar exercises that aren’t name-based can achieve the same energy shift

Exercise 2: “Yes, And” Building a Bag

Participants collaboratively designed a bag by each adding a feature while acknowledging previous contributions.

The Final Product: A blue canvas bag with a waist strap that squawks when you clap your hands, may have been used for smuggling marijuana and wine, has metal feet on the bottom, includes a secret pocket, and has a carabiner for car keys.

Applications:

  • Can be used to kick off ideation for new features or products
  • Builds confidence for subsequent creative work
  • Demonstrates how repeating back what you’ve heard ensures understanding
  • Useful for process building and training

Exercise 3: Failure Celebration Circle

Each participant shared a small personal or professional failure, which was then celebrated by the group with “jazz hands” and cheers.

Example Failures Shared:

  • Email typo asking for “shirt sizes” missing the ‘r’
  • Tampons spilling down a ramp at work
  • Cutting oneself while showing off knife skills
  • Submitting an AI-generated resume with false information

Benefits:

  • Creates vulnerability and transparency that strengthens team relationships
  • Helps teams learn from mistakes in a positive environment
  • Makes people more comfortable sharing failures and learnings
  • Especially useful in retrospectives

Additional Tips & Ideas

  • One Word at a Time Story: Similar to “Yes, And” but each person adds just one word to build a collaborative story
  • Energy Movers: Physical exercises like “Haya” where energy is passed around a circle
  • Resources: Consider creating a collection of icebreakers and energy-starters (Leslie mentioned Intuit’s innovation catalyst program with index cards)
  • Cultural Connections: One participant shared using one-line jokes at standups with international team members to bridge cultural differences

Next Meeting

April Biggs will present on what to do when you get snubbed by someone in a meeting.

Notes compiled from transcript of Zoom meeting, May 6, 2025 Facilitators: Catherine Louis and Arjay Speaker: Tiffany Rozell