Purpose: To show new managers the importance of immediately documenting information that requires accurate reporting—for conducting performance appraisals, for instance.

 Time Required: 10 to 15 minutes.

 Size of Group: Unlimited.

 Materials Required: Photocopies of scenic photographs; envelopes; paper clips.

 The Exercise in Action: Pam Meier, a training and development consultant for the Dayton Hudson Co., Minneapolis, MN, hands out photocopies of scenic photographs—usually street scenes with people and lots of detail. She asks participants to study the pictures for one minute and then fold them up and seal them in envelopes. Later, after a break, she asks them to write what they remember about the pictures.

Their answers are then folded and paper-clipped to the envelope. Later in the day, when the topic of documentation comes up, she asks them to pass their sealed envelopes to another person at their tables (based on the number of people per table, she has a different scene for each person). That person reads the description and tries to imagine what the scene looks like and writes a brief description. They finally open the envelope to compare how closely the picture they’ve developed in their minds matches the original scene.

The learning point: Memory, recall, and attention to detail are important, but immediately documenting specifics is more important when accuracy is essential.