LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® Method

The development of the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (L.S.P.) method has gone through several iterations and has involved the work of several teams. Work on the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® method began with the direction of the owner of the LEGO® Company, Mr. Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen. Kristiansen and the LEGO® company were looking at “the ways and techniques that he and his leadership team used when developing their strategies.” [2] Kristiansen agreed to fund a research project into possible techniques under a  subsidiary called Executive Discovery Ltd. This program was under the direction of Johan Roos and Bart Victor from the IMD business school in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In this research phase groups were given a large assortment of LEGO® bricks and asked to “build their strategic ideas” [3]. There was lots of laughter in these sessions but something was not clicking. More work needed to be done.

In 1999 Robert Rasmussen, then the head of research and development at LEGO® Dacta (later called LEGO® Education), joined Executive Discovery. Robert and small team began working on an adult environment for strategic development. As the method developed over more that 20 iterations, Professors Roos and Victor confirmed that in real-time sessions with various companies, results were robust and reproducible.

By the end of 2001 the first version of the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY® method was ready for market. Per Kristiansen joined the group.  Robert and Per began training facilitators in the method. In December 2003, Executive Discovery was shut down and the LEGO® Company acquired the intellectual property [4].

A new business model for the method was introduced. It was now delivered through a license based partnership.  Specialized LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® kits could only be purchased by a partner with a licensed contract. 

In 2010, the LEGO® company made access to the basics of the methodology more akin to open source. The company created a short booklet which identified the elements in the method which were now open for all to use. It was requested that all other materials be returned to the LEGO® Company. This model became known as the community model. From this model, communities of people using L.S.P. have emerged.

The method was born as an action research project sponsored as a private initiative by the owner of the LEGO® Company. Executive Discovery was formed and tasked with the further development and distribution of the method. In parallel, The Imagination Lab in Switzerland did related research. The Imagination Lab’s main task was researching the use of the method for strategy development in organizations.  Some of the researchers at the Imagination Lab were trained as facilitators by Executive Discovery. 

The Imagination Lab ceased to exist in 2004. Independent research projects continue to be conducted at a number of academic institutions.

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1. “Association of Master Trainers” (http://seriousplay.training/).

2. Kristiansen, P., and R. Rasmussen (2014). Building a better business using the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY Method. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Page 1, para 4.

3. Kristiansen, P., and R. Rasmussen (2014). Building a better business using the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY Method. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Page 2, para 4.

4. Kristiansen, P., and R. Rasmussen (2014). Building a better business using the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY Method. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Page 6, para 2.

1. Official website LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (https://www.lego.com/en-us/seriousplay)
2. Official website The Association of Master  Trainers (www.seriousplay.training)
3. Official website LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® Research Community Portal (www.lspresearch.org)
4. Official website Rasmussen Consulting   (www.rasmussenconsulting.dk) 
5. Official website Trivium (www.trivium.dk)