On Sunday, March 21st, many Wilson Center students participated in “LeadOut”—a two hour organizational simulation conducted by Dr. Gail Funke. Dr. Funke serves as Senior Faculty and Dean for Program and Faculty Development at the Federal Executive Institute (FEI), a Charlottesville-based training center for federal executives. Dr. Funke describes “LeadOut” as “an exciting, upbeat, fast-moving simulation that involves teamwork, team strategy, and leadership behavior.” 

Student participants found that as the simulation progressed, it lived up to Dr. Funke’s description. Divided into two competing teams, students were tasked with running an imaginary wine business. Making this business successful meant earning as much money as possible via land acquisition for growing grapes. Fertile land increased profits; barren land had the opposite effect. Both types of land were represented by square plots on a game board. However, stickers concealed the type of land. Nevertheless, each member of each team had specific information on a respective characteristic—slope, rainfall, drainage, soil—of the plots. 

Team members had to combine their knowledge, come to a consensus, and make decisions regarding which plots of land to procure. By the end of the simulation, both teams had learned a lot. As Dr. Funke put it, “LeadOut” teaches participants about a variety of organizational issues: “planning strategies, group behavior, individual reactions to situations of uncertainty, mid-course corrections to strategies, etc.” 

In short, the simulation gave students practical insights into how to manage groups, risks, and leadership. Participants included: Bryan Vanetten ’10, Ken Simon ’11, Conor Sanders ’11, J.B. Potter ’11, Adam Lees ’11, Damian Booker ’12, Dereck Parada ’12, Scooter Thomas ’12, Greg Henshaw ’12, Joey Tritico ’12, Alex Cartwright ’13, Barret Keeler ’13, Frank Bowers ’13, Peter Howard ’13, Braxton Marcela ’13, Paul Salmon ’13, Andy Fox ’13, and Matthew Morrison ’13.

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