Case Study 4

John Lewis Partnership, Oxford Street

The Challenge

To research, create and facilitate an interactive training day to form part of an ongoing staff development programme, using forum theatre techniques. To reassure participants this was not role play in disguise!

Selecting and Using The Tools

Research

• We collated the Service Managers' perceptions of their role via anonymous questionnaire.
• Research interviews with randomly selected managers.
• Observation on the shop floor.

Presentation

Freedom to Experiment
The workshops are designed to allow participants the opportunity to develop and share best practice, create and explore 'what if' situations, and use the benefit of hindsight to refine or reject strategies offered by the group. Working in an atmosphere of experimentation, where there are no right answers, everyone is free to 'say the unsayable and think the unthinkable'.

Reassurance
The experienced actors and facilitators leading the workshop reassure everyone that the theatre professionals take any embarrassing parts. Participants are therefore free to contribute and respond from their individual perspective and preferred learning style, without the fear that they will be expected to perform or make themselves look foolish.

Dramatic Results were joined in the workshops by psychologist, Garri Wiest, who recommended this form of experiential training after seeing Stop Gap Theatre demonstrate the use of forum theatre in health care.

Benefits

• The participants interacted with colleagues whom they had not previously meet.
• The participants shared skills, knowledge and experience.
• The participants were able to experience 'what if' situations in a safe environment and develop skills to deal with these situations.
• The participants had the opportunity to view situations from a customer standpoint.
• The participants were able to discuss, devise and develop strategies they could try in the safety of the workshop and take back to their department.
• The participants owned the outcome of the day.

John Lewis Partnership and Dramatic Results received an investment from Arts & Business New Partners to further develop their creative partnership. Arts & Business New Partners is funded by Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

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