What happens when the CEO leaves the room?
A simulation designed for business owners who suspect their team can’t operate without them. And want to find out if that’s true.
What You'll See (and Feel)
The Advisory Brief
Teams receive fictional CEO case studies. Each team advises a CEO whose business has a dependency problem. It feels safe. You’re analysing someone else’s situation.
Pattern Recognition
As teams dig deeper into the case studies, patterns emerge. The fictional CEO’s problems start to look familiar. The room gets quieter.
The Mirror
The discussion turns the lens inward. Everyone is asked to compare the fictional scenarios with their own business. This is the uncomfortable moment. The simulation was never about someone else.
Reframing Dependency
The conversation shifts from “my team isn’t ready” to “what am I doing that prevents them from being ready?” This reframe is often the breakthrough moment.
Commitment & Debrief
Each person identifies one specific behaviour they will change. The debrief makes it concrete, personal, and accountable.
Who This Is For
For business owners who suspect nothing happens unless they’re involved. And want to find out if that’s true.
- You’re the bottleneck and you know it
- Your team waits for you before making decisions
- You want to step back but don’t trust the business will run without you
- You’re thinking about succession and wondering whether your team is ready
- You’re burning out from being in every decision
What It Reveals
People problem or systems problem
Whether the team’s dependency on you is about capability or about how your business is structured. The answer shapes whether you need to develop people or redesign how decisions get made.
Bottleneck behaviours
Specific actions and habits that create or reinforce decision-making bottlenecks. Often invisible to the person creating them.
Untapped team capability
Decisions your team could make without you but currently won’t. And why. The simulation often reveals more latent capability than the business owner expected.
The delegation gap
The distance between wanting to let go and actually doing it in practice. Most leaders know they should delegate more. This simulation shows what’s actually stopping them.
Leadership style impact
How your approach to leading shapes, or limits, your team’s capability and confidence. The patterns that feel like leadership strengths are often the ones creating dependency.
What People Say
“I walked in thinking my team was the problem. I walked out realising I was. That sounds harsh, but it was the most useful thing anyone’s said to me in years.”
“The case studies felt like someone had been watching my business. The conversation that followed changed how I think about my role entirely.”
Logistics
Duration
2.5–3 hours including debrief
Format
In-person strongly preferred. Intimacy matters
Group Size
6–20 people (smaller groups work better)
Energy
Moderate energy, reflective, personal
Includes facilitation, debrief session, and a reflection booklet for every participant.
Pricing
$3,500
Investment starts from $3,500 for groups up to 30. Travel on top.
For a group of 20, that’s under $175 per head. For 30, under $120. Less than most team lunches.
Ready to see your team in action?
A quick call is all it takes to work out which simulation fits your team and your goals.
Explore Other Simulations
Franchise Face-Off
A competitive simulation that reveals how your leaders decide, adapt, and align when millions (and minutes) are on the line.
Learn moreValues under pressureThe Box Office Blueprint
A simulation that surfaces the tension between competing priorities, and forces your team to decide what winning actually looks like.
Learn moreCrisis before it’s realBusiness as Usual?
A crisis simulation that reveals whether your leadership team can handle disruption, before you find out the hard way.
Learn more