No shared problem, no shared progress.

Your client wants a workshop to “fix” another team.

You’re in the scoping call, 20 minutes in. They describe the tension: Team A gripes constantly about Team B. Team A wants a session where everyone hashes it out; they need Team B to understand the importance of their work, care more, integrate it better, work differently overall. You ask the obvious: has Team B flagged any issues? Crickets. Team B hasn’t raised a hand. They aren’t aware of problems working with Team A. From their end, everything functions fine; they receive the inputs, do their part, move on.

You press gently. What exactly do they expect from the workshop? Alignment, they say. Culture shift. Better collaboration. Team A leads with their frustrations; Team B will see the light once the session forces the conversation.

Collaboration can’t be imposed.

That’s where it unravels. Picture the room: Team A unloads their wishlist of changes; Team B sits there, arms crossed or politely nodding through a structure they didn’t request. No matter how sharp your agenda or how clear the desired outcomes, buy-in from Team B stays low. They’d be fixing issues they didn’t name, tackling a problem they don’t even acknowledge.

Team A walks out feeling heard, maybe energised for a week. Team B leaves unchanged, maybe annoyed at the imposition. Nothing shifts in daily work. A month later, Team A emails: why didn’t it stick? Cynicism creeps in on both sides. You’ve lived this outcome before; the workshop becomes theatre, not transformation.

Workshops need a shared problem to solve.

Workshops work best when participants can acknowledge a common problem exists. Without that shared recognition up front, the session could serve one group’s agenda at the expense of others and lack the mutual stake required for real progress. 

Force culture or behaviour change through any workshop format, and you don’t build trust. You risk the opposite: tension flares where none existed before; rifts widen instead of narrow. Team B, who saw no gap, now feels targeted. Defensiveness sets in. What starts as Team A’s isolated frustration ends as mutual resentment.

A workshop amplifies shared willingness but cannot force participants to invest in a problem they don’t see as theirs. Some problems demand work outside the room first, to build mutual agreement on what needs solving. As a workshop designer, know when an issue fits the format and when it risks more chaos.