Strategy
& Visioning
Workshop
MCIC Strategic Workshop Hosted & Facilitated by Pop CoLab
The Manitoba Council for International Cooperation needed to bring their team closer together and walk away with a concrete direction for a brand new youth-facing workshop. They needed one day to do both.
Playful Approach, Serious Results
At a Glance
Client: Manitoba Council for International Cooperation
Attendees: 8 team members
Duration: Full-day session — 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Focus: Team connection, workshop ideation, and a boatload of fun
Build it Together
Strategy is more powerful when everyone builds it together.
MCIC didn't want a top-down planning session. They wanted every person in the room to feel ownership over what they created. We designed a full day that moved between play and purpose — so the strategy that emerged actually belonged to the whole team.
The Goals
Strengthen the Team
Build real connections across the whole team — including new staff.
MCIC had grown. Not everyone knew each other well yet. Before they could build something together, they needed to actually feel like a team.
Co-Create Something New
Develop a youth engagement workshop focused on democracy, citizenship, and communication.
This wasn't just a planning retreat — MCIC needed to leave with a tangible concept they could actually build on.
Get Aligned
Leave with a concrete framework and a shared direction for future programming.
The day had to produce something real — not just good vibes, but genuine strategic clarity.
Make It Fun
Embrace a pressure-free day packed with hands-on creativity and a little bit of chaos.
The best ideas don't come from a slide deck. They come from the moment people stop performing and start playing.
Setting the Stage
Inspire creativity and connection
We kicked off the day with a DIY name badge activity using our pin-back button maker, followed by storytelling exercises designed to foster empathy, active listening, and team cohesion.
The Pop CoLab space was set up to inspire creativity and connection — conversation card decks, warm lighting, and tables covered in colourful sticky notes and prompts.
What We Did
Morning Session: Connection & Ideation
Welcome + Tour — A quick orientation to set a playful tone and help everyone feel at home in the space
Team Connection Activity — Sharing stories through guided prompts to build empathy and active listening
The Idea Sprint — A sticky-note-based brainstorm to surface the components of a youth-facing workshop
Outcomes — Clear themes emerged around building communication confidence and reviving face-to-face interaction for youth
Midday Boost
Get-to-know-you Trivia! Light-hearted lunch activities to re-energize and deepen bonds between coworkers — because connection doesn't stop at noon.
Afternoon Session: Visioning & Prototyping
Magic Wand & Magic Lamp — Reflective exercises to name current obstacles and define what future success looks like
Workshop Prototyping — Breakout groups built two workshop concepts using a Pop CoLab template
Wrap-Up & Reflections — Key takeaways captured, and a shared Miro board created to keep building after the session ended
For our team there was the genius of moving back and forth between work-based concerns and goals to just plain fun, and I saw the result of that technique come out in the final brainstorm that produced some really great things for our team projects.
James Kornelsen
Manitoba Council for International Cooperation
I love the folks at Pop Colab. Don't be fooled by the idea that having fun and playing is a distraction--it's THE thing that keeps us human in a world with lots of bad news. Thanks for working with our team on the importance of play for learning and making this world more just and sustainable.
James Kornelsen
Manitoba Council for International Cooperation
