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14 The In-Basket
Exercise—How
to Conduct and
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Design It
Many persons might have achieved wisdom had they not
supposed that they already possessed it.

—Seneca, Roman philosopher and

author (B.C. 4?–65 A.D.)

THE in-basket exercise is a management simulation designed to provide skill practice in prob-
lem solving and decision making. It is composed of a set of 15–20 items, more or less interre-
lated, which have to be acted upon in a relatively short time frame under considerable
pressure.
The completed in-basket is subsequently analyzed and discussed by the group, thereby
giving the participants an opportunity to receive feedback about their prowess as decision
makers. The feedback may also reveal strengths and weaknesses in other leadership/
managerial skills such as communication, motivation, delegation, planning, and time
management.
What might participants derive from an in-basket activity in the way of specific learning or
benefits? The following are typical end results:

1. Skill in problem solving and decision making should be strengthened. More specifi-
cally, participants are challenged to note the interrelatedness of items awaiting action,
to respect the importance and urgency of problems (prioritizing), and to take appropri-
ate (logical) action in a short time period.
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The In-Basket Exercise—How to Conduct and Design It
2. They may also learn that it is all too easy to
over-emphasize, under-emphasize, or overlook
various elements which relate to the decision-
making process.
3. Conceptually, participants should learn that
there is no “best” way to handle (decide upon)
a managerial problem. This learning comes
about through exchange and discussion of the
actions taken.
4. The importance of utilizing staff in working
on day-to-day problems also comes through
quite clearly.
5. Participants can possibly learn to coordinate
matters with colleagues and superiors.
6. Effective time management skills are usually
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developed.
7. New managers may be expected to learn about
the kinds of problems they are quite certain to
encounter, as well as how to go about resolv-
ing them.
WORKING WITH THE IN-BASKET
To appreciate more fully how participants operate
in relation to the in-basket, let’s examine the situation
that exists when the in-basket is first encountered in
the exercise.
Typically, the participant, in the role of manager,
is about to report for duty on a new job. The new
assignment has come up suddenly. He/she is to suc-
ceed someone who has just transferred, retired, died
of a heart attack, etc. The visit to his/her new office
is very brief—60–90 minutes, sometimes 2 hours.
Why the short visit? Because he/she has to catch a
plane to go to headquarters to work on a special
project, or attend an important conference, or take a
field trip, or attend a three-to-four-day management
seminar.
What is the purpose of the visit to the new office?
To check the in-basket to see if there is anything
which may require attention (must be “handled”)
before going off on the required trip.
When does the visit to the office take place?
Unfortunately, at a time when no staff members are
available—Sunday evening, Saturday afternoon, pos-
sibly a weekday morning at 7:00 A.M., Friday
297
evening at 5:30 P.M., or the like. (As we said, this is
just before flight time, so one cannot dally.)
And what are the conditions under which one
attacks the in-basket? Not only are there no staff
members present because of the time of day, but typi-
cally the secretary has just gone on annual leave or is
hospitalized (“I’ll be back in a week. Sorry I wasn’t
there to help you.”). Also, the manager’s immediate
assistant has just been killed in a private plane crash;
the telephone switchboard is unmanned and inopera-
tive or is simply out of order; the file cabinets are
locked; the photocopier is in a locked office, which
means that one cannot make copies of any items to
take along for further study, but must act now.
So what do all these harrowing circumstances add
up to for our manager, as decision maker?
1. The pressure is on!
2. The in-box must be examined in a short time
frame (one to two hours).
3. No one can be reached now for advice or to
give oral instructions.
4. Instructions to staff, if any, can only be given
in the form of short notes, either scribbled on
the in-basket item or written on slips which
are clipped or stapled to it.
5. All action is taken solely on the basis of the
information in the in-basket, even though
there may be information voids, irrelevant
facts, or conflicting information.
Are the limitations and pressures contained in this
simulation likely to produce a feeling that this is not a
very realistic situation? Not at all, for managers typi-
cally work with the in-basket and often find them-
selves in pressure-laden situations. Also, the
problems themselves are plausible.
THE IN-BASKET EXERCISE—
ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATIONS
An in-basket has a number of advantages:
1. It can provide participants with materials for
analysis which are marked by a high degree of
realism. What is more natural than for a man-
ager to “attack” an in-basket?
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298
2. It is a truly inexpensive form of training for
managers. Most trainers should be able to
study the guidelines for the construction of an
in-basket exercise described herein, plus the
models provided here and elsewhere, and cre-
ate an engrossing and high-impact learning
tool. (Of course, the trainer should have expe-
rienced the in-basket activity, too.)
3. It is a flexible tool and thus can be used in a
variety of ways: as the basis for a rather com-
prehensive management training program or
as an adjunct to such a course; for general and/
or more specialized managers; with or without
small group work in the evaluation phase of
the activity. Also, the content (examples) may
be closely work-related or more general in
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character; the individual analysis and group
evaluation phases may be separated timewise
by several days if necessary.
4. Since the basic work-analysis of the in-basket
is done on an individual basis, there is no
problem of self-consciousness arising among
participants. Other management training tech-
niques, such as role playing, and certain exer-
cises may present this problem for some
managers.
5. It helps to “pep up” the training program.
Some limitations of the in-basket are these:
1. The total time of the in-basket activity is fairly
extensive. While the individual processing of
the in-basket is ordinarily limited to one hour
or so, the subsequent group-in-action work
(analysis phase) takes two or three hours. (On
the other hand, the time investment is worth-
while if real learning ensues. In fact, some
trainers may argue that the long time element
is what gives the activity its impact.)
2. For the trainer, considerable detail is involved
in preparing and reproducing letters, memos,
etc., to give them an authentic look. Also,
large amounts of materials have to be carefully
assembled; for example, visualize an in-basket
of 15–20 items for 15–20 participants. Obvi-
ously each packet of items must be complete
and assembled in its appropriate order. Dupli-
cates must be avoided.
The Winning Trainer
3. The moderator/facilitator must both be skilled
in working with groups and possess the cre-
ativity, logic, perseverance, and management
(or other) knowledge to develop an interesting,
challenging, and technically sound in-basket.
Not all trainers might meet these multi-faceted
qualifications. (Of course, in-basket materials
can be purchased from publishers of training
materials. They may also be found in books.)
HOW TO DESIGN YOUR OWN
IN-BASKET
While in-baskets may be obtained from various
publishers, you may wish to tailor-make your own.
This procedure will allow you to include problems
typical of your own organization. The greater realism
of and interest in such materials should help to aug-
ment participant learning. Also, by avoiding the off-
the-shelf product, you may keep your costs down. Of
course, a printed in-basket from a publisher may look
more polished than your own.
In any case, here are the steps you should follow if
you wish to design your own in-basket.
Step 1: Study Several In-Baskets
This procedure will give you a feel for their gen-
eral thrust, style, format, tempo, etc. These materials
are available in books and from publishers of such
materials. Colleagues may also be helpful in this
regard.
Step 2: Selection of Subject Matter
In designing an in-basket for managers, you have
these choices as to subject matter:
F General character. The items in the in-basket
can be general in nature, that is, applicable
and of interest to all managers, regardless of
their organizational affiliation. Our goal in this
situation is, of course, to provide practice in
analyzing and resolving management prob-
lems. In other words, just so there is a good
mix of problems, with enough elements of
complexity, challenge, pressure, realism, and
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