Organization Profile

PlayFair, Inc.

The people at PlayFair bill themselves as the leading experts on fun at work, and their organizational chart supports that claim. What other company do you know that has an emperor at the helm?

For 20 years, the principals of PlayFair have consulted to companies in the areas of team building, stress management, internal customer service, reward and recognition, and fun at work. They're so sure of the quality of their service that they offer an unusual guarantee: "If we don't get a standing ovation at the end of our keynote programs, then you don't have to pay our fee!"

Matt Weinstein is the founding president of PlayFair, Inc. His PBS TV special, "Fun Works!" brought Matt national acclaim as a pioneer in the field of experiential team building, and he's now considered the nation's foremost authority on the use of fun and humor in building teams. Drawing on his own experience as a company president plus 20 years of research by the PlayFair organization, Matt declares team building to be not just a concept but an experience. That's why all of his keynote presentations include dynamic audience interactions as an integral part of the lecture program. Matt's two latest books are Work Like Your Dog (Villard Books, 1999) and Managing to Have Fun (Simon & Schuster, 1996).

Other important figures in the PlayFair empire are:

Fran Solomon - Senior Vice-Empress. Fran has been sharing her upbeat message with audiences for more than 18 years, and helped conduct the research for Matt Weinstein's latest books. One of the top educational speakers in the country, she's been interviewed on CNN, CBS News, and News Center 4, and quoted in the Wall Street Journal, the Philadelphia Enquirer, and the Vancouver Sun.

Terry Sands - Senior Vice-Empress. One of the San Francisco Bay Area's true comedic treasures, Terry has been actively teaching improvisational comedy and leading workshops on "Humor and Healing" since the early 1980s. She's well known for her comedy improve stage performances.

Ritch Davidson - Senior Vice Emperor. Ritch's presentations focus on the value of humor in team building, stress management, and living a healthier worklife. One of the nation's foremost experts on the use of fun and play to create a healthier, more productive workplace, Ritch has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Nation's Business, the Wall St. Journal, Fakta (Finland's leading business magazine), and the Schwab Street Journal.

A Sampling of PlayFair's Offerings:

Getting Serious About Having Fun - A keynote speech demonstrating the power of incorporating fun into even the most regimented work environment.

If You Can Improvise You Can Do Anything - An experiential lecture and workshop on the fundamentals of improvisational comedy and how it relates to improving professional communication.

Business Theatrics - An interactive program helping professionals build a supportive interdependent work culture by producing, directing, and performing in an improvisational comedy about their company.

Sharing Your Vision - A team-building experience designed to assist group members to first identify their own vision for the group, then identify a shared or common vision among team members, and finally work together creatively to represent a unified vision.

The Egg Drop, The Ball Drop, and The Maze - dynamic individual problem-solving/team-building experiences that allow groups to discover how they function as a team and to explore new ways to cooperate with fellow coworkers, clients, and vendors when back on the job.

Laughter, Stress, and Self-esteem - A program that offers suggestions for handling work-related pressures in a productive, upbeat manner. It demonstrates that stressors are inherent in all challenging situations, and that a stressful situation can be a positive one when seen from the proper perspective.

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