Home - Magnet Genius Machine

Team Building &
Business Skill Workshops
CHECK OUT OUR OFFERINGS
Workshops include team building,
applied storytelling, creative
ideation, and improv for business.
Making Work Fun

Approaching work with creativity
and playfulness leads to happier,
more productive teams.
LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR OFFERINGS
Experienced Facilitators
and Instructors

Our team of highly skilled performers and
trainers have many years of experience
leading and facilitating corporate
workshops and events.
MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS
Testimonials

We've worked with a wide range of clients,
including Unilever, Google, Sony, Twitter,
McKinsey, MetLife, Ford, NYU, and more!
SEE WHAT OUR PAST CLIENTS SAY

Magnet Genius Machine is the corporate training and workshop division of the Magnet Theater & Magnet Training Center, an improvisation, sketch comedy, and storytelling school.

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Our Approach

We emphasize active listening

To think fast, you have to slow down and listen – to your client, to your gut, and to each other. Improv is ‘listening training.’

``Yes, and...``

All of our workshops harness the power of ‘Yes, and…’ This mutual agreement is the basic principle of all good improvisation. We say “Yes” to each other’s ideas, and then build directly off that idea with “and…”

What’s with the Genius thing?

Make your partner (colleague, co-worker) look like a genius, and they will start doing and saying things that are, well, genius. When we begin with an attitude of support, creatively flourishes.

our offerings

Applied Improv

By applying improvisational theater techniques and processes to non-theatrical settings, non-actors gain access to a fully developed yet flexible approach to working with each other, building on each other’s ideas, and having a great time while doing it.

Team Building

Our Team Building workshops are designed around the premise that a great team is one in which everyone both listens and is listened to, and develops an instinct to make each other look good.

Applied Storytelling

Stories are tools we use to make sense of the world. Stories have a profound impact on us because they engage different parts of our brains at the same time, generating a web of new emotional and logical connections in our mind. We use stories to educate, persuade, convey our values and bring us together. Crafting a good story and telling it well are skills that can be learned and practiced.

Creative Ideation

We use improvisation to help groups generate ideas. Innovating takes teamwork, focus, energy and risk. Our ideation facilitator packs all of those elements into a high-performance session, using a process designed to remove the obstacles that prevent great ideas from getting through, and tricks us into building on an idea before we have a chance to give up on it. Sessions work well when designed around a specific goal or set of business problems.

They did such a wonderful job, the team learned a lot apparently, except Scott, one of the engineers… It’s really a very bonding kind of thing and it was a great day and that’s why our show was so good today. Thank you Magnet Theater, everyone bonded.

Howard Stern – The Howard Stern Show
I can’t believe it, but y’all work miracles! Elana was AMAZING! She was quirky and hilarious yet professional and very very smart. She had us all laughing and on the floor acting like fools, it was great! After the Improv workshop we had another workshop and the spirit of making the other person look good stuck around. We ended the night with drinks and everyone was having a lot of fun, floating from space to space not just talking to their team. I just am so pleased with the ripples of all we did yesterday. And really at such an affordable price. Just thank you from all of us!”

– Andrea Monson, Market Research Manager, Aetna
The workshop went extremely well! The entire group had a blast and learnt a lot of techniques that we would like to apply to how we run our meetings.

– Neha Govil, Associate Brand Manager – Spreads, Unilever
Everyone absolutely loved the show and kept talking about it all day

– Kate Brennan, Assoc. Product Marketing Manager
Google (custom Musical Improv show)

Past Clients

Genius Machine in the News

Thank you, Howard Stern

We conducted a full day training with the entire staff of The Howard Stern Show! What an amazing day. And Howard said on his show: “They did such a wonderful job, the team learned a lot apparently, except Scott, one of the engineers… It’s really a very bonding kind of thing and it was a […]

Magnet Genius Machine In The New York Times!

Big thanks to The Energy Project CEO Tony Schwartz for bringing in Magnet Genius Machine to facilitate workshops on Improv and Storytelling at their annual retreat. Facilitators Ed Herbstman and Melanie Hoopes had an amazing 4 days with you and your wonderful colleagues, and are particularly happy to see your latest New York Times Blog […]

Magnet Genius Machine at Twitter

We had a wonderful two days of Improv at the New York Twitter offices this week. Check out this article on how former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo used Improv to help him become a better leader: http://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-ceo-dick-costolo-improv-comedy-leadership-2015-2

Our own Jocelyn Chia on CNBC!

Here’s something fun all about the collision of professionals and comedy. In this case, the comedy is stand-up and the professional is our Director of Corporate Events, Jocelyn Chia! Here CNBC.com interviews Jocelyn on what it’s like to be an experienced attorney doing comedy, and winning the funniest lawyer comedy competition. Check it out here:

We’re Here

It’s easy to start the conversation and see how we can meet your needs.

Fill out the form or reach out to Sean Taylor at:

corporate@magnettheater.com

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