Tell us about Archetypical
We’re Archetypical, but there is nothing typical about us.
Powered by our co-founders, Casilda Malagon and Stephen Welch, Archetypical works with our clients to create innovative approaches to implement learning through play. We all know we learn more when we are having fun; or as one Marketing Director said:
‘Part board game, part simulation and a whole lot of fun, this is a great learning experience... those who want to develop their strategic business skills should start here.’
Archetypical started in 2016, when we were invited to submit a proposal for a global conference. We decided to try something different and, instead of the usual PowerPoint session, we said ‘we’d like to play a game’: fully expecting the answer ‘no thanks’. Instead, the conference organisers said ‘yes, please’, and so we created a fun learning experience which we called ‘Corporate Snakes and Career Ladders’. We got great feedback, and after the session several people came up to us asking if we could run a workshop for their in-house teams. And so Archetypical was born.
We create immersive learning experiences to help organisations and their people be more successful. We help organisations embed policies and roll out programmes through the power of play. We build games to make creative, memorable, and collaborative experiences which help people learn new approaches and change the way they work. We use neuroscience ideas to develop our learning workshops and help people and organisations make an impact... in their business and in their career.
We like to work with clients who want something different. They’ve tried traditional approaches and found them lacking. Our clients tend to be organisations who are implementing a change, a new policy, a new culture, or a new leadership model. Archetypical’ s games and simulations help people learn and practise new behaviours in a safe environment. If simulations are good enough for pilots and doctors, why can’t all leaders take advantage of this approach to learning?
What is your biggest business achievement so far?
We are most proud of our work with the UK Cabinet Office (for whom we developed a customised simulation based on a fictional government department), the World Bank, and Gavi (the Vaccine Alliance). Our work is also part of the curriculum at the University of the Arts, and Royal Holloway, University of London.
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned since starting your business?
Resilience!
Originally, our business model was based around face-to-face training. Such an approach was never going to work during Covid. We had to pivot to on-line delivery. Therefore, we created tools and approaches to help people learn, collaborate, and have fun online together.
We learned a lot during this period - how to adapt our approach, how to use different on-line tools, and how to engage effectively over a screen. When normalcy resumed, it was great to see people in three dimensions again!
How has Rocket Lawyer helped your business?
During Covid, we also took the chance to refresh our brand and website and put in some of the key fundamentals of business. As part of this, we used Rocket Lawyer to get a Shareholder agreement in place. The templates made it easy for us to adapt to our particular circumstances. Rocket Lawyer made a potentially complicated process simple; and helped us put a robust agreement in place.
What’s next for Archetypical?
In the past few years, our business has expanded and now we have colleagues in Canada, the USA, Australia, and Germany. And we have delivered programmes in many more countries: Switzerland, India, Singapore, and Spain to name a few.
The rest of 2024 and 2025 will be exciting times for us. We will continue to grow and develop our business, working with different clients in different countries and languages… we operate in English, Spanish, French and other languages on request.
Thanks to Stephen for telling us all about Archetypical!
Visit the Archetypical website to learn more about what they do.
Take a look at Rocket Lawyer’s document library to see how we might be able to help your business too.
