Games in the workplace: serious business

USING GAMES to help improve business results is fast becoming an accepted practice and powerful tool according to Brisbane-based experiential company Escape Hunt.

“As a company that uses games to deliver unique experiences, it is exciting to see the benefits of gamification in work place first hand,” Escape Hunt Brisbane director Giovanna Shakhovskoy said.  

According to Ms Shakhovskoy, in 1999 the US Army made headlines through its initial use of a ‘virtual Army experience’ to attract and screen new recruits.  

“What has followed has been a raft of examples from large and small companies alike that have pushed the boundaries of using gamification to transform aspects of their business,” Ms Shakhovskoy said.

“The World Bank created an online game, Evoke that they describe as a ‘crash course to change the world’ which has engaged a new demographic of young customers.

“Deloitte turned its poorly attended leadership training model into a game that included ‘level ups’, ‘unlocking harder courses’ and initiation into the ‘Leadership Academy’ that became highly addictive,” she said.

“As a company built on the foundations of game-based learning and engagement these examples are no surprise to us.”

Escape Hunt Brisbane sees ‘gamification’ of the workplace play out in many varied and often surprisingly positive ways.

“We spend hours each week watching corporate teams break through negative teamwork patterns when they are drawn into a unique experience and their different skills are on show,” Ms Shakhovskoy said. “These on and offsite simulations are gaming in its most pure form.  

“Under pressure with a time-constrained objective, teams are forced to work together to ‘escape a room’ or ‘solve a crime’, with the competition proving an effective motivating factor.

“As the World Bank and Deloitte have showcased, almost anything can be a game.  There are now platforms that can turn office chores, answering emails or project management into personalised gaming within your team.”

Ms Shakhovskoy said gaming was certainly becoming serious business.  

“If you're not already thinking about using gaming in your team building, customer engagement and product delivery methods, you should be.,” she said.

Escape Hunt Brisbane is one of Queensland’s Future Leaders participants.

www.escapehunt.com

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