Gamestorming
Encyclopedia
Gamestorming is a set of practices for facilitating innovation
in the business world. A facilitator
leads a group towards some goal by way of a game, a structured activity that provides scope for thinking freely, even playfully.
Gamestorming as a term suggests the use of games for brainstorming
. It is the title of a book by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown and James Macanufo, published in 2010. They document what amounts to a pattern language
of 83 games, noting for each the object of play, number of players, duration of play, rules how to play, strategy and origin. Previously, in 2007, Luke Hohmann popularized the term innovation game
s to refer to 12 games for primary market research
.
A game may be thought of as an alternative to the standard business meeting
. Most games involve 3 to 20 people and last from 15 minutes to an hour and a half. A game suspends some of the usual protocols of life and replaces them with a new set of rules for interaction. Games may require a few props such as sticky notes, poster paper, markers, random pictures from magazines, or thought provoking objects. Gamestorming skills include asking questions (opening, navigating, examining, experimenting, closing), structuring large diagrams, sketching ideas, fusing words and pictures into visual language
, and most importantly, improvising to choose and lead a suitable game or invent a new one.
The Gamestorming book is used in classes on interactive design and user experience , and social media marketing and referenced in innovation , product development , visual note taking and self realization .
Talking Stick
tradition, and Show and Tell
is known from elementary school
.
Innovation
Innovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes, technologies, or ideas that are accepted by markets, governments, and society...
in the business world. A facilitator
Facilitator
A facilitator is someone who helps a group of people understand their common objectives and assists them to plan to achieve them without taking a particular position in the discussion...
leads a group towards some goal by way of a game, a structured activity that provides scope for thinking freely, even playfully.
Gamestorming as a term suggests the use of games for brainstorming
Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a group creativity technique by which a group tries to find a solution for a specific problem by gathering a list of ideas spontaneously contributed by its members...
. It is the title of a book by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown and James Macanufo, published in 2010. They document what amounts to a pattern language
Pattern language
A pattern language, a term coined by architect Christopher Alexander, is a structured method of describing good design practices within a field of expertise. Advocates of this design approach claim that ordinary people of ordinary intelligence can use it to successfully solve very large, complex...
of 83 games, noting for each the object of play, number of players, duration of play, rules how to play, strategy and origin. Previously, in 2007, Luke Hohmann popularized the term innovation game
Innovation game
The phrase innovation game refers to a form of primary market research developed by Luke Hohmann where customers play a set of directed games as a means of generating feedback about a product or service. The research is primary because the data collected is gathered directly from customers or...
s to refer to 12 games for primary market research
Primary research
Primary research consists in research to collect original primary data. It is often undertaken after the researcher has gained some insight into the issue by collecting secondary data...
.
A game may be thought of as an alternative to the standard business meeting
Meeting
In a meeting, two or more people come together to discuss one or more topics, often in a formal setting.- Definitions :An act or process of coming together as an assembly for a common purpose....
. Most games involve 3 to 20 people and last from 15 minutes to an hour and a half. A game suspends some of the usual protocols of life and replaces them with a new set of rules for interaction. Games may require a few props such as sticky notes, poster paper, markers, random pictures from magazines, or thought provoking objects. Gamestorming skills include asking questions (opening, navigating, examining, experimenting, closing), structuring large diagrams, sketching ideas, fusing words and pictures into visual language
Visual language
A visual language is a system of communication using visual elements. Speech as a means of communication cannot strictly be separated from the whole of human communicative activity which includes the visual and the term 'language' in relation to vision is an extension of its use to describe the...
, and most importantly, improvising to choose and lead a suitable game or invent a new one.
The Gamestorming book is used in classes on interactive design and user experience , and social media marketing and referenced in innovation , product development , visual note taking and self realization .
Origins of Games
The gamestorming culture originated in the 1970s in Silicon Valley. Some of the games have earlier roots, as documented in the Gamestorming book; for example, Button is inspired by the Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
Talking Stick
Talking stick
The talking stick, also called a speaker's staff, is an instrument of aboriginal democracy used by many tribes, especially those of indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast. In a tribal council circle, a talking stick is passed around from member to member allowing only the person holding the...
tradition, and Show and Tell
Show and tell (education)
Show and tell is the process of showing an audience something and telling them about it, predominantly in North America and also popular in Australia. It is usually done in a classroom as an early elementary school technique for teaching young children the skills of public speaking...
is known from elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
.
See also
- Innovation gameInnovation gameThe phrase innovation game refers to a form of primary market research developed by Luke Hohmann where customers play a set of directed games as a means of generating feedback about a product or service. The research is primary because the data collected is gathered directly from customers or...
- Game: Business games
- Business gameBusiness gameBusiness game refers to simulation games that are used at an educational tool for teaching business. Business games may be carried out for various business training such as: general management, finance, organizational behaviour, human resources, etc...
- Serious gameSerious gameA serious game is a game designed for a primary purpose other than pure entertainment. The "serious" adjective is generally prepended to refer to products used by industries like defense, education, scientific exploration, health care, emergency management, city planning, engineering, religion,...
- Creativity technique
- Open innovationOpen InnovationAlthough the idea and discussion about some consequences date back at least to the 60s, open innovation is a term promoted by Henry Chesbrough, a professor and executive director at the Center for Open Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley, in his book Open Innovation: The new...
- FacilitationFacilitation (business)Facilitation in business, organizational development and in consensus decision-making refers to the process of designing and running a successful meeting.Facilitation concerns itself with all the tasks needed to run a productive and impartial meeting...
- Technological innovation systemTechnological innovation systemThe Technological Innovation System is a concept developed within the scientific field of innovation studies which serves to explain the nature and rate of technological change...
- User experience designUser experience designUser experience design is a subset of the field of experience design that pertains to the creation of the architecture and interaction models that affect user experience of a device or system...
- Seven Management and Planning ToolsSeven Management and Planning ToolsThe Seven new Management and Planning Tools have their roots in Operations Research work done after World War II and the Japanese Total Quality Control research...
- Finite and infinite gamesFinite and Infinite GamesFinite and Infinite Games is a book by religious scholar James P. Carse. Kevin Kelly has praised it for "alter[ing] my thinking about life, the universe, and everything."-Finite vs. Infinite:...
- Team buildingTeam buildingTeam building refers to a wide range of activities, presented to businesses, schools, sports teams, religious or nonprofit organizations designed for improving team performance...