Playing on the Job

When I worked for a large software company, playing games at work was taboo. In fact, it was company policy to instantly dismiss anyone caught playing games during working hours. At Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, you are required to play games on the job. Trainee surgeons are required to spend 40 minutes playing online games before they practice surgery. Dr. James Rosser, a laparoscopic surgeon noted that when his students did a warm-up on games, they made 40 per cent fewer mistakes. Video games far from being mindless entertainment or the cause of youth violence, can in fact be powerful training tools—but only if we think in new ways about learning itself. Games encourage lateral thinking, exploration and the ability to deal with failure—all the skills you need on the job. Games can help learners to think like engineers, urban planners, lawyers, journalists and other innovative professionals, providing them with the tools to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world.

Balancing the books

 

In France, le game is taken seriously, especially by the French government,. Former. Budget Minister Jean-Francois Cope took a gaming approach to try and find a solution to the country’s financial challenges. Cope launched an online Cyberbudget game that allowed people to balance the books. The challenge was to ensure the 300 billion euro budget were spent wisely and that if tax cuts were made then services would not fall into deficit. There was a range of tests to face, including having to present the budget to a virtual parliament.

Go to jail

In Japan, attorneys have developed a game called Ace-Attorney™. Players have to examine crime scenes and interview witnesses in order to gather evidence for a case. And while the courtroom drama can be a little over the top, the cross-examination is an accurate depiction of how much lawyers have to think on their feet and point out contradictions in witnesses' testimony. In the US, TransMedia have produced a series called Objection! ™. These games simulate a real-life courtroom drama. The judge instantly delivers rulings backed by cases, dicta, explanations, statutes and rules, both federal and state, from all 50 states. In California, the Bar Association has made Objection! ™ a mandatory requirement for its legal education program.

Fitness fun

In January 2011, more than 400 game developers, designers and health professionals gathered in Boston for the Games for Health conference. Believe it or not, people play computer games for health. Delegates explored a variety of games intended to improve health and help patients manage chronic diseases. These included dance pad games that recorded a patients’ coordination—there’s no sitting passively in front of the screen. In fact to play these games requires a great deal of physical effort and visual coordination. Dance pads are being used; for instance, to help with Parkinson’s by reducing the risk of falling and to increase balance, strength and motor skills. You can also play games with your breath! One such game is used to improve cystic fibrosis patient’s self-administration of inhaled medicines.

Better business people

 

If your boss catches you playing games while on the job tell him or her that the Harvard Business School (HSB) teaches that games make different and better business people. Surely your company values good problem solvers and employees who put a high premium on skill, have a strong sense of competence, understand competition, have highly developed teamwork skills, love data, are comfortable taking measured risks—the lists goes on. If you boss doesn’t agree then perhaps its time for a change of employment. The game goes on.