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Game Based Learning for Project Management
Robert Castel
Master of Business Administration Program
Centre for Innovative Management
Athabasca University
Word Count: 15,528
November 21, 2011
Game Based Learning for Project Management Robert Castel
Castel Robert Applied Project. APRJ-699 Applied Project Research Project 2
Table of Contents
Abstract...................................................................................................................................... 3
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 4
Modern Technology and Games ................................................................................................ 7
Game Technology .................................................................................................................. 8
Literature Review ......................................................................................................................10
Cognitive Skills and EI Competencies Found in Games ........................................................10
What Games Do For Us .....................................................................................................11
The Design of Games in the Workplace .............................................................................13
Uses of Games in the Workplace .......................................................................................14
Game Limitations and Concerns ........................................................................................17
Emotional and Social Intelligence and Its Implications on Project Management ....................19
Project Management and EI/ESI ........................................................................................22
The Role of Behaviour in Project Management Failure ..........................................................25
Discussion of How Games Support EI and Project Management Success ................................29
Conclusion and Further Research .............................................................................................35
References ...............................................................................................................................37
Appendix A: Project Management Systematic Biases ...............................................................42
Appendix B: Emotional Intelligence Competency and Games Matrix ........................................43
Appendix C: Wargaming Model .................................................................................................51
Appendix D: MMORPGs ...........................................................................................................52
Appendix E: Hierarchy of Social and Behavioural Development ................................................53
Appendix G: Summary of Biases Affecting Each Case Study ....................................................55
Appendix I: Ranking of Classic Mistakes ...................................................................................57
Appendix J: Classic Mistakes and Best Practices Matrix ...........................................................58
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Abstract
This paper provides an overview how games can be used as a learning tool to
increase the level of emotional intelligence and behaviour interaction of project
team members to deliver a positive impact on project successes. Games are an
ancient activity that provides individuals with a safe place to learn skills with
limited organizational or societal impacts. Unlike the knuckle bones, dice, and
chessmen of earlier times, today’s multiplayer online role-playing games
(MMORPGs) span the world by reinventing communities of interest on a global
scale, imparting social and innovative learning techniques as individuals and as
groups. Project management has been lingering in acceptance of digital based
games as compared to other industries. Games, as it turns out can be more
interesting than life. The paper will provide a literature review that supports the
premise that emotional intelligence (EI) provides a sound basis for project
improvement and a marked improvement in project performance. This
performance acceleration is available once the project management profession
steps to the side from its linear project manager-centric practice to a team-based
EI approach. A stronger EI team-based approach is best suited for the modern
era of rising social and organizational complexity. Games, particularly
MMORPGs, teach players a plethora of 21st century EI competencies and social
and emotional skills that project management can leverage and benefit from.
The project management profession stands to benefit significantly from the EI
experience games are capable of bestowing on the entire project team.
Furthermore, games can be equally effective as a training vehicle for project
training development.
Key words:
Games, emotional intelligence competencies, EI, project management, social
and emotional intelligence, projects, MMORPGs, project teams, project manager-
centric, organizational culture.
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Introduction
This paper will cite various literary reviews which show the pedagogical benefits games
bring to our societies, how games are being used in the workplace, and how games
promote Emotional Intelligence (EI) competencies. This latter point is of particular
importance to project management since higher levels of EI are particularly important to
project management success.
It is often said games are a safe place to practice for real life. As much or as little that
we succeed in playing games, it is about fun, the fun of learning, being trained and the
enjoyment that follows from the practice of trying. There is a positive advantage gained
from an individual to a project team of being allowed to practice and share common
experiences of success and disappointment. These shared experiences can be a
source of growth for cognitive skills, social behaviour and/or psychological
understanding of oneself and others.
One can draw the parallel that the project management framework is a type of complex
game. The Project Management Institute’s “A Guide to Project Management Body of
Knowledge” (PMBOK Guide) (2008, p. 39) identifies the five process groups as being
initiating, planning, executing, controlling and monitoring, and closing. Each of these
process groups is subject to various influences of change. The forces of change can
originate from within the project team, external competitive forces, internal
organizational circumstances, cultural dynamics, technology proliferation, and
stakeholder shifts in priorities to name but a few.
Games are being used in other fields such as the military, government, education,
healthcare and the corporate workplaces to illustrate how project management can
benefit from the lessons learned from these sectors. There is a long history of games
being related to training. For instance, Michael and Chen (2005) state chess board
games have evolved from the 7th century into “one of the most well-known military
training games” (p. 49).
One of the unintended consequences of many of the modern games is the close
relationship they (i.e., games) share with EI competencies as found in Goleman’s EI
model. To view games as having entertainment value only is short-sighted and without
merit. Even though the contexts of games are different from formal training forums,
games have the ability to promote EI competencies such as self-confidence, empathy
trustworthiness, and communications. Project success and improvements can be traced
to a project team’s collective EI and emotional and social intelligence (ESI) of the
project team.
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Goleman (2010) asserts that “[e]motional intelligence is actually a set of skills that
anyone can acquire” (The Summary in Brief, ¶ 1). In describing his New Yardstick of
how well people are at managing themselves and others, Goleman (2010) states “[t]his
new measure takes for granted we have enough intellectual ability and technical know-
how to do our jobs; it focuses instead on personal qualities, such as initiative and
empathy, adaptability and persuasiveness” (Working with Emotional Intelligence - The
Complete Summary, ¶ 3). Goleman views the emotional competencies of self and
others as being intrinsically critical for organizations to become successful; moreover, EI
competencies are learnable.
Applying EI concepts directly to project management, Müller and Turner (2009) found
“there is a significant relationship between the leader's perception of project success
and his or her personality and contingent experiences. Thus the inner confidence and
self-belief from personal knowledge and experience are likely to play an important role
in a manager's ability to deliver a project successfully. The project manager's emotional
intelligence, his or her inner self-confidence, has a significant impact on their
competence as a project leader, and hence on project success” (Chapter 2,
Perspectives on Leadership, ¶ 21).
The rise of EI, in part, stems from the growth of project complexity. Complexity in this
case should be viewed in terms of a number of interactive variables from multi-social
and cultural dynamics, ascending technological pervasiveness, to globalization of
commerce and ideas. Project management education has lingered with traditional
project manager-centric models which incorporate linear and analytical techniques that
are a mismatch for a profession requiring greater skills in dealing with ambiguity,
uncertainty and the adaptive project team capabilities.
One of the more complex issues in project management has to do with the inter-
relationship amongst project team members within an organizational context.
Generally, there is a lack of appreciation and study on the behavioural impact and
decision-making implications that contribute to project failures. Unfortunately, too much
project management training is focused on the linear approach of standardized
knowledge transfer, tools and techniques accompanied by a project leader (often
assumed to be the project manager) who applies a rational approach to succeed with
the project’s objectives. Shore (2008) refers to systematic biases as having a “Point of
view that may be contrary to rational thought” (p. 7) and can take on characteristics of
having the illusion of control, group think, or conservatism (failure to accept new
information as being relevant) as well as six other systematic biases found in Appendix
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A. These systematic biases influence our decision-making capabilities and co-mingle
with cultural, financial, organizational, and personal variables to name a few.
To this end, this paper will suggest that games can be used as a management tool to
assist project team members to achieve higher project success rates, by promoting a
higher level of personal and team-based emotional and social intelligence sensibilities.
As Thomas and Mengel (2008) stated we need project managers to be able “to
diagnose situations, adopt appropriate tools and techniques, adapt the tools and
techniques as necessary, and to learn continuously.” (p. 311). In order to fulfill this
quest a new learning and teaching approach requires a paradigm shift to an ancient
concept of game playing.
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Modern Technology and Games
Prior to the literary review of the paper, this section will briefly highlight the evolution of
games in a historical technology context and examine a few of the major trends in
current game technology. By briefly tracing the role games have had in our ancient
societies to its present day technology platforms, the learning and training patterns will
become recognizable even with the significantly different 21st century context of today’s
games.
Carr (2010, p. 2) states what was lost in McLuhan’s iconic quote ‘the medium is the
message’ was “the transformative power of new communications technologies”. The
transformation was not about information or content but more to do with the way the
technologies are propelling us to act and think. The Gutenberg press caused a seismic
shift in the growth and distribution of knowledge and became a disruptive technology of
global proportions. In this case, the ramifications took hundreds of years and many
societies/nations today still remain fundamentally or functionally illiterate. As the
Information Age (circa 1970) accelerated, it was becoming evident the Gutenberg-
based learning tool was increasingly inadequate with the exponential growth of
information and the Internet’s global capacity to source and distribute information.
In 2004, the birth of Web 2.0 was heralded. Compared to Gutenberg’s impact, Web 2.0
became a quantum leap of knowledge-based transfer. In the last seven years, the
entire world suddenly became engaged in multi-directional conversations. Web 2.0 is a
platform of web applications that allows for multi-media and multi-channel
conversations. It has impacted the business, government, and entertainment sectors
across the globe. Many of the Web 2.0 tools, such as wikis, chat services, and
SharePoint type file directory services are increasingly common place as part of project
management’s daily workflow.
Whereas business and project management tend to view Web 2.0 applications as
productivity tools, gamers tend to view these Web 2.0 tools as an extension of
knowledge harvesting and elevating the social experience the virtual world players find
themselves. The intensity by which gamers exploit these Web 2.0 tool kits is almost
unimaginable in most organizations. In part, the difficulty in conceptualizing the
pronounced use of Web 2.0 applications are generational misconceptions as well as the
linear thinking embedded in the concept that games and business don’t mix.
Unfortunately, this binary misconception had led to a polarizing of the interpretation of
what games and their tools are fundamentally accomplishing.
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Furthermore, Carr (2010, p. 48) makes the case “[n]europlasticity provides the missing
link to our understanding of how information media and other intellectual technologies
have exerted their influence over the development of civilization and help to guide, a
biological level, of human consciousness.” If there are transformative powers of new
communications technologies and games are linked to neuroplasticity of our collective
consciousness, games, perhaps more than any other cultural activity, are positioned in
the crossroads of technology and our neuroscience reconfiguration. To that end,
games continue to fulfill the historic role Herodotus once identified.
Game Technology
Two events combined at the end of the 20th century helped fuel the explosion of games
as we know them today. Firstly, during the late 1980s and 1990s personal computing
power became accessible and affordable on a public scale never before witnessed.
Secondly, the Internet became a global information distribution channel. The breadth
and scope of the Internet’s rise corresponded with the rise of global communications
infrastructure capabilities; therefore, it is no consequence the popularity of games had
exploded with the arrival of Web 2.0.
In order to understand how games can be used as a management tool in a modern
context, one needs to be familiar with a few of the major game development trends.
The following briefly describes this:
Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs or MMOs) are a recent
gaming phenomenon that combines the ubiquitous nature of the Internet, highly
distributed software (gaming) programs and the computing power available to
individuals. The result is tens of thousands of players can be engaged in a game at the
same time, as individuals, collaborators, and/or competitors at different tiers/levels
within the game. In Ritke-Jones’ (2010, p. 63) book, Bodi Anderson describes
MMORPGs as supporting learning behaviours in four ways: “(1) the presence of
complex and diverse approaches to learning processes and outcomes, (2) high levels of
various types of interactivity, (3) the ability to address cognitive as well as affective
learning issues, and (4) the ability to tap into motivation for learning.”
To give an indication of the size of MMORPGs popularity, according to Anderson,
estimated MMORPGs’ worldwide 2008 revenues were approximately $20US billion in
comparison to Aune’s (2009) estimate of Hollywood’s record 2008 revenue totalling less
than $10US billion. (http://www.seanpaune.com/2009/01/18/movie-industry-has-a-
record-year-in-2008/, ¶ 1).
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A unique characteristic of modern digital games is the way the original game can be
manipulated by a technique known as modding or mods. Scacchi defines modding as a
“form of meta-gaming - playing games for playing with the game systems. At least five
types of game mods can be observed: user interface customization; game conversions;
machinima and art mods; game computer customization; and game console hacking”
(2010, p. 3). Stated another way, people involved in modding are reconstructing an
original game using their technical capabilities to fulfill their intrinsic desires and at the
same time creating an innovative solution set of new ideas/games/products which the
original model (or game) did not explore.
The game experience is very often supplemented by Web 2.0 platform technologies.
This would include live/on demand chat functions, collaborative game wikis, (a
significant variation of project management’s lessons learned), live camera feeds, and
social networking forums. All of these tools add to the gamers’ knowledge transfer and
socialization. Gamers are extraordinarily research-oriented. As McGonigal (2011, p.
233) states “gamers spend more time compiling collective intelligence – and making use
of it – than anyone else.” For example, the encyclopaedia-sized wiki devoted to World
of Warcraft (http://www.wowhead.com) has an incredible amount of user generated
material as does http://elitistjerks.com that is user-based generated.
Many games are designed to focus on the players’ sensory experience and technology
plays a dominant role in this regard. The escalating computation power of devices (e.g.,
PC) monitor evolution into high-definition or 3D capabilities and graphic cards, when
combined with audio/phonic rich audio output, bring greater realism to the gaming
experience. Driving the pictorial experiences are technologies such as Unlimited Detail
Technology that is pushing programming graphics using polygonal shapes to further
deeper limits. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-ATtrImCx4).
Virtual reality helmets or glasses and body suits have been on the fringe of
entertainment and gaming for a number of years and still haven’t lived up to their
expectations. Alternately, Wii, Xbox, and Sony’s PS2/3 have provided players with a
plethora of experiences that parallel the virtual sense of reality.
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The human race has always used games as a means of creating novel experiences and
utilized the technology available to assist in the understanding of social norms or as a
means of exploration. Today’s MMORPGs are really no different than the knuckle
bones, dice, and stone board-games of ancient times. Games remain relevant as they
ever have by providing teaching models for our socially complex environments. The
role of games in our societies is to encourage us to explore unseen potential. The safe
haven games provide to learn without the social and/or organizational penalties is a
critical element for a positive teaching and learning environment. This is particularly
relevant in skills related to social and emotional intelligence that often requires many
shades of experiences to understanding the impact of oneself and others.
Literature Review
The literature review is broken into three sections consisting of academic reviews of the
cognitive skills and EI competencies found in games, the emotional and social
intelligence and its implication on project management , and the role of behaviour in
project management failures.
The academic review of games will illustrate how games provide the foundation for
personal and team-based skills that span beyond the traditional knowledge-based
training to exhibit cognitive skills, EI proficiencies and how games are being utilized in
the workplace. The second part of the literary review looks at Emotional Intelligence
competencies as a factor of organizational and project success. The final part of the
review examines project failures relating to project management structural stresses and
importance of behaviour competencies for project managers and teams.
Cognitive Skills and EI Competencies Found in Games
Serious games are thought to be associated with specific vocational skills training and
non-serious games are often associated with the entertainment value the participants
experience. For the purpose of this paper, the term ‘game’ will encompass both serious
and non-serious games since both categories provide unique value propositions that
teach EI well-being as well as cognitive skills.
Games have rules that the participants abide by, actionable tasks with definable goals
and objectives. Rules contrived by the creators or game developers must be followed
by the participants. In game design, rules or framework boundaries are present to
encourage structural and innovative ways for the player to achieve success. The game
itself provides a measure of success (e.g., points, higher levels of achievements,
rewards) which determine who is winning (i.e., over-coming obstacles). Winning can be
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in terms of a low score (e.g., golf) or the highest score or level (e.g., a winning hand at
poker, basketball). Additionally, breaking the rules of the game is not permitted to
achieve a winning position. Jane McGonigal refers to these frameworks/rules as
voluntary, (i.e., not under the threat, coercion or necessity) but as voluntary play;
voluntary play with a strong feedback system to turn failures into successes. Generally,
we accept the rules of the game to play and learn technical and social skills.
Bernard Suites (1967) suggests “that games differ from technical activities in that the
means employed in games are not the most efficient” (p. 148). Suites (1967) concludes
“a game is to engage in activity directed toward bringing about a specific state of affairs,
using only means permitted by specific rules, where the means permitted by the rules
are more limited in scope than they would be in the absence of the rules, and where the
sole reason for accepting such limitation is to make possible such activity” (p. 156).
B. Anderson (2010) describes that cognitive benefits found in games are “(1) the
presence of complex and diverse approaches to learning processes and outcomes, (2)
high levels of various types of interactivity, (3) the ability to address cognitive as well as
affective learning issues, and (4) the ability to tap into motivation for learning” (p. 63).
Specific to social benefits, Anderson (2010) states “[i]t has been suggested that explicit
socialization processes are embedded into many MMORPGs and that trust and
responsibility are both fostered by them” (p. 65).
What Games Do For Us
Games as a human activity date back to ancient times with the oldest game artefacts
found in the city once called Shahr-e-Sookhteh in Iran’s southeast province of Sistan.
Built in 3200 BC, archaeological excavations unearthed “the oldest known
backgammon, dice and caraway seeds and numerous metallurgical finds”
(http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/5668.html, ¶ 4). The question arises as to why games
have been and continue to be a part of human activity.
McGonigal cites the work done by Milaly Csikszentmihalyi as being critical in our
understanding of why the human race has games. McGonigal (2011) citing
Csikszentmihalyi relays that games provide a certain type of happiness that he refers to
as “flow: the satisfying, exhilarating feeling of creative accomplishment and heightened
functioning” (p. 35). McGonigal (2011) makes the statement that “[c]ompared with
games, reality is depressing. Games focus our energy, with relentless optimism, on
something we’re good at and enjoy” (p. 38).
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Emotional Intelligence is described in more detail in the next section of the paper. For
the moment, EI can be viewed as a person’s ability to be aware of their emotions,
understanding one’s own emotions can be self-regulated, and the individual
comprehends the social context of how his/her emotions are impacting others. Noted
below are four examples of EI behaviour competencies as they are uncovered in
games:
1. Emotional self awareness
Reeves and Read (2009) state “[g]amers expect and are comfortable with
discussion, group action, and, importantly, group conflict” (Chapter 9,
Gamers Sensibilities, ¶ 3).
2. Trustworthiness
McGonigal (2011, p. 244) writes “[w]hen a game is intrinsically rewarding
to play, you don’t have to pay people to participate – with real currency,
virtual currency, or any other kind of scarce reward. Participation is its
own reward, when the player is properly invested in his or her progress, in
exploring the world fully, and in the community’s success.”
3. Empathy
McGonigal (2011, p. 163) citing Judith Donath regarding people
interacting with virtual game characters notes “[t]ime spent playing with
them feels like care-taking, an act of responsibility and altruism … [w]e
develop empathy for them and become invested in their well-being.”
4. Influence
Reeves and Read (2009) state “[t]here is good and new evidence that
enjoying work—being engaged and emotionally involved—can positively
influence productivity and a host of other desirable outcomes.” Chapter 9,
Play and Productivity, ¶ 1).
Appendix B presents a matrix that links Goleman’s EI competencies with corresponding
attributes that people playing games are experiencing. EI competencies found in
games are not the foundational intention of games or for a player(s) to succeed.
Instead, EI competencies are behaviour outcomes that form part of the decision-making
consequences and role playing an individual performs in attempting to become
successful within the framework of a game. For instance, a player needs to become
emphatic of others in order to gain the confidence of a follow gamer in order to secure a
leadership position to advance their progress to the next level of the game. Without
having a degree of empathy, a player may not be able to gather enough forces to be
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successful. This would be particularly true with regards to MMORGRs. MMORGRs
require a very significant level of planning, cooperation, collaboration, and trust among
the game participants to be effective. In some respects, MMORGRs reinforce the
ancient notion that games are large-scale systems that assist in the organization of
people and ideas.
In contrasting organizational environments to games, Reeves & Read (2009) identify
common behaviours such as the “setting goals for self and others, hoarding and filtering
information as a source of power, restrictions on free speech, measuring and rewarding
the wrong things, micromanagement, and best of all, burnout from too many corporate
change initiatives. You will not be surprised to note that these are not the personal
strategies that lead to success in today’s multiplayer games” (Chapter 3, What is the
Difference Between Real and Virtual?, ¶ 5).
The Design of Games in the Workplace
Kessey and Smith-Robbins (2010) discuss the pedagogical practices of how games
need to be designed to capture corporate sensibilities when applied to virtual world
training, the importance of social interaction within games, as well as the role of avatars.
The customizable features of organizational culture, process simulations, narrative or
story-telling and stakeholders would make the games more realistic and relevant to a
specific firm.
According to Kessey and Smith-Robbins (2010) “the most successful organizations
prepare their employees for the intricacies of virtual world collaboration through
substantial cultural orientation experiences” (p. 41). Kessey & Smith-Robbins conclude
“a virtual world solution may offer an invaluable new opportunity for your training
program” (p. 49). Van Eck supports Kessey’s and Smith-Robbins’ view of training
opportunities games can bring to the corporate environment. Van Eck (2006) identifies
the value in digital game-based learning as “[l]earning that occurs in meaningful and
relevant contexts is more effective than learning that occurs outside of those contexts,
as is the case with most formal instruction. Researchers refer to this principle as
situated cognition”
(http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume4
1/DigitalGameBasedLearningItsNot/158041 ¶ 9). Van Eck believes that situated
cognition games can be viewed as a complimentary learning process to the formal
training and learning process.
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Uses of Games in the Workplace
Michael and Chen (2005) examine the use of games across a number of sectors such
as government, non-profit, commercial and social sectors inclusive of military,
healthcare, education and other fields. The authors contend “games also offer a
significant paradigm shift in training. No longer will employees be presented with
information that can be ignored. Instead, they are immersed in the lesson to be learned
and are expected to demonstrate their mastery of the material within the context of the
serious game” (p.149). In this context, games provide play-like simulation with the
additional criteria of learning and or improving a functional proficiency and social
interaction.
In the corporate sectors, one area of mutual interest to organizations and project
management is with regards to virtual teams that are increasingly global in nature.
Beyond the common project objectives and travel cost advantages, a multiplayer game
can re-enforce social/cultural organizational value in a short period of time for the
participants. Citing a Caltrans project management case study, Michael & Chen (2005)
highlighted the success of “[s]imulation, beyond teaching the basics of project
management, [where] the team also wanted the game to promote better relations
between project managers and engineers” (pp. 94-95).
In the education sector, Michael & Chen (2005) citing Beck and Wade state “gamers
were more creative, more ambitious, and more optimistic about their abilities and
circumstances” (p.116). With games there is no organizational penalty for failure, the
marginal expenditure to an organization to restart a game is minimal, and as Michael &
Chen (2005) emphasize there is an improvement in “cognitive skills, including improved
visualization and mental maps” (p. 117).
For example, Van Eck (2006) provides tangible examples of games such as
RollerCoaster and Cruise Ship Tycoon that require learners to have “the same skills
expected of business students, who as professionals will need to develop business
plans, write reports, and manage budgets”
(http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume4
1/DigitalGameBasedLearningItsNot/158041, ¶ 21).
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Jan Schwarz elevates the use of war games into the realm of organizational strategic
foresight planning. He identifies various cognitive barriers to preventing organizations
from developing foresight. Schwarz (2009) maintains organizations “often fail to
perceive weak signals of change or trends because they do not fit the mental models of
the organisation and are therefore rejected” (p. 293).
According to Schwarz (2009) “wargames can have several purposes, among which are
strategy-testing, crisis planning and management, change management, planning, and
training and education” (p. 294). He further indicates that the value proposition of
games is not a substitute for a constant foresight process but rather “it can add to and
improve the company’s foresight ability. A business wargame can identify weak signals
that can be used as a starting point for a foresight process” (p. 300). (See Appendix C).
He finally concludes that “by involving its participants actively in a dynamic strategic
simulation, business wargaming has the potential to challenge mental models, foster
learning and develop the kind of foresight that is essential to success in an increasingly
dynamic and complex business environment” (p. 302).
McGonigal (2011, p. 233) notes: “On the whole, gamers already spend more time
compiling collective intelligence – and making use of it – than anyone else.” In today’s
business environment, individuals who have developed self-discipline research style
and organizing capabilities are highly prized.
In attempting to place some context of how corporate problems may be solved by
games in the corporate sector, Reeves and Read (2009) state: “How the user
experience available to gamers outside of work will drive expectations about what the
experience should look like at work” (Chapter 3, Settlements, ¶ 1). The resulting
(external) user experience, as the authors suggest, is occurring at the same time as
“institutions struggling to come to terms with titanic shifts in the flow of information
among global collaborators and competitors.” (Chapter 3, Settlements, ¶ 2).
Reeves & Read (2009) categorize the details of work and its context as being
transformational, transactional, and tacit work. Transformational work is thought of in
the industrial model of manufacturing where products and labour are inputs and the
outputs are finished goods. Today, transformational work employs approximately 15%
of the US labour force. Reeves & Read (2009) define transactional work as including
“people interacting with people but in fairly routine ways according to rules that may
eventually be automated” (Chapter 3, Analyzing Work, ¶ 3). The third category is tacit
work “which defines tasks that are ambiguous and require tacit or experiential
knowledge” (Chapter 3, Analyzing Work, ¶ 3). It’s unlikely that tacit work can be readily
replaced by digital formatting and/or outsourcing.
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Tacit work is rapidly becoming the value work proposition due to a large number of
factors including the Internet, globalization of trade, geopolitics, demographic population
shifts, and integrated information technology systems to name a few. In short,
complexity is accelerating and people required to perform tacit work are escalating
rapidly in most organizations.
In an attempt to systematically validate if games resemble the real world, Reeves &
Read (2009) undertook to “find taxonomies of information work that could serve as a
template for mapping games to work” by utilizing college gamers. (Chapter 3, Mapping
Games to Work, ¶ 2). The authors settled on the Occupational Information Network of
the North Carolina Security Commission. The Commission matches employer
requirements with job design to assist individuals looking for employment. According to
Reeves & Read (2009) “[k]eeping in mind that the taxonomy was intended to cover all
the key building blocks of modern jobs, it was interesting to find that every skill in the list
was represented in multiple instances of gamer experience” (Chapter 3, Mapping
Games to Work, ¶ 5).
Games are expanding rapidly in the workplace spanning the spectrum of industries and
organizational requirements. One of the unintended consequences of games is their
close link in promoting EI and workplace competencies. To view games as an
accidental reprieve from workplace experience is an erroneous position. Our
organizations and, more importantly, the people who work in those companies would
benefit from the imparted skills games offer.
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Game Limitations and Concerns
The challenge of virtual games is not without its perils and disappointments for
organizations that wish to enter into this space. Kessey and Smith-Robbins (2010)
identify large multi-national companies such as Coke, Reebok, Adidas and others that
have had significant failures in venturing unprepared into the realm of three-dimensional
(3D) games in hopes of capturing marketing attention to their products. The authors
state “[u]ltimately these failures were the result of one or a combination of missteps all
leading down the same path of lack of proper research, knowledge, information and
planning for proper implementation of a virtual world for adding value in the enterprise”
(p. 37). They estimate the initial high failure rate can be upwards of 90%.
As with any product or service that does not meet customer expectations, an
organization could suffer from short or longer term negative repercussions. There are
differences between the virtual worlds and reality as is in the case of training and
learning. In the virtual world, players see themselves as part of a social community and
collaborative participants where information exchange and discussion are commonly
reviewed. In this context, Kessey & Smith-Robbins (2010) view “[m]ost successful
projects have a project manager who is assisted by community managers” (p. 47).
The authors point out that learning in the virtual world is different whereby the social
interaction of questions and answers among the participants is more interactive. This is
possible due to the nature of the (Web 2.0) technology which allows all players to have
the capability to create and share content. The scale and means of having the
capabilities of creating and altering content, exchanging/conceptualizing ideas, learning
from mistakes and the ease of being able to do so becomes a massive exercise in
instantaneous collaboration. For the most part, within games, this is an unstructured
process. For instance, a leader or a community manager is a role that can be filled by
someone who wishes to emerge as a leader under one circumstance and a follower in
another situation. This combination of learning scalability, collaborative exchange, and
self-determined role playing is what games are leveraging. Highly successful games
are a commercial business and as such there is large entertainment value. Often times
the entertainment value of games are war oriented to or anti-societal behavioural
oriented.
Reeves and Read (2009) identify three concerns associated with game culture and
technology. They consist of aggression, arousal, and addiction. Aggression is closely
related to violence and is a significant public concern. Reeves & Read contend it is
likely aggressive behaviour more than aggressive games themselves that some players
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seek out violent games; however, the authors summarize that the “effects on
aggression do exist, although the effect sizes are small” (Chapter 10, Aggression, ¶ 3).
Regardless of the authors’ opinions and research, the public view is somewhat negative
towards games resulting from the link of aggression and violence. From an
organization perspective (war/battlefield training aside) it would be difficult to support
the contention of training of project managers, by way of games, would produce highly
aggressive workforce professionals. A similar case, as stated above, can be made for
arousal (i.e., emotional experience and physical encouragement).
Addiction is often associated with substance abuse (e.g., alcohol, drugs, gambling) at
the expense of normal culturally expected norms (e.g., providing for a family`s financial
well-being, food, and shelter). In the case of games, addiction is applied to the amount
of (perceived) over abundant time a person spends playing a game. The term
addiction, as applied to game is generally associated with something negative. Reeves
& Reed (2009) draw some suggestive addictive physical parallels with games and habit-
forming drugs as they (i.e., drugs) “cause more dependence when they leave the body
quickly than when they wear off slowly because the user is more aware of the change.
It’s in part that awareness that perpetuates continued use … [t]here’s some evidence
that media might work the same way” (Chapter 10, Addiction, ¶ 5). This notion reflects
two points of linking withdrawal/behavior patterns between games and habit-forming
drugs and links McLuhan’s view of the transformative role technology plays in media.
McGonigal (2011, p .3) provides a global scope of game usage as she states
“[h]undreds of millions of people worldwide are opting out of reality for larger and larger
chunks of time.” In the US, she estimates 183 million active gamers spending
approximately 13 hours a week playing games with a gaming community of 200 million
in China, 100 million in Europe, and 10 million in Vietnam to name a few countries.
McGonigal (2011) realizes there is an ominous side to the use of games. She
expresses an all too common fear where “bigger, better, and immersive virtual worlds
provide increasingly compelling alternative to reality. If we stay this course, we’ll almost
certainly see the exodus from reality continue. Indeed, we are already well on our way
to a world in which many of us, like the ancient Lydians, spend half our time gaming” (p.
7). It is clear the present trajectory of games could lead us down a disconnected path of
irrelevant self-delusion with little or no benefits accruing to society or stakeholders in our
respective organizations.
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In relationship to MMORPGs, Anderson (2010) notes that “[a] majority of the published
research on MMORPGs falls into either loose theoretical work or anecdotal accounts of
classroom use. While such reports can be useful for direct classroom implementation,
there is a definite need for a higher level of scholarly examination” (p. 70). Anderson
attributes the weakness in empirical research to the relatively newness of the medium
and the social stigma to attached scholarly study perceived within academic circles.
Anderson (2010) categorizes the advantages and limitations of MMORPGs into three
disciplines as being cognitive, social, and psychological (see Appendix D). The
cognitive limitation requires a higher level of instructor interaction than is normally
associated with traditional games used in traditional settings. In the case of project
management this could involve an expanded role of the Project Management Office to
provide the meaningful scenarios or content to the project related games. With regards
to the social limitations, Anderson (2010) also notes that there is a lack of in-game
asynchronous computer-mediated communications. Lastly with regards to
psychological limitations, he sees little evidence that MMORPGs are uniquely addictive
as previously discussed. In addition, Anderson (2010) acknowledges that “[t]here is…a
lack of longitudinal studies present in this body of research” (p. 70). This is somewhat
understandable since Web 2.0 evolved in 2004 and MMORPGs have had a relatively
short life span of a little more than 6-7 years.
Emotional and Social Intelligence and Its Implications on Project Management
This section of the paper provides a literary review of EI or Social Emotional Intelligence
(SEI) and its implications on project management.
Salovey and Mayer (1990) have described EI as “the subset of social intelligence that
involves the ability to monitor one’s own and other’s feelings and emotions, to
discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and
actions” (p. 189). Cherniss and Goleman (2001) note that “[s]ome make a distinction
between emotional intelligence and social intelligence, seeing EI as personal self
management capabilities like impulse control and social intelligence as relationship
skills” (pp. 15, 16). For the purposes of this paper Emotional and Social Intelligence
(ESI) and EI will be used interchangeably.
Cherniss & Goleman’s (2001) EI definition expands on Solovey’s and Mayer’s earlier
work by modelling EI into four domains (i.e., Self Awareness, Self Management, Social
Awareness, and Relationship Management) and within each domain there are 20
emotional competencies as noted below.
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(The Emotionally Intelligent Workplace, p. 28). (See Appendix B for a summary of the
emotional competency matrix).
Cherniss & Goleman (2001), citing Goleman’s earlier work, state “that for jobs of all
kinds, emotional competencies were twice as prevalent among distinguishing
competencies as were technical skills and purely cognitive abilities combined. In
general, the higher a position in an organization, the more EI mattered: for individuals in
leadership positions, 85 percent of their competencies were in the EI domain” (p. 23).
Additionally, the authors state “EI may so strongly outstrip intellect alone in this context
because those in the pools that were evaluated had had to clear relatively high entry
hurdles for IQ and technical competence” (p. 23).
Goleman unquestionably believes, as do others, that EI can be taught using the Social
Emotion Learning (SEL) approach. The issue becomes how individuals and teams can
be best EI trained. Goleman offers a framework for EI learning as noted below:
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(The Emotionally Intelligent Workplace, p. 219).
Cherniss & Goleman (2001) admit their 7-step SEL program “can be expensive to
follow” with the use of one-on-one and group coaching support services and repetitive
sessions which can last up to 12 weeks plus follow-up sessions. (p. 232).
Specific to project management, Clarke summarizes project managers’ EI capabilities
as being a factor to successful project outcomes. Clarke (2010) points out “emotional
intelligence abilities to be associated with a range of important work-related behaviors.
Particularly significant from a project’s perspective have been associations found
between EI and leadership …, team effectiveness …, and workgroup effectiveness.” (p.
5). Validating part of Goleman’s Social Competencies of Self Awareness, Clarke (2010)
suggests “that emotional intelligence abilities and empathy may be a significant aspect
of individual difference that contributes to behaviors associated with project manager
competences in the areas of teamwork, attentiveness, and managing conflict, as well as
dimensions of transformational leadership” (p. 6). Clarke (2010) advances the
correlation between a project manager’s EI and the project`s successful outcome.
For instance, Clarke (2010) cites that Dulewicz and Higgs found 15 “leadership
competences of emotional resilience and communication accounted for the most
success in projects of medium complexity, while the emotional competency of sensitivity
was found to be most important for high-complexity projects” (pp. 6-7).
Clarke (2010) citing various authors has suggested “that emotional intelligence is either
responsible for or underpins an individual’s ability to engage in social interactions …
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such that it may well be an underlying construct of social skills” (p. 7). Clarke agrees
with Goleman’s belief that EI can be a learned experience (i.e., ESL). For example,
Clarke (2010) notes “overall EI scores were found to be significantly associated with the
competences of teamwork and managing conflict, respectively. Project managers’
empathy was also found to be significantly associated with the competence of
attentiveness” (p. 17). Games also provide learning experiences and an EI emotional
competency learning framework.
Project Management and EI/ESI
Weiss and Cropanzano (2009) state “[t]he social interactions through which
relationships in projects are constructed and developed are inherently emotional; thus,
emotions are likely to play a significant role in influencing both their development and
trajectory within a project setting” (Section 2.1, ¶ 2). Whereas, many authors focus
almost exclusively on the project manager to the betterment of project success, the
authors place more of EI’s currency on the project team’s capabilities. Clarke & Howell
(2009) citing the works of EI, Ayoko, Callan, and Hartel identified “positive relationships
between team levels of emotional intelligence and less task and relationship conflict”
(Section 2.3.1, ¶ 2). Citing additional research, Clarke & Howell (2009) find there are
“positive relationships with both team level measures of emotional intelligence and team
performance indices” (Section 2.3.1, ¶ 2).
Further, Clarke & Howell (2009) highlight four components “of effective project working
places [that] emphasize particular attributes of project workers that are highly likely to
be underpinned by emotional intelligence” (Section 2.3.2, ¶ 3). These components are:
1. The temporary nature of projects
“[R]equires project workers to be able to quickly form and facilitate good
interpersonal relationships at the outset of each new project” (Section
2.3.2).
2. Projects are unique
“[T]here is now far greater acknowledgement of the complexity associated
with managing projects arising from their temporary and unique goal
oriented characteristics” (Section 2.3.2, ¶ 5).
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3. Projects involve change
“Change evokes significant emotions ranging from excitement to anxiety,
frustration, and even anger” (Section 2.3.2, ¶ 5).
4. Increased cross-cultural project work
“[P]rojects nearly always involve a coalition of different organizations
sometimes from different countries but nearly always involving parties
from a wide range of differing professional backgrounds, brings unique
challenges for working in projects. Inevitably there is considerable scope
for misunderstanding and miscommunication arising from cultural
differences, which can cause serious problems if not managed effectively”
(Section 2.3.2, ¶ 5).
Upon reviewing research publications Clarke & Howell (2009) surmises personality as
playing a larger role in team work and conflict management. They conclude that
“agencies or organizations would do better to screen based on personality differences in
the first instance, with emotional intelligence providing a subsidiary mechanism”
(Section 5.1.1, ¶ 1).
Clarke & Howell (2009) suggest “potential avenues for organizations to consider in
terms of implementing developmental strategies for improving these competences
possibly through improving the emotional intelligence of project managers” (Section
5.1.1, ¶ 2). The authors also state “that the emotional ability of using emotions to
facilitate thinking is associated with these transformational leadership dimensions again
suggests that developing the EI of project managers may offer significant benefits
through its potential capacity to improve transformational leadership behaviors” (Section
5.1.2, ¶ 2). Other auxiliary training benefits would include:
Being more able to negotiate social encounters
Building team commitment and trust
Increasing self awareness
Increasing the motivation of project managers to use EI performance
Clarke & Howell discuss the environmental factors project managers find themselves
and how these factors exert influence on how project managers apply their skills or
apply their knowledge. They (2009) make the additional comment that “[a] significant
component of this context is the social network or relational field surrounding the project
manager, which will affect how they are able to obtain, share, and interpret the
knowledge they rely on for achieving project success” (Section 5.1.6, ¶ 2). In an article
reviewing the communities of practice, Ruuska and Vartianen (2005) make similar
social observations when they identify “critical elements of the studied communities
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were: formality, learning goals, practice based activities, coordination as enabling and
enhancing contacts between members and the environment, organizational
encouragement and focus on outcomes on personal, community, and organizational
levels” (p. 373).
Adams and Anantatmula (2010) state that “no social or behavioral publications were
discovered that analyzed the individual’s role with respect to the development of the
team process” (p. 89). Adams & Anantatmula (2010) identify a five phase hierarchy of
social and behaviour development and state that “each phase … presents a challenge
to the project manager” (p. 94-95). The five phases consist of self- identity, social
identity, group emotion, group mood, and group intelligence (see Appendix E). The
authors perceive their model as a series of progress stages or steps that is initiated with
the individual and then transforms into the project team’s sensibilities: “As the individual
strengthens his self-perceptions and self-identity, the individual begins to relate to and
mold the development of the team’s social and behavioral identity. At the same time,
the team influences the individual’s social identity. Individuals then begin to integrate
into a higher state of team development, group emotion, where a unified team identity
begins to emerge. Over time, team members learn to decode the verbal and nonverbal
expressions of their teammates as they collectively move to group mood. At full
maturity, with the continued oversight of the project manager, the team operates
independently, as though it is one individual, in emotional intelligence. The transition to
the highest level, it appears, is a function of time; the longer the team works together,
the greater the probability to reach this stage” (p. 94).
Adams and Anantatmula match their hierarchical model against Tuckman’s project team
development model of Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. (See Appendix
E). They view their hybrid model as being hierarchical and project manager centric.
Adams & Anantatmula (2010) further highlight that project managers “should assess
each team member to determine his background and maturity level in social and
behavioral skills” (p. 95). Their suggestion may be counterproductive to the project’s
objectives and beyond the skills of the typical project manager. It is an open question
whether or not the project manager would be the appropriate person to fulfill the role as
conceived by the authors.
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The ESI of the project manager and project team is a significant factor which positively
influences successful project outcomes. The uniqueness and temporary nature of
projects that give rise to organizational change in an increasingly cross-cultural
workgroup environment require higher levels of EI competencies of both the project
manager and team. EI skills are learnable and needed in greater magnitudes than
previously experienced in the project management practice. The linkage of games to EI
competencies both as being teachable and beneficial to project management is what
this section has established.
The Role of Behaviour in Project Management Failure
Project management failures have often been documented as a result of the improper
use of project management processes, knowledge areas or management tools. The
literary review that follows attributes much of the failure to behavioural relationships
within projects as being a significant factor in the demise of projects. Having reviewed
the positive impact of EI on project success, this section will identify behavioral aspects
of project failures.
Shore (2008) indicates “failures occur despite the fact that we have significantly
improved the process of planning, executing, and controlling projects.”
(http://marketplace.pmi.org/Pages/ProductDetail.aspx?GMProduct=00101162600, p. 5).
Shore’s assumption is that project managers have the project management
knowledge/framework to exercise their professional competencies. Shore identifies the
Project Management Body of Knowledge, Capability Maturity Model, Earned Value
Management, Critical Chain Management and defining critical success factors as the
frameworks the project management profession leverages to generate successful
projects. He further states that the frameworks “assume that project leaders follow a
rational and consistent approach to project management and strive to achieve specific
organizational goals.” (p. 5). In addition, he contends the behavioural view of project
management of how individuals within organizations make decisions is not given
enough focus to understand project failure. Drawing from various case studies, Shore
(2008) identifies nine systematic biases (Available Data, Conservation, Escalation of
Commitment, Groupthink, Illusion of Control, Overconfidence, Recency, Selective
Perception, and Sunk Costs; Appendix F) .
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Similarly Clarke and Howell (2009) pose that so far “[traditional] research in the area of
project management has tended to direct its attention to the application of tools and
techniques with far less attention given to the role of people management and the
management of relationships more specifically” (Section 2.0, ¶ 1). Inherently, this is a
developmental short-coming of the profession. Ultimately, people matter and attention
paid to the framework processes and knowledge areas at the expense of the social
behaviour is a significant gap that needs to be re-addressed.
Shore (2008) examines eight case studies and applies his nine systematic biases
against each of the case studies (see Appendix G). The four highest systematic biases
applied to each of the case studies were found to be:
1. Conservatism (the failure to recognize/accept new project information).
2. Illusion of Control (ability to control the situation).
3. Selective Perception (participants view circumstances differently).
4. Sunk Costs (inability to comprehend previous expenditures as irrelevant).
The Author believes behaviour is a larger factor in the success of a project than
processes related to project management technical faults. Of the four leading biases
influencing project failure Conservatism, Illusion of Control and Selective Perception are
not the result of failed project management framework failures; they are the result of
decisions made within the context of the social reinforcement of the organizations. For
instance, the illusion of control is often re-enforced by the organizational view if enough
money and/or resources could be applied then the outcome is ‘expected’ to be
successful regardless of how the range of the scope of the project or the
external/competitive factors may have changed. If, as Shore (2008) suggests, process
and knowledge training are measures of success a project manager could always feel in
control even if circumstances and stakeholder disappointment is apparent.
Furthermore, Shore (2008) takes the position that the “failed project appear[s] to be
related to organizational and project culture characterized by an internal focus and
stability. This suggests that those organizations protecting their own structures and
management processes, as well as those organizations resisting change and
dismissing external threats, may have created an environment in which systematic
biases should not be unexpected, even when the application of the traditional tools of
project management [are] vigorously enforced” (p. 14).
Shore’s (2008) work shows most of the difficulties of project management are cultural
and behaviour-related. While he illustrates project communications transparency
among team members can produce better results, he does not recognize the team as a
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source of positive behavioral attributes. Instead the project manager is viewed as the
individual that is best suited to act as a catalyst for constructive project team
engagement.
Nelson (2007) observes, based on the previous Standish Group’s Chaos studies, that IT
project failure rates “the failure rate does not seem to be decreasing” (p. ??). Nelson
(2007) attributes “[t]his lack of statistical improvement may be due to the rising size and
complexity of projects, the increasing dispersion of development teams, and the
reluctance of many organizations to perform project retrospectives” (p. 67). This
complexity may be rising as the 2009 Chaos Report by the Standish Group identifies
“marked decrease in project success rates, with 32% of all projects succeeding”
(http://www.standishgroup.com/newsroom/chaos_2009.php, ¶ 2).
Citing 10 notable/public failures, Nelson (2007) categorizes project failures into four
categories of people, process, product, and technology (see Appendix H). People
related concerns are closely tied to leadership and relationship issues between the
various team members; whereas, process impacts are associated with project
management’s procedural processes are not as realistic as they should be. In some
measure, it can be disputed whether these process issues are more culture or social in
nature. For instance, an overly-optimistic schedule may be conforming to a
stakeholder’s expectation. In this case, the failure is not found in the process but in the
decision to be more pliable on a social basis. If anything, the process failure rates may
be significantly lower than the people related issues as noted below. Product failure is
associated with functionality failure and technology failures are equipment related. The
vast majority of project failures result from process or people mistakes at 45% and 43%
respectively with only product mistakes accounting for 8% and technology contributing
to 4% mistakes.
“It becomes apparent that failure is seldom a result of chance. Instead, it is rooted in
one, or a series of, misstep(s) by project managers” (Nelson, 2007, p. 70). It is clear
that the author finds project failure to be a project manager-centric issue. Specifically,
he highlights “that project managers should be, first and foremost, experts in managing
processes and people” (p. 73). He continues his critique of project managers by stating
the “finding clearly shows that if the project managers in the studied projects had
focused their attention on better estimation and scheduling, stakeholder management,
and risk management, they could have significantly improved the success of the
majority of the projects studied” (p. 73). Nelson’s (2007) assessment is that “[r]oughly
one-half of the projects experienced problems in three areas: estimation and
scheduling, stakeholder management, and risk management, while over one-third
struggled with the top seven classic mistakes” (p. 77; see Appendix I). In order to
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correct the situation, Nelson (2007) suggests the “project management offices (PMOs)
would be wise to focus their education and training efforts first in these areas, while
simultaneously instituting best practices that address these shortcomings” (p. 77; see
Appendix J).
Jugdev (2008) traces the modern project management era through the 1950s as it
evolved in publications and literature:
In the 1950s, project management literature focused on “mathematical research
based on algorithms and project planning techniques” (p. 180).
In the 1960s greater literary emphasis was placed on “organizational structure
and project leadership” (p. 180).
The 1970s brought “literature focused on techniques i.e., software, work
breakdown structures, and Program Evaluation and Review Techniques” (p.
181).
In the 1980s, the “literature was still rather technically oriented and covered
design-to-cost, lifecycle costing, risk management, cost and schedule control,
and control systems” (p. 181).
“In the 1990s, the literature took more of a human resources approach and dealt
increasingly with team-building and leadership topics. Recent project
management literature focuses on competences, stakeholders, performance
measures, and project management as a career path. (p. 181).
Jugdev’s (2008) timelines indicate that it has only been recently that behaviour sciences
are entering the project management field. This could explain why the focus on the
operational aspect of project management has led to modest project successes.
Jugdev (2008) suggests the way forward may consist of “[b]uilding a project
management theory with multiple world viewpoints [that] will help lead to a more
comprehensive, inclusive, and complete understanding of the human, social, and
cognitive phenomena. To achieve this we should encourage dialogue on and the use of
multiple ways of building theory” (p. 186). By introducing the human, social and
cognitive development aspects into the project management discussion, EI
competencies would surface prominently in the examination of theory and practice.
Project failures are more related to the cultural and behavioural patterns that project
teams find themselves. Nelson’s (2007) model of people, process, product, and
technology are compartmentalized definitions that are presented in a linear context. If
process and people contribute the most to project management, separating the two has
not proven to be effective. The present-day discussion of introducing behaviour and
social competencies into the project management field is a progressive step to building
EI of project teams.
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Discussion of How Games Support EI and Project Management Success
As noted earlier, Jugdev (2008) traced much of the project management research since
the 1950s which emphasized more of a rational, analytical approach with the interjection
of social sciences having been a relatively recent influence. Project management
training has tended to follow a similar trajectory path. Thomas & Mengel (2008)
observe that despite the level of project management training, this education “fails to
prepare project management students to deal with the increasing complexity that they
face in today’s working environment nor does it make full use of existing innovative
learning environments and techniques” (p. 305). There is a certain irony as the number
of project managers grows on a worldwide basis there is a corresponding mismatch of
project management training skills being espoused. This section will examine how
games may be used as an innovative learning to tool to assist with social/environmental
complex situations and develop the leadership skills required for ambiguous/uncertain
times.
Nelson (2007) along with Adams and Anantatmula (2010) share a common element to
improve the project management profession. Their differing solutions are similar in that
they both propose a project manager-centric model. Nelson would like to see the PMO
intervene, having the project manager focus on education, training, and best practices;
whereas, Adams & Anantatmula would like to extend the project manager’s role deeper
into the behavioural sciences role.
The difficulty with the linear project manager-centric approach the authors propose is
the layering of soft-skill leadership training solely onto a project manager is likely to
have limited benefits for the project team. As it turns out, this project manager-centric
approach when applied to today’s project management’s structural processes are akin
to a slightly more humanistic form of Taylorism. These approaches fail to recognize
how the entire project team can contribute to the group’s well-being. The complexity of
project management requires a more collective approach in order to make a marked
difference with regards to project success. The underestimation or non-recognition of
the shared project team experiences is seldom acknowledged in the project manager-
centric model. Viewed in this context, the project managers’ success rate (i.e., of being
a leader, manager, and project management expert) will dwindle as complexity rises.
From an organizational perspective, Daniel Pink views there is an intrinsic clash
between the ways and means organizations currently apply their human resources
management and motivation systems. Pink (2009, p. 29) offers the view that “[d]uring
the twentieth century, most work was algorithmic” (i.e., routine or linear work effort) as
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contrasted to today’s requirement for heuristic work force (i.e., experimental, novel
problem solving). This is consistent with a massively complex social environment,
pervasive technology and information-based systems, and a globalized competitive eco-
system that is present in today’s marketplace. Amar makes a similar observation with
regards to the rise of contemporary/knowledge workers and the impact of globalization
within the work force. Amar states (2004) “In the knowledge environment, the involving
of employees' minds in their work has become more important than winning the
commitment of their effort. It draws from the importance of human knowledge in
contemporary work. As the role of knowledge in work increases, the emphasis on
engaging employees' minds in its execution will increase. The linkage draws from the
earlier stated fact that knowledge is a product and function of mind” (p. 93).
In an algorithmic rational world, expert knowledge is valued and, more times than not, is
vertically accessed within an organizational structure; whereas, in a heuristic
environment thinking, conceptualizing and synthesizing insights tend to be more
horizontal to have value for the organization. In regards to motivational theories, Lam
(2008) makes the statement it is the “contextual differences and changes, such as in
culture and other demographics, should be considered in their applications” (p. 57).
Lam’s concept of culture and demographics are exceedingly important. What will work
for a Brazilian corporation may not be easily transferable into a North American context.
What is of consequence in a dynamic way in today’s globalized and instantaneously
accessible world is the redefinition of cultures as different societies collide. Games,
particularly MMORPGs, are at the forefront of these happenstances.
The unintended consequence of this linear, rational learning processes, and project
management’s structural education/training may be as Thomas & Mengel (2008) have
identified: “today’s project managers may not be equipped or trained adequately to
handle complex projects even though significant efforts have been put into
professionalizing project management and providing an ever growing number of project
management education courses” (p. 308).
In the Design of Business, Roger Martin (year) suggests that one of the reasons
companies fail is organizations fall in love with their algorithms. Stated another way, by
continuing to repeat (once) successful business models, an organization loses its ability
to adapt in a changing marketplace environment. The same can be said for project
management when it comes to training and extending the project manager’s skill sets
that may be beyond a single person’s capabilities. In order to be successful in today’s
project management field, the project team needs to focus on EI training skills, not the
project manager-centric model. According to Thomas & Mengel (2008) the project
management profession needs to develop project managers with “[s]hared leadership;
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social competence and emotional intelligence; communication; skills in organizational
politics; and the importance of visions, values, and beliefs have emerged as
competencies that are required from project managers in complex environments” (p.
308). Games provide project team members with the collective learning pathways to
learn and experience without the recriminations of organizational disfavour.
One reason the notion of games is perceived to have limited social/learning values lies
in the concept that games are a non-serious activity. Suits (1967) suggests “there
is always something in the life of a player of a game more important than playing the
game, or that a game is the kind of thing that a player could always have reason to stop
playing” (p. 152). McGonigal would agree there is something more important than
playing games and, extending the game discussion McGonigal believes games, with
their digital attributes, can be extended to a virtually endless amount of serious/real life
situations. As McLuhan had foreseen the transformative powers of new
communications technologies would affect how we act and think. At present, the
epitome of game evolution is found in MMORPGs.
Anderson (2010) describes the cognitive, social, and psychological benefits attributed to
MMORPGs. In terms of cognitive benefits that support learning, he states that “players
are offered many different choices regarding how they choose to interact with the game.
They [i.e the players] can, for instance, choose to test their strategic and team-work-
based skills” (p. 63). This type of non-linear relationship between role and responsibility
is rarely available in the vast majority of organizations. With regards to the social
benefits MMORPGs can provide, Anderson (2010) states that a number of studies
“suggest strong empirical support for high levels of social interaction being present in
MMORPGs” (p. 66). Finally, with regards to the psychological benefits, Anderson
(2010) identifies supporting research that states “pedagogical agents help learners by
stimulating social interaction and socially based cognition and motivation and allow for
more naturalistic learning, making them an invaluable tool in computer-based
educational technology” (p. 68). The essence of role playing, social interaction and
confidence building can only be viewed as positive attributes to project management
and EI.
In addition, Anderson identifies competencies as building trust, empathy, and
collaboration as being amongst the project team’s more notable achievements. Trust,
empathy, and collaboration are experiences that need to be shared to be significant and
contribute to the project team’s elevated EI. Games provide a safe and fun place where
EI sensibilities can be practiced, refined, and achieved by the individual as well as the
team.
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In the virtual world of games where mistakes are non-judgemental and peer review is
supportive, there is a greater likelihood that positive personality shifts are possible. To
paraphrase Stone, ‘culture matters’ and avoiding the cultural/social issues within project
teams is to ignore a large portion of what EI is attempting to accomplish. A project
manager-centric model may be easier to conceive and deploy; however, project
management deserves a broader solution to EI-related competencies. Games provide
an expansive environment of EI opportunities to be available at a relatively low cost and
organizational accessibility.
Michael & Chen (2006) cite numerous examples of games that are being used in many
sectors such as the military, healthcare, education, journalism and others. For the most
part these focus on tactical skills training. For example, in military games the benefits
incurred were the improved ability to multitask, target prioritization, ability to work within
a team using minimal communications, and desensitization of shooting human targets
(pp. 58-59). In government related game simulations cover a wide spectrum of services
from emergency services scenarios for a region or a wide geographic area to
firefighting. In the education sector games exhibited the benefits of students’ ability to
model complex systems, higher engagement with the [teaching] material, and
advantages of interactivity when learning (p. 120). In healthcare, games “can assist
patients as they recover, help doctors as they prepare for delicate surgery, promote
general wellness, help patients with mental problems, and more” (p. 179). While not all
of the purported benefits of these games may be applicable to project management,
what is clear is the functional training and people skills development are being met by
the use of games.
More importantly, games are a viable conduit to support Goleman’s (year) frameworks
of Emotional Competencies (See Appendix B). The personal and social competencies
embraced in Goleman’s EI model are directly relevant to projects and project team
members. This is particularly true given the rising state of complexity that projects are
increasingly finding themselves. The organization of people and their appropriate skill
set to reach common goals and objectives becomes a social process of personal and
group discovery. In broad terms, the greater the intensity and complexity a project
offers, the greater the likelihood the personal (e.g., emotional self awareness,
adaptability, trustworthiness) and social competencies (e.g., empathy, communications,
conflict management) will be required amongst all team members.
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In these circumstances it’s not enough to hoist the EI burden on to the project manager
and pretend one trained EI member is sufficient. Goleman’s somewhat elaborate and
expensive 7-step SEL program/model reinforces the view that there is significant
investment in a person’s EI skill set adoption. More importantly, Goleman’s (and others)
is a traditional way of teaching EI skills (i.e., structured classroom, study, work
application of skills, and periodic review and assessment. Goleman’s view training, its
distribution and learning values within the classical model as do many other types of
educational and training programs. There is value in this approach to the individual and
the organization; nevertheless, if the SEL teaching and learning model was designed as
a game, the accessibility would by over a wider population and benefits more dispersed
within an organization.
Reeves and Read (2009) state media that games are built on “are quite up to the task of
representing social relationships in a virtual world in ways that primitively engage
players as if the people and places in the game were real” (Chapter 10, Section Dots
Get Faces, ¶ 4). It would seem games have the capabilities to provide a virtual world
real enough for us to play in. This playfulness allows us to make mistakes, have
continuous feedback, expand our social competencies, and to physiologically react in
ways that are similar in the real world. It would seem that games provide the training
ground for project teams to gain greater SEI skills. A project team that has acquired
the collective ability to elevate their EI skills, the team is exponentially more likely to be
successful than the project manager-centric model.
Games increase the quality of work by increasing the ambiguity and complexity without
threatening the real world. In Reeves and Reads terms, ambiguity is where Tacit work
is experimented with, experienced, and shared. Learning becomes simpler and it is still
hard work.
The current EI training models tend to be focused on the individual’s EI skills
development rather than the larger (project) team’s EI capabilities. The underlying
assumption is, if there is at least one person trained in EI, the benefits will have a
multiplier effect with the rest of the colleagues involved. While it may be true that one EI
trained employee is better than none at all, it is too limited in scope. The greater the
complexity of the environment, the greater the amount of collective wisdom needs to be
harnessed. The traditional EI learning processes are structured in a historical and
generational approach to learning (i.e., knowledge is dispensed and the student self
corrects). The context of learning within games is different whereby the players share
their experiences with one another and gain a personal/collective understanding of their
shared experiences. The resulting EI impacts are genuine and real. The EI (or SEL)
learning processes built into games are of a different context and media. This is what
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McLuhan had predicted (i.e., the empowerment of new communication technologies)
and the rewiring of our brains as Carr noted is an ongoing biological process.
Games do not have to be customized ‘for project management’ to start to bring the
benefits of ESI to project management. In fact, EI intelligence is already developing
within the gaming community. Entertainment alone is not a sufficient motivator to keep
such vast numbers of people engaged in ‘playing’ various games/MMORPGs. Play, as
games, is a form of learning skills that range from research capabilities, EI learning, and
global/cross cultural communications to leadership skills to highlight a few. All of these
learned behaviours and abilities are available to anyone who is engaged in the modern
games. For example, World of Warcraft is not totally about desensitizing emotions in
order to hurt people; it also is about learning and practicing skills to help us deal with an
ever increasingly complex world. Games are doing what they always have done and
have been - providing a safe place to practice for real life. This evolution is occurring
already as an organization known as doublemasters where they envision “a future
where all project managers, just like airplane pilots, will train on virtual simulators to
improve their skills, reduce the potential for costly errors, and help them be more
successful in delivering projects on time and on budget”
(http://www.doublemasters.com, ¶ 3).
An EI styled game-based learning system is more aligned with how organizations are
structured between the project management resources and the business units. A
simplified example of a project team may have resources built around functional
processes (e.g., project managers from the PMO, subject matter IT experts, and
business analysts from Marketing). If each of the team members had EI training this
would compound the effectiveness of the group. A closer examination of Appendix D is
suggesting many of the EI competencies are experienced in games as they are
currently designed. It’s the current social context and interpretation of games such as
World or Warcraft, Diablo, and Farmville that often prevents us from seeing the EI
benefits that emanate from these games.
As McGonigal (2011) established, games are intrinsically satisfying as we play to learn,
adapt, enjoy and have fun. McGonigal understands Csikszentmihalyi’s deep views on
human life and the role modern games play in our development. Her comprehension of
the vast potential of games is based on new technology platforms and social
environments (e.g., MMORPGs, social networking) that fulfil our personal intrinsic
desires. Pink (2009), also citing Csikszentmihalyi, states “[o]nce we realize that the
boundaries between work and play are artificial, we can take matters in hand and begin
the difficult task of making life more liveable” (p. 130).
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Conclusion and Further Research
The ability of games to teach us skills and concepts are rooted in our ancestral cultures.
Games allow us the freedom to fail with only minor personal and social consequences.
Learning is fun. We can learn in the solitude of our own play as naturally as when the
game is shared with others. Games have always been there for our personal and social
learning. Relative to project management, games are a conduit for EI skills learning to
be experienced by a wider audience.
EI has been shown to be of considerable value to the success of project teams. The
skill sets of the 21st century require us to be more trusting, have a greater empathy and
collaborative skills as we interface with our project team colleagues. There is little
choice in the matter. In the project management context, the complexity of the
competitive business environment, integration of global cultures, and technological
ubiquity are powerful forces found daily within our profession.
If project management is to retain its valued professional role to our stakeholders, it
needs to broaden its strategic perspective from a project manager-centric model and
embrace SEI to be inclusive of a majority of project team members. Traditional learning
and training models have concentrated their effort on the individual experience and not
so much on the team’s capabilities. What passes for team-building exercises loses its
potency rather quickly and has shown little in terms of emotional and social skill
development. Games, conversely, have shown to be inherent venues of significant
skills development.
The accelerating complexity faced by individuals and organizations requires us to gain
greater insight into a model that includes the external environment, the internal
resources of our organizations and more importantly, to discover the latent ESI talents
within ourselves and colleagues. Games, as a source of SEI training and insights, are
at the epicentre of how to bridge the dominant operational/engineering tendencies with
a suite of SEI capabilities bringing real value to our organizations.
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Just as reading and writing were unnatural acts for the untrained mind, games,
leveraging the suite of Web 2.0 technologies are rewiring our brains to prepare us for
the challenges ahead. McLuhan’s media impacts are found most vividly in the gaming
environment where the inflection points of technology, the Internet, story-telling
narratives, vast quantities of data manipulation, and deep social interaction (e.g.,
collaboration, trust building, leadership) are common place. It’s been almost 40 years
since Pong was released and it’s only been since the turn of the century the digital
media – and games in particular - have appeared. It would appear McLuhan’s
convictions have been validated. Project management, with the use of games to
accelerate a project team’s ESI, stands to benefit significantly from the play of learning.
Further research is warranted in a number of areas to validate how modern games can
be used to validate EI competencies and project management success:
1. Empirical data to determine the EI competencies of gamers across levels of
playing involvement and over time.
2. Determining which games allow the transfer of EI competencies into project
management within each of the four sections of Goleman’s framework of
emotional competencies (i.e., self awareness, self management, social
awareness, and relationship management).
3. The minimal and optimal amounts of EI competencies a project team would
benefit from given different levels of complexity and project success.
4. The role emotions play in successful and unsuccessful projects.
5. Determining the degree and reasons to which organizations are not adopting the
practice of playing games as learning and training tools?
6. More empirical analysis of MMORPGS with regards to longitudinal studies,
relationship development, and employee performance.
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Appendix A: Project Management Systematic Biases
(http://marketplace.pmi.org/Pages/ProductDetail.aspx?GMProduct=00101162600, p. 7)
Appendix B: Emotional Intelligence Competency and Games Matrix
Goleman’s
Domain
Goleman’s
Competence
EI Overview Games to EI Referencing
Self awareness Emotional self
awareness
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) state
“[e]motional Self Awareness, reflects
the importance of recognizing one’s
own feelings and how they affect
one’s performance. (p. 33).
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“[g]amers expect and are
comfortable with discussion,
group action, and, importantly,
group conflict” (Chapter 9,
Gamers Sensibilities, ¶ 3).
Accurate self-
assessment
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) note
“[i]ndividuals with the Accurate Self-
Assessment competence are aware
of their abilities and limitations, seek
out feedback and learn from their
mistakes, and know where they need
to improve and when to work with
others who have complementary
strengths” (p. 33).
Reeves and Read (2009) note
“[a] trial-and-error strategy
redefines risk, an important
ingredient for innovation in
business. Gamers learn to
expect that plans will often fail.
What’s important is to make the
effort, register the feedback, and
keep going” (Chapter 9, Gamers
Sensibilities, ¶ 5).
Self-confidence Cherniss & Goleman state “[s]elf-
confidence was fact a stronger
predictor of performance than the
level of skill or previous training” (p.
34).
Spires states “[t]he modern work
environment is about managing
complex information streams,
which increasingly is a critical
part of job performance. Games
can provide a context for
situated learning in which
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players are immersed in
complex, problem solving tasks
that require expertise”
From the Journal of Computer
Assisted “In addition to the
predefined locations and objects,
players may also extend the
game universe by utilising
external channels and objects in
order to optimise their
performances” (p. 424).
Self
Management
Emotional self-
control
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) note
“[e]motional self control manifests
largely as the absence of distress and
disruptive feelings” (p. 34).
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“[w]hen people control
characters in interactive games,
their experience is one of taking
action, not just evaluating
whether they might be
interested. Knowing that you can
change what happens in the
virtual world gives a sense of
power that keeps people
engaged” (Chapter 10,
Contingency: I Can Influence
What Happens Next, ¶ 3)
Trustworthiness Cherniss & Goldman (2001) note
“[t]rustworthiness competence
translates into letting others know
one’s values and principles, intentions
and feelings, and acting in ways that
McGonigal (2011) writes “[w]hen
a game is intrinsically rewarding
to play, you don’t have to pay
people to participate – with real
currency, virtual currency, or any
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are consistent with them. Trustworthy
individuals are forthright about their
own mistakes and confront others
about their lapses (p. 34).
other kind of scarce reward.
Participation is its own reward,
when the player is properly
invested in his or her progress,
in exploring the world fully, and
in the community’s success (p.
244).
Conscientiousness Cherniss & Goldman (2001) state
“[c]onscientiousness competence
include being careful, self-disciplined,
and scrupulous in attending to
responsibilities” (p. 34).
Anderson (2010) states “based
on the need in many MMORPGs
for players to often work together
to achieve in-game goals
organized social networking is
often inherent to players’
success and progression in the
virtual word” (p. 62).
Social
Awareness
Empathy Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
empathy as “[a]n astute awareness of
others’ emotions, concerns, and
needs. Can read emotional currents,
picking up on nonverbal our
understanding of others’ feelings and
concerns flows from awareness of our
own feelings” (pp. 35-36).
McGonigal (2011) citing Judith
Donath regarding people
interacting with virtual game
characters notes “[t]ime spent
playing with them feels like care-
taking, an act of responsibility
and altruism … [w]e develop
empathy for them and become
invested in their well-being” (p.
163)
Service Orientation Cherniss & Goldman (2001) identify
Service Orientation as the “[t]he
ability to identify clients or customer’s
often unstated needs and concerns
Reeves and Read (2009) in
describing the Star War Galaxies
games point out “this game
requires that players either train
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and then match them to products or
services” (p. 36).
for professions that provide
game services or make useful
products—and then market
those services or products on
game planets. To advance,
players must keep the supply
chain filled and satisfy customer
demand” (Chapter 2, Popular
Games, ¶ 2).
Organizational
awareness
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) note
Organizational awareness “as the
ability to read the currents of
emotions and political realities in
groups, is a competence vital to the
behind the scenes networking and
coalition building that allows
individuals to wield influence, no
matter what their professional role” (p.
36).
Reeves and Read (2009)
comment “Human experiences
are increasingly chaotic and
complex, and cut across
boundaries. Those who are
adept at new digital skills bridge
these boundaries and are
redefining what it means to be
computer literate in a digital
world” (Chapter 9, The Modern
Convergence of Work and Play,
¶ 2).
Adaptability Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
Adaptability as being “open to new
information and can let go of old
assumptions and so adapt how they
operate. Emotional resilience allows
an individual to remain comfortable
with the anxiety that often
accompanies uncertainty and to think
McGonigal (2011) writes “[r]eal-
time data and quantitative
benchmarks are the reason why
gamers get consistently better at
virtually any game the play: their
performance is consistently
measured and reflected back to
them” (p. 157),
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‘‘out of the box,” displaying on-the-job
creativity and applying new ideas to
achieve results” (p. 35).
Achievement drive Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
“[a]chievement drive refers to an
optimistic striving to continually
improve performance” (p. 35).
Anderson, in Ritke-Jones (2010)
book, states “unlike most
traditional games, there is no
way to beat an MMORPG;
rather, they provide multiple
paths and constantly changing
goals to be achieved.
MMORPGs have higher levels of
the ability to both tap and sustain
player motivation and interest”
(p. 65).
Initiative Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
“[i]nitiative competence act before
being forced to do so by external
events. This often means taking
anticipatory action to avoid problems
before they happen or taking
advantage of opportunities before
they are visible to anyone else” (p.
35).
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“there is substantial new interest
in using games to promote
healthy choices and to solve
important health problems. The
general logic is the same as for
games at work: higher
engagement leads to more
influential participation in
behavior change” (Chapter 10,
Health, ¶ 5).
Relationship
Management
Developing others Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
developing others “[i]nvolves sensing
people’s developmental needs and
bolstering their abilities—a talent not
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“[f]inally, the games promote a
meritocracy. Any player who
performs well … has a chance to
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just of excellent coaches and
mentors, but also outstanding
leaders” (pp. 36-37).
advance. There are no secret
paths to the top. Leadership is
bestowed on those who are
doing well now, and it’s not
predetermined (as it often is in
business) by a résumé of past
accomplishments. Supervision is
less important than mentoring, in
part because the environments
in which leadership happens
contain so much useful
information about how things are
going” (Chapter , Gamers
Sensibilities, ¶ 6).
Influence Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
influence as being able to “[h]andle
and manage emotions effectively in
other people, and so are persuasive”
(p. 37).
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“[t]here is good and new
evidence that enjoying work—
being engaged and emotionally
involved—can positively
influence productivity and a host
of other desirable outcomes”
Chapter 9, Play and Productivity,
¶ 1).
Communications Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
communication “competence are
effective in the give-and-take of
emotional information, deal with
difficult issues straightforwardly, listen
well and welcome sharing information
Reeves and Read (2009) state
“[w]hether the groups are virtual
or more traditional, games allow
people to confirm membership in
a group and communicate that
membership to others, often in
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fully, and foster open communication
and stay receptive to bad news as
well as good” (p. 37).
ways that celebrate the
connection. When
anthropologists analyze group
identity, they say that play offers
group members an occasion to
persuade each other that they
belong together” (Chapter 9,
Play as Community Identity, ¶ 2).
Conflict
management
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
conflict management as “spotting
trouble as it is brewing and taking
steps to calm those involved. Here
the arts of listening and empathizing
are crucial to the skills of handling
difficult people and situations with
diplomacy, encouraging debate and
open discussion, and orchestrating
win- win situations” (p. 37).
McGonigal (2011) states
“[g]amers rely on each other at
all times to keep the game going,
even if it’s not working out in
their favor. Whenever they see
a game through to completion,
gamers are honing their ability to
honor a collective commitment”
(p. 269).
Visionary
leadership
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
visionary leadership competence as
drawing “on a range of personal skills
to inspire others to work together
toward common goals” (p. 37).
McGonigal (2011) identifies
SONY’s PlayStation 3 game
Folding@Home (a cancer curing
initiative) as “matching ability
with opportunity, which is the
fundamental dynamic of good
crowdsourcing project. It’s not
enough to draw upon a crowd –
you have to ask the crowd to
something they have a real
chance of doing successfully” (p.
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240).
Building bonds Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
building bonds competence people
who are able to “balance their own
critical work with carefully chosen
favors, building accounts of goodwill
with people who may become crucial
resources down the line” (p. 38).
McGonigal (2011) states
“[i]ncreasingly, we, too, are using
games to create better rules of
engagement and to broaden our
circle of cooperation. More and
more, we recognize the
unrivalled power of gameplay to
create common ground, to
concentrate our collective
attention, and to inspire long-
term efforts” (pp. 349-350).
Teamwork and
collaboration
Cherniss & Goldman (2001) define
teamwork and collaboration
competence as “[t]eam members tend
to share moods, both good and bad—
with better moods improving
performance (Totterdell, Kellett,
Teuchmann, & Briner, 1998).
The positive mood of a team leader at
work promotes both worker
effectiveness and retention (George &
Bettenhausen, 1990).
Positive emotions and harmony on a
top-management team predict its
effectiveness” (p. 38).
McGonigal (2011) states
“[p]erhaps most importantly,
gamers actively work together to
make believe that the game truly
matters. They conspire to give
the game real meaning, to help
each other get emotionally
caught up in the act of playing,
and to reap the positive rewards
of playing a good game.
Whether they win or lose, they’re
creating reciprocal rewards” (p.
269).
Appendix C: Wargaming Model
http://0-
web.ebscohost.com.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=d298fe02-
5e81-436c-ad8b-86c2f20294df%40sessionmgr15&vid=5&hid=17, p. 301).
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Appendix D: MMORPGs
http://0-www.igi-global.com.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/viewtitle.aspx?titleid=41467, p. 69.
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Appendix E: Hierarchy of Social and Behavioural Development
http://0-
vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/hww/results/getResults.jhtml?_DAR
GS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.35, p. 94.
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Appendix E (continued)
http://0-
vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/hww/results/getResults.jhtml?_DAR
GS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.35, p. 95.
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Appendix G: Summary of Biases Affecting Each Case Study
(http://marketplace.pmi.org/Pages/ProductDetail.aspx?GMProduct=00101162600, p. 12)
Available
Data Conservation
Escalation of
Commitment Groupthink
Illusion of
Control
Overconf
idence Recencey
Selection
Perception
Sunk
Cost
Airbus 380 X X X X
Coast Guard Marine X X
Columbia Shuttle X X X
Denver Baggage X X X
Mars Orbiter X X
Merck Vioxx X X X
Microsoft Xbox 360 X X
New York City Subway X X X
Totals 1 4 0 2 4 2 1 4 4
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Appendix H: Nelson’s Four Categories of Failures
Category Description
People Undermined motivation
Individual capabilities of the team members or project working
relationships
(Project) leaders to deal with problem employees
Adding human resources too late into a project
Process Wasted or unproductive loss at the beginning of a project
Underestimating scope, creating over-optimistic schedules,
stakeholders requirements, and quality assurance
Product Requirements gold plating (i.e., unnecessary functionality)
Feature creep
Developer’s gold plating (i.e., unnecessary functionality)
Research-oriented development
Technology Silver-bullet syndrome (i.e., new practice or technology that will
solve all their problems)
Reliance on new (management) tools or methods
Switching tools in the middle of the project
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Appendix I: Ranking of Classic Mistakes
74 MIS Quarterly Executive Vol. 6 No. 2 / June 2007, University of Minnesota
Classic Mistakes (descending order of occurrence) Category
No. of
Projects
% of
Projects
1. Poor estimation and/or scheduling Process 51 54%
2. Ineffective stakeholder management People 48 51%
3. Insuff icient risk management Process 45 47%
4. Insuff icient planning Process 37 39%
5. Shortchanged quality assurance Process 35 37%
6. Weak personnel and/or team issues People 35 37%
7. Insuff icient project sponsorship People 34 36%
8. Poor requirements determination Process 29 31%
9. Inattention to politics People 28 29%
10. Lack of user involvement People 28 29%
11. Unrealistic expectations People 26 27%
12. Undermined motivation People 25 26%
13. Contractor failure Process 23 24%
14. Scope creep Product 22 23%
15. Wishful thinking People 18 19%
16. Research-oriented development Product 17 18%
17. Insuff icient management controls Process 16 17%
18. Friction betw een developers & customers People 15 16%
19. Wasted time in the fuzzy front end Process 14 15%
20. Code-like-hell programming Process 13 14%
21. Heroics People 13 14%
22. Adding people to a late project People 9 9%
23. Silver-bullet syndrome Technology 9 9%
24. Abandonment of planning under pressure Process 8 8%
25. Inadequate design Process 8 8%
26. Insuff icient resources Process 8 8%
27. Lack of automated source-code control Technology 8 8%
28. Overestimated savings from new tools or methods Technology 8 8%
29. Planning to catch up later Process 8 8%
30. Requirements gold-plating Product 8 8%
31. Push-me, pull-me negotiation Product 5 5%
32. Sw itching tools in the middle of a project Technology 5 5%
33. Developer gold-plating Product 4 4%
34. Premature or overly frequent convergence Process 4 4%
35. Noisy, crow ded off ices People 3 3%
36. Uncontrolled problem employees People 3 3%