CrossKnowledge, the European expert in the remote development of management and leadership skills through new technologies, is revolutionising the Serious Games sector as the first developer of 3rd generation games.
Estimated to be worth 2 billion dollars in the US and Europe, the popular market of Serious Games for training purposes continues to grow by more than 50% per year. 40% of American companies incorporate such games into the framework of their managerial training, while 60% of European companies plan to use them in the near future.
3rd generation games: the first of their kind aimed at developing learner behaviour
The 3rd generation game, developed by CrossKnowledge, surpasses previous generations in its ability to improve learner behaviour and transversal skills. Such implementation is one of the most promising aspects of the game. Traditional training practices have begun to fall short of the increasing needs of businesses in this area and fail to captivate younger generations entering into the professional world. ‘Although simulations of management techniques function well in the virtual world today, experiments carried out in the behavioural development domain remain unconvincing. We do not hone our leadership skills or master our emotions in the same way we learn to manoeuvre a fork lift,’ explains Steve Fiehl, Associate Director in charge of CrossKnowledge solutions.
Far more ambitious than those currently available on the market, the 3rd generation games represent investments of between 500 000 to one million Euros per game for a potential of 30 to 50 hours spread over the course of several months. ‘Only the market leaders are able to make the kind of investment required,’ notes Steve Fiehl.
In order to develop these new types of games, CrossKnowledge has opened a special division in the Netherlands, a country well known for its large number of players and its high quality game development. Ed Fennema, psycho-pedagogue, trainer and entrepreneur, will head up this division. Ed has worked in the Serious Gaming sector since 2003 and thanks to his expertise, the CrossKnowledge Gaming Division, comprised of script-writers, developers and graphic artists has become an experienced team specialised in developing games for government and industry. Its goal is to develop a series of off-the-shelf and custom-built games based on improving organisation wide phenomena like shifting cultures and building integrity, as well as a wide range of workplace behaviours: emotional intelligence in leading teams of people, decision-making under stressful circumstances and setting up sales processes.
These games will not only be intended for managers, but also, more generally, those dealing and interacting with clients. It will of course, also be possible to combine these virtual and interactive means of development with more traditional classroom learning or mentoring.
CrossKnowledge’s first leadership development game will be available from September 2010 onwards. The game has already been acquired by a major company which has actively participated in its development. Other clients as well as various partners from the consumer gaming world have also expressed a great deal of interest in the launch.
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