Enhancing design thinking approaches to innovation through gamification

Abstract

PurposeThe paper aims to explore the relationship between gamification and design thinking approach to innovation in the context of the early stage of innovation process (ESoIP). Design thinking is conceptually appropriate to support innovative, complex and uncertain business environments. Still, its practices have demonstrated some difficulties in managing the ESoIP, such as lack of structure and clarity around goals. This paper argues that gamification can enhance and complement design thinking in the management of firms' ESoIP.Design/methodology/approachGiven the need to achieve a deeper understanding of the linkages between gamification and design thinking, the paper follows an exploratory theory building approach for this complex reality of innovation. The case study research method was conducted in three firms (Trivalor, Novartis and Microsoft) that applied a gamification approach to the ESoIP.FindingsThe results demonstrate that gamification has the power to enhance and complement design thinking practices by getting tasks more organized and improving coordination and employees' engagement in the innovation process.Practical implicationsThe paper provides critical managerial contributions on how firms can use gamification to improve design thinking approaches to ESoIP. Its consequences are also crucial to innovation, R&D, and product/service development managers interested in using gamification to support the ideation and concept development of new solutions complementing traditional design thinking approaches.Originality/valueMerging the gamification and design thinking approaches is novel, particularly on firms' ESoIP. The paper provides a comprehensive discussion of design thinking shortcomings and the role that gamification can play in overcoming them.

Gamification and transmedia in interdisciplinary contexts: A didactic intervention for the primary school classroom

“…(2020) , Ortega-Sánchez and Gómez-Trigueros (2019) , Parra-González et al. (2020) , and Patricio et al. (2020) , indicating that deep, positive feelings develop when experiences are shared, as evident in gamified context-induced learning, such as in the current research.…”

“…In recent years, we have witnessed an explosion of the use of the term in specialised journals, presenting it as an important and new educational method as well as a highly attractive innovative instrument for 21st century students ( Martí-Parreño et al., 2016 ; Ortiz-Colón et al., 2018 ; Parra-González and Segura-Robles, 2019 ; Peirats Chacón et al., 2019 ) not only in educational environments but also in a wider range of contexts ( Deterding and Zagal, 2018 ; Martínez-Bravo et al., 2020 ; Shen et al., 2020 ; Patricio et al., 2020 ; Xi and Hamari, 2019 ). There is a considerable amount of gamification-related literature ( Gómez and García, 2018 ), including how and when to introduce it into classrooms and the attendant benefits its use can have on teaching and learning processes.…”

“…The present study makes a major contribution to research on educational innovation by jointly encompassing three concepts of great relevance—gamification, interdisciplinarity, and transmedia narratives, while considering the current context, whereby gaming is increasingly present in our society and everyday lives as a form of leisure that we engage in different contexts and situations, with the aim of gaining pleasant and single experiences for ourselves and other people. The gamification concept and its operationalisation in non-gaming contexts have become a growing practice in several contexts ( Deterding and Zagal, 2018 ; Patricio et al., 2020 ). Furthermore, its effectiveness in the primary education stage is analysed, unlike most of the similar proposals that have focussed on other stages, such as secondary ( Hernández and Rovira-Collado, 2020 ), or on the teaching of foreign languages ( Martín-Queralt and Batlle-Rodríguez, 2021 ; Rodrigues and Bidara, 2016 ).…”

Játékosítás, Mint a Hr Új Stratégiai Eszköze

“…A gamifikáció fokozhatja a problémák ügyfél-és felhasználó-központú megoldását, azaz a Design Thinking-et a szervezet innovációs folyamatának korai szakaszában. Mindezt azáltal éri el, hogy jobban szervezi a feladatokat, javítja a koordinációt, továbbá elkötelezetté teszi a munkavállalót az innovációs folyamatban való részvételre [56].…”

Is gamification the answer to innovation scarcity?

“…A research paper by Patrício et al (2020) explores the link between design thinking and gamification in early stage innovation processes, and the enhancing value that gamification can potentially add during design thinking-led product design exercises. Data for the study were gathered from case studies of three firms – Microsoft, Trivalor, and Novartis – that experimented with gamification as a stimulatory tool to augment their normal design thinking innovation activity.…”