Why Games Are Good for Business ― How to Leverage the Power of Serious Games, Gamification and Simulations

By tapping into the same psychology that keeps gamers glued to Minecraft or World of Warcraft, innovative organizations are creating learning experiences that are genuinely engaging, endlessly flexible, and extremely cost effective. They're called Serious Games. People learn more, learn better, and learn faster when they are emotionally engaged. Serious games are how you leverage the power of play to create emotional engagement.

Why Serious Games Are Good For Business is an innovative and practical toolkit for those who want to learn about more serious games and how to apply them in their organizations. Featuring fascinating examples of how organizations as diverse as L'Oreal, Shell, the NHS, and Cancer Research UK, are using serious games to lead a quiet revolution in learning and development, as well as surprising case studies on how games are making an impact in even the most remote and underprivileged corners of the world.

Helen Routledge is one of Europe's leading designers of serious games and a regular speaker at international industry events. With a background and passion in behavioural sciences and psychology Helen has over a decade of experience of applying behavioral and cognitive theories to highly-interactive serious games. Helen's knowledge of psychology and game mechanics has been applied to an incredibly varied range of solutions including team building, leadership, sales training, IT security, disease control and health. An avid blogger and writer on the subject of serious games design, Helen's experience has gained her credibility and a name within the industry, as one of the leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs within the sector. Her experience has resulted in her becoming a recognised figure on the international speaking circuit on the topics of games for learning. Helen is an Instructional Games Designer and specialises in the design and development of engaging Serious Games. With over 11 years' experience of applying behavioural and cognitive theories to highly-interactive serious games. Starting out with a B.Sc (Hons) in Behavioural Science (major in psychology) she has worked on dozens of varied projects addressing, for example, social skills education for young people, team building, leadership, sales training, supply chain management, IT security and infectious disease control. Helen is regularly published in professional and academic magazines and journals and has been interviewed for a number of trade magazines and websites. Helen has spoken at a number of industry events, both in the serious games world and in the wider management/L&D world.