The End of the Rainbow: In Search of Crossing Points Between Organizations and Games

Jeroen van Bree's paper, presented at DiGRA 2011, examines whether computer games can meaningfully contribute to organizational change, and it argues that the most promising route is the game design process rather than the transplanting of game mechanics such as points and badges. The author contends that gamification built on isolated elements reflects a rational-system view of management and offers limited replay value, whereas iterative game design, which shapes rules to produce emergent player experiences, is better suited to the complexity of real organizations. This framing sets up an action-research investigation of that design-process perspective.

The empirical work consists of two case studies: a Dutch hospital's Elective Care Center, examined in 2008, and the start-up We Beat The Mountain, studied from 2010 to 2011. In each, researchers ran four "game design game" workshops to co-produce an organizational meta-design. Data came from observation, two rounds of interviews, reflection sessions, and documents, analyzed inductively. Findings indicate that limited pre-workshop information sparked curiosity and drew receptive participants, while elements such as playfulness, transparency, and especially time pressure tied to shared goals fostered an open atmosphere, though these had to be balanced against workshop content to avoid distraction. The study also notes the practical difficulty of facilitating and observing simultaneously, addressed through an external observer.

The paper concludes that importing game elements into organizational workshops effectively increases openness, curiosity, and idea generation, though these effects are short-lived. Its more durable contribution lies in the design process itself, which helps stakeholders explore complex organizational dynamics, with the resulting rule set functioning mainly as a representation of those dynamics rather than a strategic blueprint. The authors position game-based design as a useful addition to organizational toolkits, while acknowledging that it remains uncertain whether game principles can extend beyond design phases to shape organizations as a whole.