If we want staff to develop we must deliver the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to make improvements.

Effective training is the key to successful performance improvement. But engaging staff with training can be a challenge. Why?

When we’re young, we learn by playing. It’s noisy and its fun. Then we get older and we sit in a room and stare at a screen. Have we lost the vital ingredients that make learning fun and memorable?

We’d like to persuade you that board games can make learning and change more enjoyable and more effective.

Board games bring people together to discuss new information, share experiences and enjoy themselves. Games are the framework for a structured series of discussions that the players manage themselves. It doesn’t feel like training but it is. They will learn more, remember more and do more because they’re relaxed and open to new ideas.

You’ve read about ‘serious’ games in training, you may use them. But we bet most of them are digital and offer a solitary experience for learners; no dynamic and creative group interaction. We use board games to bring that learning experience back into workplace.

Games are portable, self-contained and don’t need a specialist facilitator. Your teams will learn more in less time, so the training will be more cost-effective. And it’ll be fun.

4 Reasons Why You Should Be Using Board Games

  1. We’re hardwired to learn through play
    When we’re young, we learn by playing. It’s natural, and it’s how we develop as children. And, we’re all still ‘hard wired’ for playful learning. Board games help you learn through play.
  2. Playing a game brings people together
    An educational board game doesn’t just deliver learning objectives – it also helps teams work better together. They break down hierarchies and cross-border rivalries and bring staff together to enjoy themselves. Board games give players ‘permission’ to relax and enjoy being in a group; and we all learn better when we’re relaxed.
  3. It’s a face-to-face experience
    A lot of modern education and training is solitary and isolating. Playing a board game is the opposite. Our games are always lively, noisy with lots of ‘banter’. The interaction, talking and collaboration all help players develop their “soft skills” and to build relationships.
  4. We learn from each other
    Board games encourage sharing of knowledge and experience. Everyone playing a game has something to contribute and the game allows them to share it. Formal classroom learning can be intimidating and many people stay silent. People playing our games are never silent.

Of course, this isn’t just our opinion – many organisations are successfully using board games in their learning and development programmes. Our games are being played in hundreds of hospitals and care home helping staff improve patient safety. In the private sector McDonalds Restaurants uses one of our board games as the first step of their induction meeting. It’s an educational board game that helps new staff learn how to deliver a great customer experience, and it’s had a very positive influence. You can read a Case Study about the McDonalds Welcome Game here.