Question 1: Describe one idea for a game or a startup in details including: detailed pitch, platform, business model, players (you can choose your idea or any other idea that was presented in class):
I will describe the idea that Aaron and me presented in class.
Name of the game: “GameChanger”
Game Platform: This is a game that will run on the “LinkedIn” professional social network platform – both in their web site and in their mobile Apps.
Purpose of the game: To gamify the experience of changing your career direction and finding a new job in the new field that you chose.
Players: 2 main groups, the first are early career builders that want’s to make sure they choose the right track in their career but want to do it in fun way (and not in the old “dry” way of career consultants), the second is mid-life people looking for a second career ideas and opportunities. The game is mainly targeted for developed countries with a highly developed employment market. Other users of the platform (but not players) are potential recruiters that are looking for new inexperienced employees but with high potential and high motivation.
Game Flow: The game will be built of different phases:
Phase 1 – Choose new profession: The player chooses a new profession from a list of supported professions in the game (this will be an open platform, so potential employers could create more professions, to attract users to their field).
Phase 2 – Virtualize the new day job: This part the game will virtualize a day in the life of this day job. What the employee is doing, which challenges will he face, what kind of people will he work with and which skills he will need.
Phase 3 – Test yourself for the new job: In this phase the user’s skills will be evaluated for this new job. This is the real gaming part of the game. Depending on the job that was chosen the user will be confronted with relevant tasks and missions and will be measured according to his success in accomplishing them. For each profession the game will be very different of course. Finally, the user will get a normalized score (between 1-10) of his suitability for the new job.
Phase 4 – Start all over again with a new profession: The user will be proposed to start all over again in a new profession (with a different “sub-game”). Those iterations can be done as much as the user wants. When he is happy with the results and the different options he found for himself he can proceed to the next phase.
Phase 5 – Find a new job!: This is the most important phase. This is the opportunity for the user to really see career benefit from this game and for us to monetize the game. In this stage the user will be asked if he wants to publish his details and his achievements in the game to potential employers.
The user will be able see to which exact opportunities his details were sent to and if the potential employer did go over his application. Here the recruiters come into the game, they will get the details and achievements of the users and will be able to decide with who to proceed and if needed to ask additional questions and challenge the potential employee with additional professional games.
Business model: Penetrating to the potential user’s pocket when they start to see the real possible value of the game to their career will monetize the game. We will charge the user if he will want to publish his achievements in the game to potential employers. We will give free bonus points for sharing the rumor of the game and for very high achievers. From the other side, we will charge recruiters for viewing details of relevant career changers that could be suitable for job opening they have. Recruiters will see of course also the achievements of the players in the game and will be able to decide who to approach based on that. There is clear mutual benefit to the game both for employees and employers. As LinkedIn, differently from Facebook, is a professional social network in which paying to upgrade your profile or to see employees details (if you are a recruiter) is common, I believe that there is a large chance that this business model will work.
Question 2: Was the idea you choose successful in the “idea battle”? Why? Analyze the idea and its relative success:
This idea was not successful in the idea battle. It failed in the first stage and did not get a large amount of votes from the audience.
I believe that there are two reasons for that:
1. It is a high complexity game with a lot of phases.
2. It is not a pure “fun” and “time passing” game.
Actually, calling this a game might have been the mistake. This is not a game but rather a more fun mechanism to finding a new career direction and a new job.
Also, the specific gaming features of the system are still not there as those will be molded inside the game by joint work with the potential recruiters who are one of the main partners and stakeholders for the game.
Question 3: Find at least 3 games or startups that can be called competitors (or “inspiration”). Describe the differences between your idea and the competitors focusing on your advantages:
I have found the following games that could be called “competitors” to my game:
1. Reckitt Benckiser Group Virtual Career game (http://www.rb.com/careers/virtual-career):
Reckitt Benckiser plc (LSE: RB) is a British multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Slough, Berkshire. It is a major producer of health, hygiene and home products.[4] It was formed in 1999 by the merger of the UK-based Reckitt & Colman plc and the Netherlands-based Benckiser NV.
Reckitt Benckiser's brands include Dettol (the world's largest-selling antiseptic), Strepsils (the world's largest-selling sore throat medicine), Veet (the world's largest-selling depilatory brand), Air Wick (the world's second-largest-selling air freshener), Calgon, Clearasil, Cillit Bang, Durex, Lysol, and Vanish.[5] It has operations in around 60 countries and its products are sold in almost 200 countries. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reckitt_Benckiser).
RB’s virtual career game is a game that was developed by RB and is accessible from their careers website. Its purpose is mainly to let potential applicants test their suitability for a job in RB. This is a short situations game in which you are presented with situations and being asked what you would do (out of 3 options). If you answer the correct answers then you are being promoted. Finally you get an analysis of your achievements and a recommendation to apply for a job if you have good achievements.
2. University of Missouri Career interest game (http://career.missouri.edu/index.php/career-interest-game):
This is an ultra simple game made by the university of Missouri based on Dr. John Holland's theory that people and work environments can be loosely classified into six different groups. The game presents you with each group, asks you to choose a group that you relate to and explains you which kind of jobs are suitable for this group.
3. Indiana Youth Institute Drive of your life (https://www.driveofyourlife.org/main/index.html):
Drive of Your Life is a fun Indiana specific online career exploration game. It helps middle school and high school students learn more about themselves, higher education and careers. This free educational tool lets kids answer a series of questions about themselves to learn what careers could interest them and then go on a virtual drive to learn more about each of those careers – all in their own customized car.
The main advantages of my game or platforms comparing to the above competitors are:
1. Based on Social network – Leverages your professional connections network.
2. Open to all kind of jobs and employers – Can be relevant for everyone.
3. Objective – The “GameChanger” career platform is an objective platform that is not biased by a specific employer, university or state. 