The Three P s of Sim Development ROI: Prototype, Prototype, and Prototype

Transcription

1 507 The Three P s of Sim Development ROI: Prototype, Prototype, and Prototype Nathan Kracklauer Director of Content Development, Enspire Learning Shon Bayer Managing Partner, Enspire Learning

2 The Three P's of Simulation Development ROI: Prototype, Prototype, and Prototype Shon Bayer Vice President Products Nathan Kracklauer Director of Product Development Session Agenda Today we ll talk about: Horror stories from the trenches How to develop a prototyping strategy Who to get involved in prototyping Hands On examples of prototypes We won t talk about: Prototyping software simulations ROI Analysis Who are You? How many of you prefer the term game to simulation? How many of you are simulation developers? How many of you are simulation consumers? How many of you are new to simulations?

3 Simulation Types and Development Costs Simulation Type 2D Game (10 15 min) Team Based Business Simulation (1 day) Average Price 1. $75K $125K 2. $50K $100K+ Customized Board Game (4 8 hours) Branching Simulation (30 min 1 hour) Spreadsheet Simulation (1 2 hours) 3. $250K $500K+ 4. $100K $250K 5. $20K $40K Executive Challenge: Case Example Executive Challenge Leadership Development Simulation Team based, multiplayer simulation Used by organization such as Bank of America, Alltel, Pitney Bowes, and MIT Sloan A Cautionary Tale

4 Lessons Learned Think about the experience early Team size 22? Be prepared for emergent features Ethics Leadership Don t develop in the echo chamber Put the sim in front of real users soon and often Don t lose focus on low priority features Throw out the design document A Different Way to Develop Simulations What Does Failure Look Like? Interface and mechanism confusion Difficult to learn, long ramp up time Boring, non engaging experience Doesn t align with learning objectives Doesn t mesh into overarching program Significant additional development effort to fix sim

5 Tools to Prototype With Choose an approach that aligns with the goals of the simulation, development team skill sets, and resource needs There is no right approach: Thought Experiments Paper Based Prototypes Excel Based Iterative Computer Based Hybrid Approach Rapid Development Tool Hands on Prototyping Examples Paper + Excel Prototypes Executive Challenge Paper + Excel + Web Prototype Finance Leader Simulation Best Practices for Prototyping

6 The Two Key Ingredients The right prototype The right audience What to Test and When Prototype Stage Fundamental Game Design (Single player vs. multiplayer, Early User Interface paper vs. computer based) User interface Motivational strategies Single player versus multiplayer Motivational strategies Game mechanics How to learn the simulation Balancing How to Learn the Simulation Data entry Middle Alignment with learning objectives Pacing and rhythm Fun Facilitation Difficulty Pacing, Rhythm Fun Realism Alignment with learning objectives Paper versus computer-based Late Balancing Facilitation Difficulty Realism Program Game mechanics Integration The Right Prototype (cont) Don t be afraid to test a single game mechanic or learning objective in a playtest Build in complexity over time (but don t be afraid to keep it out altogether)

7 What a Playtest Might Look Like Early Prototypes Later Prototypes 15 minutes Context and Vision Setting 15 minutes Articulate Learning Objectives 30 minutes Communicating Rules 15 minutes Communicating Rules 2 hours Play 1 hour Play 30 min Debrief Experience 30 minutes Real Debrief 1 hour Brainstorm New Ideas 1 hour Play + Consensus on next steps 1 hour Debrief Experience The Right Audience Prototype Stage Early (Concept) Middle (Details) Late (Polish) Audience Profile Designers (Visual and Instructional) Gamers Subject Matter Experts Sponsors Subject Matter Experts Stakeholders End Users Quality Assurance Expert Players End Users Other Best Practices Have specific objectives for each prototype, but embrace uncertainty Always keep the goals of the simulation (learning objectives, experience) at front and center Be clear in communications as reality changes

8 About Enspire Learning Enspire delivers exceptional simulation experiences that help our clients address strategic learning challenges Our Austin based team of 60+ learning professionals provides best practices in design, development, and delivery of e learning, simulations, and blended learning Our award winning solutions have delivered value to some of the most demanding and prestigious organizations around the world The Enspire team who worked with me from the initial point of contact through implementation was exceptionally professional, friendly, helpful and detail-oriented. The simulation itself was a big success. -Dr. Corrine Bendersky, Professor of Management, UCLA Anderson School of Management Questions? shon@enspire.com nathan@enspire.com