What is the role of serious gaming in closing the gap in SOA skills?
Serious gaming can play a major role in closing the gap in service oriented
architecture (SOA) skills. Serious computer and video games are used as
educational and training tools. Just as airline pilots initially learn using
flight simulators, many companies and universities see serious games as an
effective way of teaching new skills to a generation that has been brought up in
the video game era. Most MBA programs are already heavily based on projects that
reflect how individuals and teams need to interact in the real world. Innov8
takes a step further by actually allowing students to step into a real, dynamic
business environment. The value of the game is that it allows players to
visualize how technology and related business strategies affect an
organizations performance.
How will Innov8 help professionals to improve their business strategies?
We have created Innov8 as a new way to teach business students and young IT
professionals, many of whom have grown up playing video games, about competing
successfully in business. Innov8 is an interactive, 3-D educational game
designed to bridge the gap in understanding between IT teams and business
leaders in an organization. This type of serious gamingsimulations which have
the look and feel of a game but correspond to non-game event or process such as
business operationshas emerged as a successful method to train employees or
develop new skills.
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| Jai Menon, IBM Fellow, VP, Technical Strategy and vice chairman, Board of Governors of IBM Academy of Technology |
Can you name a few Service Science Management and Engineering initiatives
taken by IBM India?
Services now constitute over 75% of the economies of many countries, and are
increasingly becoming a major part of the global economy. IBM started working
with top universities three years ago to develop a new academic discipline
Service Science, Management and Engineering (SSME) for a services-led economy.
In India, the adoption and integration of SSME has already taken off. Earlier
this year, IBM signed a MoU with the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad (ISB),
and is working closely with IIM, Bangalore, the IITs, and the Indian Institute
of Science to advance SSME research in the region.
H.Chethana.Gadiyar
chethanag@cybermedia.co.in
