August 18, 2006 There is no better group of people to come up with new ideas and concepts for your company than your own people – they know the constraints, the opportunities, the customers and they understand the game but it’s often hard to get everyone into the space where the ideas flow. The Medici Game is a new business game that takes participants on a three-hour journey into "the intersection”, described by the game's co-creator Frans Johansson, as “a creative place where thinking from different cultures and fields collide to create an explosion of remarkable ideas." Based on the concepts explored in the best-selling book, The Medici Effect: Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts & Cultures (HBS Press, 2004) the game taps employee creativity and helps companies create the conditions for innovation, leading to new products and services, systems and procedures, and even new markets. The cost of the game is US$70 per person, which just might prove to be money well spent. During the game, participants are challenged to reverse their own assumptions, make unusual connections and reevaluate their daily habits. As a result, the experience helps break down the associative barriers and linear thinking that block creativity and innovation.
"Most companies seem to have little trouble coming up with directional ideas--those that improve existing products or services, or create new categories that are the next logical step," notes Michael DiGiovanni, President of Celemi, Inc. "It is more difficult to generate intersectional innovation--the type that creates an entirely new field and can drive directional innovation for years to come. The Medici Game helps create the internal conditions for that kind of leap."
The Medici Effect and The Medici Game take their name from the Medici family, who used to rule the city of Florence, Italy over 500 years ago and ushered in the Renaissance, a period of remarkable innovation and change.
The Medici Game is played in teams of 3 or 4 and can be run for thousands of people simultaneously. Celemi will provide facilitators or train company managers to run the sessions.
If you fancy checking out the book first, there’s an overview here, and four excerpts are available on the web here, here, here and here, plus there’s a blog here.
"People tend to look to improve on products and services that already exist, but after playing The Medici Game we were insprired to think beyond the usual. At Rockwell, thinking creatively and having an entrepreneurial spirit are important, so this was a perfect fit and an effective way to spend an afternoon."Nick NicholsTraining ManagerRockwell Automation
