Author: juliooliveira

I’m from Sao Paulo / Brazil, married with a incredible woman called Francine and I have two lovely children: Sarah (8 years old) and Nicolas (2 years old). Currently enrolled at the master degree program (MSc) in Information Systems Management at the University of Liverpool (UK). Holder of the credentials PMP and PMI-ACP of the Project Management Institute (PMI).

2016 Game Thinking World Tour: Lessons Learned

For the past 2 weeks I’ve travelled the world, connecting with brilliant entrepreneurs in Bengaluru, Helsinki, Paris, and London. Coming from Silicon Valley, it’s been a mind-opening trip – absorbing cultural differences & spotting  common themes.

Innovation is everywhere – but how it’s practiced varies widely. Here’s what I learned from this amazing trip.

‘Celebrating Failure’ is not a universally accepted practice.

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Cultural norms are powerful – and hard to shake loose. Consider an entrepreneur in Bengaluru – a place where the power goes out several times a day and poverty is starkly visible. The idea of celebrating failure in that context feels … Read the rest

That time my daughter built a shopping mall in her after-school program

Yesterday, my 9-year-old got home from school, slung off her backpack, and got together with her friends to put the finishing touches on a beautiful, modern fantasy hotel with expansive jade-colored tile floors, inviting wooden booths scattered throughout the lobby, and an under-water themed restaurant with a seasonal menu in the back. She and her friends spent hours crafting the hotel and restaurant to match their vision. And when they were done, they invited their neighbors to drop by and enjoy their handiwork.

All was going well until a new customer came in, looked around, and started breaking things — so they … Read the rest

Complaining is literally killing you – here’s what to do instead

In the past few years, the science of happiness – AKA Positive Psychology – has gained momentum and credibility.  The Greater Good center at UC Berkeley now offers a  free EdX MOOC class to teach everyone – everywhere – the basics. And fast-growing services like Happify are translating well-established research findings into a convenient, personalized digital package that’s making inroads into traditional healthcare settings (disclosure: I’m an advisor to Happify).

This article summarizes some of these recent trends, and lays out a powerful, neuroplasticity-based argument for gratitude, appreciation and learning from mistakes as the key to a longer, healthier, happier … Read the rest

Another Breakthrough Moment in Product Design

Recently, I wrote about a client’s breakthrough product design moment – which happened after she’d collected early customer feedback and was working hard on her Core Loop. Well, today it happened again – on a different project. And once again, I was reminded of how powerful Game Thinking can be, when applied with passion and purpose.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been working with “CeeBee” on a mentoring system for disadvantaged colleage students who need specialized support and stronger social connections to stay in school. This brilliant woman has developed a big, powerful, compelling vision – backed up by … Read the rest

The power of betting and self-evaluation in Gamification

Patience is a rare commodity these days, as we live in an age of instant gratification. At GamEffective, we’ve decided not to try and combat this trend, but incorporate it in to the way organizations work, to their benefit. We do this by providing feedback on performance, which has a great impact on employee motivation and performance.

We’re big believers in real time gamification and in the possibility of being able to know how well you’re doing your job at all times. We have worked long and hard so that our platform will be able to integrate in to any

… Read the rest

Master Thesis: The Key Determinants of Success for Internal Gamification

Nowadays, managers face serious tasks, problems and challenges that require a fully engaged workforce. However, it has been found that only thirty percent of employees around the world are engaged in their job. Gamification –defined as the use of game elements and game-design techniques in non-game contexts- can increase engagement by fostering employees’ intrinsic motivation. Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to identify the key determinants for internal gamification to successfully enhance employee engagement. Following a Ground Theory approach, five semi-structured interviews with gamification experts were analyzed and coded into categories. Five categories of key determinants that contribute to

… Read the rest

Big Discounts: Gamification Industry Reports

Gamification Industry ReportsOur spring offer is a big discount for our two Industry Reports: 85% off from the original $1,500 down to $225 for the GAMIFICATION INDUSTRY REPORT that compares twelve gamification platforms.

And the second one is 66% off from the original $990 down to $330 for the SALES GAMIFICATION INDUSTRY REPORT that compares 24(!) gamification platforms. This report contains the twelve platforms from the Gamification Industry Report as well.

For whom is this report?

For anyone planning to engage and motivate employees, customers, and sales reps these reports give an overview of the top platforms on the market with

… Read the rest

When bankers are engaged, everyone wins

TEBThe Turkish bank Türk Ekonomi Bankası (TEB) – part of the BNP Paribas-group – launched a gamified sales program named HIPPO to better track sales objectives and the performance of sales teams. With the help of the game elements it covers, the focal point of the users, which is “sales” itself, turns into a game which in return increases employee engagement, employee satisfaction, yet providing continuous performance.

Project HIPPO was the winner of the very first intrapreneurship program by (TEB). As a result of the developments that kicked off after becoming the champion of the intrapreneurship programme, HIPPO is live

… Read the rest

Gamification as Leadership Tool

LeaderEnterprise Gamification is Leadership 101

Mario Herger’s book Enterprise Gamification is certainly an outstanding introduction to gamification.  However, it is far more.  While I am a novice at game development and gamification, I do consider myself to be knowledgeable and accomplished in the realm of leadership.  As I read Enterprise Gamification, I could imagine an entire MBA Leadership and Organizational Behavior course based on this book.  I was blown away with how richly Mario filled this book with studies and sources regarding individual and organizational behavior.  In terms of truth in advertising, Mario was one of my advisers for

… Read the rest

The Candle Problem Or How Rewards Stifle Creativity [VIDEO]

Does it help to come to more creative solutions faster when you promise people rewards? This is what German psychologist Karl Duncker tested in the first half of the 20th century with the candle problem. In this exercise he tasked test subjects to put a candle on the wall and lighten it up. The caveat was that the objects available included a box of tacks, a box of matches and the candle. How would they fix it to the wall? And would they come up with creative solutions faster if he promised them a large reward?

Watch this video

… Read the rest