Dave Gray: Knowledge Games

My notes from tonight’s talk by Dave Gray on the subject of his upcoming book, Knowledge Games.

Key takeaways from the talk, for me, was a reaffirmation of the importance of environment in support of knowledge-working teams. I don’t know how many times Christopher Alexander’s “A Pattern Language” popped into my head during this part of Dave’s talk…especially the parts regarding interconnected workshops.

Second, I’m anxious to get my hands on a copy of the book to see just what exactly is laid out regarding the use of “knowledge games” to spur groups into co-creation of products.

Using “play” as a way of solving complex problems is, of course, central to a lot of creative work processes, but I know from my experience as a process designer that the sequence is critical in bringing the best out of a group. Which is all to say that I agreed rather violently with everything Dave laid out tonight, but with the open question being this: if serious work in the knowledge economy looks like play, and is carried out in these “knowledge games”, how does he envision the role of the game designer?