Grounds for Play

At figure3 we love the idea of ‘play’ as a driver of innovation in business.

Jon Kolko, author of Exposing the Magic of Design www.fastcodesign.com sees the role of designers as builders of a playful culture. In his view, the social activities that create an inherently innovative culture happen where people congregate naturally. To him a spirit of fun in the office can be captured in a professional setting without resorting to stereotypical beanbag chairs. Treating adults like kids doesn’t free their spirits and make them creative, it just makes them behave, well, like children.

We entirely agree with Jon.

Our design processes with our clients use play-based facilitation techniques to foster intelligent open-ended discussions. Creative facilitation is about hands-on, visual tools to break down inhibitions, encourage dialogue, get to the essence of a topic, build connections between one thought to the next and the next and the next.

Iterative thinking needs visual stimulus to make work visible so participants can connect the dots from a good idea to a great one. Kolko calls this kind of interaction creative ‘flow’. Creative spaces enable group flow by design.

Why not then create transparent walls to scribble on? Mobile multiple-use tables with built-in touch screens connected to off-site Skype users? Drop mini think-tank rooms for focused thinking, right next to big-screen electronic panels for viewing, editing, surfing, online sharing in open lounges?

The days of the traditional meeting room are not gone yet. But most innovative businesses are breaking away from the sterility of Mad Men boardroom architecture and asking for transparent, open and inviting spaces where their people can be playfully creative.

In our view, play is hardly juvenile. It’s laying a groundwork for consistent innovation.