PARSONS SCHOOL OF DESIGN
INTEGRATED STUDIO 1 SPRING 2022 SEC C
HARNESSING THE WORKER
VOICE AND MITIGATING THE VOICE GAP
in partnership with
STUDIO MEMBERS
The Voices Behind this Work “I believe, to be better prepared, we must reimagine the ways in which we foster our access to technology. I foresee the use of immersive technology, as a means to emulate the physical. With distancing being the new norm, this technological adoption might help us close the gap.” Aditya Rao
Interest: User/Design Research
“I yearn for a Future of Work where organizations take good care of and take full responsibility for the sustainability of all the resources they use, including human beings. A future where each organization’s North Star is not just to make money, but to do social good.” Pam Roque
Interest: Civic Service Design
“The success of a collaborative work/world is where every individual realizes and acknowledges the importance of being a follower and a leader in the right contexts.This leads to collective empathy and minimizes the Voice Gap.” Vinay Pandu
Interest: Corporate Strategy
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
What do we mean by ‘Worker Voice’? Why is it important to harness it? As defined by Aspen Institute, Worker Voice is “the ability of a
strengthened sense of meaning, and more opportunities for
company’s employee base to have their needs heard by their
professional development.
employer, and ultimately have an impact on business decision-making.”
In an era where the job market has been shaken due to events like the COVID-19 pandemic and ‘The Great Reshuffle’,
For employers, Worker Voice contributes to Business
it is both uplifting and concerning to see the recent rise of
Intelligence in the form of more innovation, increased
Worker Power—uplifting because it’s about time that
productivity, and organizational improvement. This is because
organizations learn to acknowledge Workers as the backbone
Workers are often closest to the needs of a company’s
of their organizations that they’ve always been; but also
customers and the business’ realities, and therefore are
concerning because in this era of instability, a sudden change
invaluable sources of knowledge and leadership.
in conditions may yet again cause imbalances in power.
On the other hand, for Workers, the ability to share their
Thus, there’s no turning back: now’s the time to normalize
authentic voice results in increased job satisfaction, a
harnessing Worker Voice, and mitigating Voice Gaps at that. 3
DESIGN CHALLENGE
Giving Voice to the Voiceless
Excerpts from Aspen Institute’s report entitled What Will It Take to Close the Executive-Worker Voice Gap?
“
According to a study done by Gallup, only 30% of employees strongly agree that their manager involves
Our challenge was to design experiences that can help close
them in setting their goals at work—a reflection of the
the ‘Worker Voice Gap’ and normalize consistent
fact that their voices are being ignored not only by top
engagement between Workers and Executives.
executives but, just as critically, by those to whom they report every day. Likewise, only 30% of U.S. employees
Experiences should help both Executives and Workers build
strongly agree that at work, their opinions seem to
skill and comfort to communicate in ways that can shift
count.
norms in capitalism and support broader systemic change that improves equity, inclusion, and dignity at work, as well as
To harness the power of worker voice, executives and
company performance.
workers need to learn how to exchange ideas more frequently and more directly. But over the course of
STUDIO PARTNER
the last 40 years, many of the channels that used to
Miguel Padró
connect executives to the frontlines of business have
Assistant Director, Aspen Institute Business & Society Program
disappeared.
” 4
PROCESS & DESIRED OUTCOME
“Design the right thing, then design things right.” As strategic designers, we ascribe to the notion that a well-defined problem is 50% of the solution. With the BHAG (big, hairy, audacious goal) of finding ways to close the Worker Voice Gap within our 15 weeks of this studio class, this philosophy was especially critical. As such, we employed the Double Diamond of Design Thinking below as a framework in doing so.
D
ER IV
N GE
CO N VE R
CE
GE
N
CE
Updated Problem
Insights on the problem
N VE R
GE
E IV
N
D
Research
Initial Problem
CO
CE EN RG
Design
Scope down the focus
Potential interventions
CE
Intervention
Interventions that actually work
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RESEARCH
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
What did we want to get out of our research?
Clarify the semantic nuances & ambiguities
Dissect & untangle the vast problem
Crystallize the actual problem, “80-20” style
What do we actually mean by the concepts we’re discussing?
With the VUCA nature of the problem, there’s value in really understanding factors at play.
Separate the elephants from the ants, and identify the most critical areas to focus on.
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RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Crystallizing what the gap looks like Rolling up our sleeves and tucking into this challenge, we had a rough idea of what the ‘Worker Voice Gap’ was. However, as researchers, we wanted to make sure we had a solid understanding of the nuances of this problem. This back-of-the-napkin sketch of our initial ponderings of how the problem manifests guided us as we started our research:
ON SEMANTICS & LIMITING BELIEFS It is important to acknowledge that while the wording from the initial design challenge specifically makes a distinction between Workers and Executives, they are both ‘workers’ at the end of the day. Ultimately, anyone who does work for any organization is a ‘worker’, and regardless of their hierarchical placement in their respective organizations, the Voice Gap could affect any of them in many different ways. Thus, to be objective with our research, it was worth setting aside the limiting belief that mostly ‘workers’ at the bottom of the hierarchy are the ones experiencing the impact of Voice Gaps. There could very well be many factors at play that we had yet to understand in this seemingly complex problem.
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RESEARCH QUESTIONS: CRYSTALLIZING WHAT THE GAP LOOKS LIKE
That said, below summarizes what we wished to find out: 1.
What exactly is the ‘Worker Voice Gap’?
2.
What are Workers’ motivations behind wanting their
6.
voices to be heard? 3.
In what ways is the gap manifesting?
4.
What types of Workers are most involved? a.
What specific geographical areas or demographics is the Worker Voice Gap affecting in the US, if any?
5.
What factors are causing the Worker Voice Gap? a.
What role do other organizational structures play? (e.g. hierarchies)
a.
On Workers
b.
On Leadership
c.
On organizations
d.
On society
How big do Workers think is the Worker Voice Gap in their respective organizations?
8.
What skills, mindsets, and tools are useful for mitigating Worker Voice Gaps?
9.
Which organizations are doing a good job at mitigating Voice Gaps? Which ones are not?
What factors or patterns are at play? (e.g. sociopolitical, socioeconomic, DEI)
b.
7.
What is the impact of the Worker Voice Gap?
a.
What are their similarities and differences?
10.
What is causing ‘The Great Resignation’?
11.
What is the history of the Worker Voice Movement?
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WE THEN ASKED SOME WORKERS…
“Do you feel like you’re being heard?” To further our understanding of the problem, one hypothesis that we wanted to confirm was how much organizational hierarchy and power structures play a role in the persistence of Voice Gaps. Intuitively, it would seem easy to judge that the lower you are in the hierarchy, the more prone your voice is to not being heard or valued by management. However, as we probed on this hypothesis further by asking a small number of Workers (N = 7) about it, we synthesized that the above assumption is not true all the time. It depends on the nature of the topic and/or feedback that is being given by the Worker, and how the organization perceives how beneficial it is for them.
HOW WE PROBED ON THIS We formulate a 3-pronged question all answerable by a 10-point Likert scale. The question was as follows:
“
On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest, how likely do you think would your company act on it if… 1.
You raised a concern?
2.
Your manager raised the same concern?
3.
A colleague or someone with a lower position than you raised the same?
”
On the following page, we share our best synthesis of the responses, albeit coming from a very small sample size. 10
“How likely would your company take action? Why?”
N = 7 (1 construction worker, 1 construction mngr, 1 security guard, 1 janitor, 1 warehouse mngr, 1 office worker, 1 retail worker)
LEAST LIKELY
MOST LIKELY
IF YOU raised a certain concern / suggestion?
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2
3
4
5
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7
8
9
10
IF YOUR MANAGER raised the same exact thing?
1
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IF A COLLEAGUE (or LOWER POSITION) raised the same exact thing?
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IF voices lead to “Business Intelligence”, frontline workers have even more influence.
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HMM, HOLD ON…
If Worker Voice is valued as long as “Business Intelligence” is being derived, then how do Voice Gaps form?
Case in Point
Amazon’s VOA board serves as a platform for its associates to post any concerns, ideas, or beliefs, as long as not harmful. However…
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However, in some instances of this VOA board such as the example on the left, issues regarding pay keep on getting raised but also seem to keep on being disregarded by management. This photo was taken from Voices of Amazon, an Instagram account that solicits ‘anonymous stories from real Amazon associates’. It is filled with anecdotal posts about life as an Amazon associate or driver, often involving complaints about their working conditions and exposing bad management practices. IN COMPARISON Interestingly, one of the Workers we interviewed is a Fulfillment Center Site Leader at Zappos, which is owned by Amazon but has a completely different organizational culture. While we were not able to talk to any of their associates per se, the interviewee’s stories and desk research indicates that employee-centricity at Zappos is taken more seriously. So much so that when their associates leave and try to work at a competitor, often they end up asking for their job back a week or two after just because the working conditions and culture there is much more preferred.
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“ I know, from my own experience working at Amazon, that it does not listen to its workers.
I have tried on many occasions to raise concerns about workplace safety, scheduling, and discipline—but managers are unavailable, don’t listen, or simply dismiss me. I’m not alone.
Jennifer Bates
”
Amazon Warehouse Associate
Therefore, we hypothesize…
If voices pertain to topics that have added cost implications or other “unnecessary” complexities, Voice Gaps become wider.
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IMPLICATIONS
What happens if Voice Gaps persist? Historically, we know voice gaps between Workers and
In this structure we also look at how unions in their right are
Decision Makers have existed. It is important to distinguish
formed to hold the two sides together. Voice gaps form
between workers and decision makers, as that is how we
unions.
synthesized the whole language with managers/executives/etc.
The figure on the next page shows this visual structure and the inter relationships between workers and decisions
We found that for every issue, there's a Decision Maker.
makers.
Looking at the typical structure of worker and decision maker, we realise the gaps widen and lead to what is known as a Chasm of Attrition. This is from the dissatisfaction, demotivated and burnout from working at organisations. it.
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One thing is clear: wide Voice Gaps eventually create the Chasm of Attrition. VOICE GAP WORKERS
leads to
LABOR UNIONS
forms
DECISION MAKERS
feeling dissatisfaction, demotivation & burnout
creating
CHASM OF ATTRITION 16
ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS
What caused ‘The Great Resignation’? In relation to the earlier figure, we looked at how the
Taking this research further, we found some flaws in the
persisting voice gap led to the chasm of attrition. In order to
infrastructure of our current workforce. Firstly, unions
understand this gap, we must look deeper into the root of this
that are formed are unable to effectively work as their
problem. This led us to the period of great resignation.
themselves lack the support and the ones they want to
One thing was made certain when we realised that workers
help are not aware of them. Secondly, HR departments
are quitting to work at places they choose.. Which meant that
are more company and culture oriented, focusing on
the great resignation not longer just as is but was evolving to
hiring and not ongoing support.
the great reshuffling of workers.
On the front of the workers, we looked at typical
This was further made clear by how long people stay at within
behaviours. We found that they want change but not at
the same organisation. In our studies, we found that even
their expense or responsibility. Furthermore external
workers who are financially unstable are taking the leap to move to better opportunities. There is also a decrease of unionization.
forces such as the pandemic have shifted priorities. Workers want to work in places that feel inclusive, and rewarding to their livelihood.
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ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS
EVENT
Workers have started to quit and move onto other opportunities. ‘The Great Resignation’ is evolving into ‘The Great Reshuffling’.
PATTERNS
Employees are not staying in one job for long.
STRUCTURES
HR is unable to help or not helpful as they serve the mission of company not the people
MENTAL MODELS
Effective communication channels have broken down...
Employees want to voice opinions, but want the safety that anonymity provides.
Decrease in unionization
HR is more suited for hiring and not for ongoing employee support
Employees want to be heard recognized and noticed for their work, but also don't want too much responsibility to affect their livelihood
Even workers belonging to unstable financial backgrounds are leaving their jobs.
Typical work relationships are transactional and don't form a trusting bond in org.
Unions are not able to help everyone as employees are not aware of unions
Company culture address worker well being but is rarely enforcing it.
With a shift in personal priorities due to the pandemic, employees are emboldened to make choices.
Want to solve communication issues, but not at their own expense.
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Photo by Rob Dobi
BASED ON WHAT WE CURRENTLY KNOW…
What’s the actual problem? What causes Voice Gaps to widen?
Synthesizing the desk research and interviews we’ve done in the limited time that we had, one thing seems apparent: the Worker Voice Gap is an incredibly complex, nuanced problem that manifests in different ways. In an attempt to untangle this problem and make it a bit more manageable, from a systems view it seems to be a function of three things: the structures, mindsets, and skills present in organizations.
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THE PROBLEMS, CRYSTALLIZED STRUCTURES
The Voice Gap is a multi-pronged problem rooting from lack of healthy mindsets, skills, robust structures, and organizational trust.
LACK OF COMMUNICATION PLATFORMS Workers lack means to voice out feedback
SKILLS MINDSETS
LOW AGENCY & PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY Workers feel neither empowered nor safe to voice out feedback
HIGH EGO & LOW VALUE FOR WORKER VOICE Decision Makers selectively averse to receiving feedback and involving Workers in certain decisions
COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWNS Workers and Decision Makers ineffectively give and elicit feedback from each other
TROUBLE SYNTHESIZING DATA Decision Makers don’t know how to process and take action on many Workers’ feedback
NON-INCLUSIVE DECISION MAKING Workers not involved in pertinent decisions
NO PRIORITIZATION & FOLLOW-THROUGH Decision Makers don’t have time to listen to or take action on feedback vis-à-vis other core responsibilities
LOW AUTONOMY Workers are not entrusted nor empowered to do their jobs in a manner that suits them and the situations they encounter.
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DESIGN
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ELEVATOR PITCH
Mind the Gap: A Game of Good Decisions This is a digital board game that allows teams and groups to practice Participatory Decision-Making so that they: 1.
Learn to see all workers as assets, not liabilities; and
2.
Generate ideas on how to mitigate Voice Gaps.
What is Participatory Decision-Making (PDM)? It is the approach of giving opportunities to employees to provide input into decision-making related to work matters or organizational issues.
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HOW IT WORKS
Preparing for the Voyage
+ Groups(5) Aspen convenes
= Post-game retrospection
Growing Idea bank
This game is designed for Aspen to reach out to its community to engage and re-engage for addressing various challenges. Here is what it can look like 1.
Game is introduced to orgs in Aspen’s sphere of influence
2.
Aspen convenes playing teams with 5 members
3.
Aspen hosts game with interested parties (2 host roles; ETD: 1 hour via Zoom & Miro)
4.
Aspen holds post-game retrospective with playing team
5.
Aspen updates ‘Idea Bank’ of ways to harness Worker Voice and mitigate Voice Gaps 23
THE BACKSTORY
Shackleton's Voyage of Endurance Excerpt from Live Science’s article Endurance Expedition: Shackleton's Antarctic survival story
The Endurance Expedition was a British mission to cross the Antarctic on foot in 1914-17. Launched in August 1914, the expedition became one of the most famous survival stories of all time after the expedition's ship, Endurance, became stranded and then sank during the voyage to the Antarctic. The Endurance's crew became stranded on the remote Elephant Island and were only rescued over four months later, in August 1916, after expedition leader Sir Ernest Shackleton (1874-1922) left to seek help. The miraculous survival of the Endurance expedition crew earned Shackleton worldwide fame though his goal to cross the Antarctic on foot was never achieved. The location of the sunken ship Endurance was lost for 107 years until being rediscovered on March 5, 2022.
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THE BACKSTORY: SHACKLETON'S VOYAGE OF ENDURANCE
That said, we decided to to use this as the inspiration for the game narrative, largely due to how inspiring their survival story was and how exemplary Shackleton’s leadership was in the context of that time. In doing so, we carved out actual scenarios that happened during their expedition and strategically designed the game narratives to test out team dynamics under those circumstances. The decisions to be made in the game pattern real-life workplace scenarios. 25
THE BACKSTORY: SHACKLETON'S VOYAGE OF ENDURANCE
Prompts strategically designed to test team dynamics We’ve patterned the Shackleton story after real-life work experiences such as when…
Things don’t go as planned Plans need to be adjusted
Teammate did something potentially harmful to team
Team’s probability of accomplishing goals is threatened
Team’s well-being may be affected by trying to accomplish business goal
Holding certain teammates accountable
Fires need to be put out
People feel demoralized People leave
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Playing the Game
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GAME OBJECTIVES
Your North Star
DESIGN COMMENTARY When we tested the very first prototype of our game, our Game Objective was vastly different and revolved more
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Venture to the Antarctic with your trusty crewmates!
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On the way, you will have to make decisions that will affect the probability of
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survive the game and are able to reach Antarctica. Once we tested that version, we quickly realized that framing it in such an “individually competitive” manner would be detrimental to the learnings we actually want
reaching your destination, and your
to impart to the players. We encountered some players
crewmates’ well-being.
who were incredibly competitive and just wanted to win
Remember that there is no ‘I’ in team and the journey is more important than the destination, so…
●
around ensuring that each player ensures that they
MAKE GOOD DECISIONS!
the game, regardless of whatever happens to their crewmates. For our second iteration, we then made sure to adjust this and make it more focused on succeeding as a team, not just as an individual. 28
GAME MECHANICS
Prompts To define the proper gameplay, we set out to make a
1
2
prompt-based game design that relies on characters choosing the path of the gameplay. In the figure on the right,
2 1
3
we see the different gameplay rules that form the foundation of the game. In number 1. the decision maker of that turn is charged with picking the right pathway, based on narrative prompts needed. If they choose, they can call a huddle ( an in game convening to discuss the options with other players). However, at the end
3
1, 2, 3, 4?
all players must present their choice although the final call is on the decision maker of that turn.
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GAME MECHANICS
Movement For movement, we created a square grid on the board, and provided each player with tokens to place on this grid. With
1
2
this, we can visualise how each decision is taken as and this is
If ALIGNED with DM, stay or move closer to them
recorded by moving in specific directions on the board.
If NOT, move a step away
Looking at the image on the right, in this scenario the Blue token is the Decision Maker (DM). For their turn, the DM does not move, rather other players do. For decisions taken that are not aligned with the DM, the players move away, and for players who are aligned, they move closer to the DM or stay if they are in the same column. THe DM is charged to move the
3
Finally, DM moves ship forward Watch out for treasure along the way!
entire ship forward But to be warned, that the further you move away, the closer you are to the edge and you fall off into the chasm of attrition.
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SAMPLE GAMEPLAY This video includes sample gameplay of one game prompt where the Decision Maker (DM) for that round chooses to huddle over it before making a decision. On the left hand side of the screen is the board as a player would see it when they play it on Miro, while the right side contains a Google Sheets-based Game Tracker that allows anyone to host the game easily.
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POST-GAME RETROSPECTIVE
Step 1: Post-Game Stats Every board game has an intent and it may not be evident while players play the game or as it progresses. The Game Moderator will be responsible and has the opportunity to share the run-down of the game-play. They get to share certain important statistics of the played game, to the players and to other stakeholders. Unanimous vs. Split Decisions
Who agreed, disagreed, and why?
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Number of unanimous/split decisions made
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Number of huddles, Player with most huddles called
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Number of agreements/disagreements, most agreeable pairs
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Their reach, their resource utilization
These stats not only help the players and the organizers with insights relating to their work/team or the No. of Huddles Done
Where they ended up
organization, but also, help game designers to assess the gameplay and build better and relevant challenges in the game 32
POST-GAME RETROSPECTIVE
Step 2: Post-Game Reflection The game itself would be so engaging that the players might deeply connect to it and its outcomes. To boost the importance of it, hearing the player’s/character’s voice becomes crucial. Quick rounds of reflections will be helpful to analyze their play 4 Ls Like | Learn | Long | Lack Self-reflection
1-Word Crewmate/peer Reflection
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Round 1: Self-reflection
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Round 2: Peer reflection
These reflections will help the teams and individuals to understand themselves and their colleagues to make better decisions, choices in play and the tone of their voices. There was an experiment on Royal Marine recruits, to access their self & peer reflections based on leadership and followership. Interestingly there were contrasting insights from both these reflections and we can find similar insights as we hear to players who played the game. This can again help the organizers and players to better understand and make inclusive choices. 33
POST-GAME RETROSPECTIVE
Step 3: Relating to Work
Relatable roles & responsibilities
Tasks and mutual goals
Allocating shared resources
Prompts & Decisions
The game doesn't stand alone, it represents and brings value to players and the organizers. There are several aspects of the game that can be resonated with work. Games require strategic thinking and problem-solving which can translate to real-life problems and solutions. There are certain elements of the game which can be easily related to work
● ● ● ●
Characters of the game played in real-life Mutual goals and individual tasks for progressing How can we share resources for the common goal? Prompts and decisions ○ Like in the case of Stowaway - How would one strategize for added tasks and responsibility in real-life?
○
In the case of demoralised crew - How would one boost morale in challenging situations at work? 34
Step 4: Work-Specific Sailboat Retrospective The Sailboat retrospective is a agile technique for envisioning the task at hand. Here, we have slightly modified and adapted it to the game narrative.
Wind
POST-GAME RETROSPECTIVE What helps us propel ourselves forward?
Sun What makes us feel energized & cherished?
This helps the players in the game to come back to the reality and to acknowledge certain factors (like wind, sun) Team
Island What are our goals and overall mission & vision?
What values do we stand for?
which are helping them to progress towards the goal(Island) as a team(sailboat) and other factors which are holding them back(anchors). This also helps the teams to preempt risks(rocks) and can help them plan for it
Anchor What’s holding us back?
Rocks What potential risks and challenges might we encounter?
considering all these factors. It is a great way to share the voices from different perspectives and address issues as a team and sail successfully towards the realized goal.
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Process & Rationale
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PROCESS & RATIONALE
Our Desired Outcome When we were dissecting the Worker Voice Gap problem during our research phase, the key takeaways that stood out to us the most were: 1.
‘DECISION MAKERS’: Rather than distinguishing between Worker and Executive (or Manager, Management, Leader, etc.) when discussing this
3.
SEEING PEOPLE AS A WHOLE: Thus, as we said, our
problem, we can think of the gap as ultimately
hope is that organizations learn to see all Workers as
happening between the Decision Maker for a specific
assets, not liabilities.
type of issue that a Worker wishes to speak about.
4.
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE: IF voices lead to “Business Intelligence”, frontline or deskless workers have even
2.
NON-INCLUSIVE DECISION-MAKING: That said, one of
more influence.
the key structural problems in organizations that is a manifestation of Voice Gaps is how non-inclusive
Thus, during our sensemaking and ideation of how to design
decision-making could be for some organizations.
interventions for this issue, we made sure as much as possible to incorporate these into the intervention. 37
PROCESS & RATIONALE
MUSTs NICE-TOs Address Aspen’s image of exclusivity
Aspen’s Vision
People from same company can’t be together Learning journey as an arc over multiple sessions
MUSTs
Involve leaders who already know the value of Worker Voice
Aspen is in the room, “bringing people together”
Max. 15 participants
Seeing people as a whole
Develop listening skills
The Proposal
Fun experience that brings laughter, not just a typical meeting New cultural practice, not just a scheduled meeting HMW impart how decision-making can be more inclusive in orgs? HMW make orgs realize that all workers are assets, not liabilities?
NICE-TOs Involve leaders who don’t value Worker Voice Address Aspen’s image of exclusivity
Our Thoughts
Incorporates Design Thinking
HMW take advantage of using Business Intelligence as a means to shift mindsets?
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PROCESS & RATIONALE
The Power of Games in Behavioral Design Research shows that board games are prehistoric, we had board games before we had written languages. They have always been used to plan, strategize and improve individual’s behaviour or a team’s motive. Serious games, are those games that have a primary purpose other than entertainment. Mind the Gap is one such serious game with many benefits. It influences an individual in
Playing board games not only increases the individual’s brain
various aspects and aids in bonding and inter-relational
function, but also, stimulates brain areas that are responsible
dynamics of teams.
for memory formation and complex thought processes.
This game is developed based on Social Cognitive Theory (SCT). It describes the influence of individual experiences, the actions of others, and environmental factors on individual health behaviors and the organization’s objectives.
Engaging in play assists in practicing essential cognitive skills, such as decision making, higher level strategic thinking, and problem solving. It also has an impact on processing speed, develops logic and reasoning, boosts spatial reasoning, improves verbal and communication skills
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PROCESS & RATIONALE
“Theory Y”
Role of Participatory Decision-Making (PDM) Participatory Decision-Making is the approach of giving
Staff
opportunities to employees to provide input into decision-making related to work. It is based on Theory Y from McGregor’s Model of Motivation in workplaces, which suggests a leadership model that is supportive, engaging and encouraging. In this mode, decision-making power is exercised by sharing decisions with the entire group, democratically and without impositions.
Theory Y - Liberating and developments control, achievement of continuous improvement achieved by enabling, empowering and giving responsibility.
VALUE OF PDM 1.
Generate more Business Intelligence
2.
Increase employee retention and performance: Not only of individuals, but also the entire team. 40
PROCESS & RATIONALE: ROLE OF PDM 3.
Make employees feel more valued: When voices are heard, people are empowered.
BEST PRACTICES FOR PDM 1.
Ensure Full Participation: Create a safe environment during meetings that allow for divergent thinking.
2.
Create Mutual Understanding: Communicate during meetings that you value diversity of thought and help teammates who may struggle with processing views that deviate from their own.
3.
Develop Inclusive Solutions: Try to capture ALL ideas during brainstorming before assessing their validity.
4.
Generate Shared Responsibility: Ensure that teammates participate in the ideation, as well as on giving and receiving feedback on the decisions before finalizing the action plan. 41
PROCESS & RATIONALE
Designing the game During our brainstorming session, we listed a few ideas
We decided to go with a board game design that followed a
depending on how we could address the problem. After
similar design like Dungeons and Dragons, with gameplay
several options, we chose to go ahead with game design.
narratives and with players making choices to determine the
Unpacking this idea, we realised there were certain benefits of applying game design into our prototype. ●
Gamified learning- creating a solution that is fun and excited.
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Human centric metrics: be able to measure outcomes through a point system.
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overall narrative. This approach is made popular with what is known as telltale gameplay design in mainstream game media. They all function with the player receiving prompts on how to navigate the game and story. Knowing these factors, we set out to pick the right storyline for the voice gap.
Loss aversion: gameplays can be devised to have
We chose the voyage story of Ernest Shackleton on the
positive and negative outcome such that each
Endurance.
experience is a learning experience.
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Designing the Game elements
Grid Design: The main grid was developed multiple times. It
Like any typical board game, the first time was to design the
first began as a circular grid, where characters moved only
board. We set out to create a regular movement based grid
front, back, left and right depending on their location to other
design, initially starting on a circular design.
players.
From here we identified specific movement steps associated
From that circular grid, we came up with a square grid, with
with each player on this board. According to our narrative and
similar movement patterns. From there, instead of characters
the choice based progression, we realised the characters
moving all over the board, we closed in on a design of only
should move based on their decisions. If players agree they
lateral movement.
stay close to the final decision by the player and move away if in disagreement. It was rudimentary at first. The players were only moving in the grid, however, they were unable to gauge the overall picture of the narrative. After multiple iterations and testing, we realised that the grid designed should be moving as well, around a larger board with a visual map. 43
IN GAME MECHANISMS In our prototype cycles, to make things simple we focused on On ship board movement patterns
lateral movement as mentioned prior. It was easier to manage and it reduced the cognitive load. Likewise we also moved the board around, so that according to our metrics, we realised to see progress, the small ship board had to move around a larger map.
Ship movement on map Initial testing revealed a change in the way we treated the chasm (a featured we initially had placed at the centre of the ships). From having it placed centrally, it was moved of the outsides of the ship. The reason being in the prior grid design Destination
players moved around more erratically and world never fall into the chasm. To make the gameplay a bit more interesting, the smaller grid constricts movement so that there is a chance to fall into the chasm.
44
CHASM OF ATTRITION The chasm of attrition was a feature we had mentioned in prior pages, and the reason we included this was to allude to the fact that gaps were created based on not being included or having different choices than others on the team. As a game is the best way to simulate real life scenarios, the chasm represents how when voice gaps persist they tend to affect hour works remain in the organisation.
As any game is made, there are always reward systems in place to promote the players. In our game, we defined treasure chest items which gain power ups for the players. However, to use this, the DM must call upon a huddle (an in game convening) and after all ideas are discussed, the chest can be opened. If certain conditions are met (like unanimous voting) the power up can be equipped. 45
IN CONCLUSION
Roadmap: The voyage never ends! As this game evolves further, we envision its growth as an
Upon a successful pilot launch, for the initial year we hope to
evolution. For a game of this stature to evolve, it must
run with the same game narrative, paying close attention to
therefore be modular, be inclusive to different types of players
the post game retrospective. We hope to work with
and hence must be relatable.
companies to understand ways to extract data from the
To test this, we plan to initially show this idea to our client (the
gameplay and to apply it in real life.
Aspen Institute) to receive some feedback to incorporate into
For our year 3 plan, we hope to target more companies to use
our design. From this round of feedback, we hope to conduct
this product. By then we hope to hit more players per game,
field tests with other corporations (who so graciously
new stories and editions, and a physical and digital variant.
interviewed with us) to identify changes if any to:
Based on the work from home scenario, we want to focus
●
The Narrative
heavily on a digital ecosystem (like a metaverse) to host
●
The Prompts
gameplay sessions. Users could log on from their computer or
●
The Game Mechanics
through VR/AR headsets. They interface would be unique and evolved to the technology.
46
FORECAST AR/VR Consoles
Roadmap: Speculative Chart
Gaming tournaments
This chart explores the potential opportunities of he evolution of this game, provided the Personal PLayer Score Dashboard
technological and business
Subscription game add-ons
Online Avatars
Modular storylines
PRESENT
Updated Story
New Stories
Increase Player count
Adaptable Score Dashboard
Gameplay company-wide social dashboard
AR/VR Metaverse Game
FUTURE
Physical Board game Board games sold for non corporate settings
Phone app of the game for mass player edition
Spectator Option
KEY IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE PROBABLE PLAUSIBLE
47
BIBLIOGRAPHY
48
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BIBLIOGRAPHY Holly, Danielle, and Miguel Padró. “Worker Voice Is Evolving Rapidly. Can Companies Keep Up?” The Aspen Institute, April 29, 2022. https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/worker-voice-is-ev olving-rapidly-can-companies-keep-up/.
Mary Beth Hertz. “Games Can Make ‘Real Life’ More Rewarding.” Edutopia. George Lucas Educational Foundation, August 14, 2013. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/games-make-real-life-rewardi ng-mary-beth-hertz.
The Diversity Puzzle. “Inclusive Decision Making in Action.” Accessed May 10, 2022. https://www.diversity-puzzle.com/idm-in-action.
Noda, Shota, Kentaro Shirotsuki, and Mutsuhiro Nakao. “The Effectiveness of Intervention with Board Games: A Systematic Review.” BioPsychoSocial Medicine 13, no. 1 (October 21, 2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13030-019-0164-1.
Strategic HR. “Inclusive Decision-Making Principles,” October 30, 2019. https://strategichrinc.com/inclusive-decision-making-principl es/. Linda Booth Sweeney, and Dennis L Meadows. The Systems Thinking Playbook : Exercises to Stretch and Build Learning and Systems Thinking Capabilities. White River Junction, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing Co, 2013.
Oxfam. (2021, May 25). Amazon, listening to workers is good business. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from https://politicsofpoverty.oxfamamerica.org/amazon-listeningto-workers-is-good-business/ encyclopedia.pub. “Participative Decision Making (PDM).” Accessed May 10, 2022. https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/12828. Starks, Katryna. “Cognitive Behavioral Game Design: A Unified Model for Designing Serious Games.” Frontiers in Psychology 5 (2014). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00028.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Sull, D. (2022, January 11). Toxic Culture Is Driving the Great Resignation. MIT Sloan Management Review. Retrieved February 3, 2022, from https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/toxic-culture-is-driving-the -great-resignation/ National Fund for Workforce Solutions. “What We Mean by ‘Worker Voice.’” Accessed May 13, 2022. https://nationalfund.org/our-solutions/equip-workers-for-succ ess/what-we-mean-by-worker-voice/. Williamson, Timothy. “Endurance Expedition: Shackleton’s Antarctic Survival Story.” Live Science, March 9, 2022. https://www.livescience.com/shackleton-endurance-expeditio n. New America. “Worker Voices: Technology and the Future for Workers,” n.d. https://www.newamerica.org/work-workers-technology/repor ts/worker-voices/executive-summary/. voicesofamazon. (2022, March 23). Multiple demands for pay raise in one of Amazon’s Voice of Associate boards [Instagram post]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/accounts/login/?next=/p/CbaPLc HgsKO/
Wichtner-Zoia, Y. (2014, February 20). Understanding the role of trust in successful work environments. Michigan State University. Retrieved March 28, 2022, from https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/understanding_the_importa nce_of_trust_in_the_workplace Wong, K. (2020, June 29). What Is Employee Voice and Why Is It Important? Achievers. Retrieved March 28, 2022, from https://www.achievers.com/blog/what-is-employee-voice-and -why-is-it-important/ Zweig, Donald Sull, Charles Sull, and Ben. “Toxic Culture Is Driving the Great Resignation.” MIT Sloan Management Review, January 11, 2022. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/toxic-culture-is-driving-the -great-resignation/. Hamilton Nolan “ The Amazon Labor Union Victory Shows That Jurisdiction Is Dead” IN THESE TIMES, May 18 2023 https://inthesetimes.com/article/amazon-labor-union-jurisdict ion-bezos-alu-teamsters