ITC's challenge
The ITC is a multilateral agency with a joint mandate from the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, headquartered in Switzerland. Its mission: help SMEs in developing countries compete in the global market and, in doing so, drive growth, create jobs and fight poverty. It already advised business leaders on production, logistics and marketing, but one key piece was missing: the skills to sit down at a negotiating table.
In 2016 it set itself three challenges. Train people in negotiation and conflict resolution. Do it at scale, across many countries and languages, with an online format that works even on slow connections and saves on face-to-face courses, which are much more expensive. And break away from traditional training with something that would surprise business owners without sacrificing learning.
- Train SMEs in developing countries in negotiation and conflict resolution.
- Reach many people across countries and languages, with no technical or cultural barriers.
- Work even on slow connections and save on costly face-to-face courses.
- Break the inertia of traditional training.
The solution
The ITC chose Merchants, the Game Strategies serious game on negotiation and conflict resolution. Players travel to Renaissance Venice, where they must learn to negotiate to become the most powerful merchant of the age.
Its content is based on the Harvard Method of Negotiation (by Roger Fisher, Bruce Patton and William Ury): long-term agreements, understanding the other side's interests and win-win proposals. All learners need is an email address and an internet connection; the game is available in several languages, uses HTML5 and adapts to the speed of each connection, so it works in every developing country where the ITC operates.
On top of that, a simulator makes players put every strategy into practice, and gamification (storytelling, points, badges, rankings) keeps them hooked from the first minute.
The games they played
ITC on video
In their own words
Many people tell us that they were able to put everything that they learned into practice in real situations and that this has helped them enormously in their everyday lives.
We did all the necessary tests and there was no technical problem to use Merchants all over the world, even in the less developed countries of Africa.
Once they understand the game, access it and realize that they're actually learning, they get hooked. The engagement is much greater than in a face-to-face training.
The results
The ITC was very pleased: 95% of learners would recommend the video game for training and 92% say what they learned is applicable on a daily basis. And while traditional formats tend to have very low completion rates, 84% of the entrepreneurs completed the video game.
What matters most comes next: SME leaders better prepared to defend their interests and secure better deals with companies and professionals who are often more experienced. Another step toward global competitiveness, more jobs and less poverty.
More case studies
97.6%applicabilityJohn Deere transforms its sales training with video games: 97.6% applicability
+69%team motivation and engagementJTI boosts employee engagement by 69% and productivity by 60% with game-based learning
100%applicability ratingKyocera empowers its talent with video games and achieves a 100% applicability rating
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