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2. What Are the Benefits of Game Thinking? 

Business-as-a-game is not just a theoretical model—it offers concrete advantages that make companies more agile, proactive, and capable of creating value.

1. Proactive Growth Using the Next S-Curve

Traditional market-centric thinking is often reactive: companies develop products and services within an existing market and respond to its changes.

With game thinking, companies can:

  • identify opportunities early

  • build new game spaces before the old one declines

  • ensure continuous value creation regardless of market cycle

This proactive approach provides a significant competitive advantage in a rapidly changing environment.

2. Human-Centered Dynamics and Team Agility

Business is not created solely by products or services, but through the interactions of people, teams, and networks. From a game-space perspective:

  • individuals and teams are active players whose contributions can be assessed

  • collaboration and competition intertwine, boosting innovation

  • agile organizations can respond and adapt the game's rules quickly

Game thinking makes human-centered dynamics visible and measurable—something that traditional market thinking rarely captures clearly.

3. Measuring Value with xV

Value creation in the game space can be measured using expected value (xV). This provides a tool to:

  • evaluate the contributions of individuals, teams, and the organization

  • measure value even before markets form

  • monitor the development of a new game space in real time

This makes business evaluation more precise and dynamic than relying solely on market analysis.

4. Managing Change and Open Games

Traditional markets often resemble closed sports: rules and boundaries are fixed, and value creation happens within tightly regulated frameworks.

New game thinking resembles open games, where:

  • boundaries are constantly shifting

  • players and resources vary

  • rules are negotiated and created continuously

This allows organizations to manage change and generate value in new, unpredictable ways that traditional market-centric thinking overlooks.