KTM Advance

RETURN ON INVESTMENT BEYOND EXPECTATIONS

Thales, BNP Paribas, L'Oreal, and MEA-I (NGO in Geneva sponsored by Hewlett-Packard), presented the results of their collaboration with KTM Advance, while Alphega (Healthcare Alliance) unveiled its on-going project.
The event held October 22 at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie at La Villette in Paris, was also the opportunity to preview KTM Advance R&D Department’s educational and technological innovations.

The experience of these genuine Serious Games “pioneers” in France helped to provide some answers to the large number of training managers in the audience, who were curious but cautious at the same time. Among questions they couldn’t wait to ask: the effectiveness of these training programmes based on game engines.

Regarding this matter, Jean Louis ONNIS - Recruitment and Mobility Programme Director, Thales and Moonshield Project Manager – explains clearly: "After a year, results in terms of traffic and statistics went beyond our early expectations. They far exceeded our initial objective."
Indeed, the game's main goal - to develop Thales brand recognition abroad – has been fully reached as 70 per cent of the connected people live out of France. According to Marion ENDERLEIN - Worldwide Recruitment and Branding Manager, Thales - Moonshield counts 200,000 connections and 120,000 different users. In addition to that, more than 80,000 people moved to Thales recruitment website via Moonshield the game.
"Value for money for an investment such as Moonshield is really interesting. After the whole media fall out (Internet, press, TV interviews, social networks), we almost reached 100% profitability," Jean Louis ONNIS claims.

KTM ADVANCE INNOVATIONS, AVANT-PREMIERE

After an introduction dedicated to Serious Games educational principles by Valérie BOUDIER, expert in Cognitive Sciences, the assembly could discover KTM Advance R&D Department’s innovations.
First, a tracking interface for integrating Scorm in Serious Games, presented by Pradeepa THOMAS, PhD student at Laboratoire d'Informatique, Paris 6: "To scorm a Serious Game enables both the integration of predefined learning objectives and the storage of information about status, time and score."
This advanced technology will improve the player’s session reporting, make a deeper analysis of the game rounds and eventually, adapt the progress of the training to the learner’s learning rhythm.

GENERIC KITS TO MAKE SERIOUS GAMES MORE ACCESSIBLE

The Serious Games training cost question was also very present in the guests’ minds.
In order to make Serious Games more accessible to SMEs, the KTM Advance team has driven its research towards generic kits which produce training games: “Clever Talk” and "Systems & Workflow" are the first outcomes.
"The aim of KTM Advance is to industrialize production while remaining in the heart of our business that is to say the production of bespoke training solutions." explains Catherine BONVALOT - Serious Games Project Manager, KTM Advance.
The Serious Games kits simplify production, reduce delays, and guarantee a final result of quality. Customers can feel relieved because kits offer a precise and quick idea of what the product will be. According to Yves DAMBACH - CEO of KTM Advance – “Creating affordable Serious Games should make the market taking off among SMEs”.

"CLEVER TALK"  is a Serious Games solution designed for interview techniques training.

It can transmit both knowledge of the training project (sales presentations, knowledge of an area ...) but also knowledge about social skills. Through a graphical interface that materialises the interview process, the learner can analyze interlocutor behaviours to better anticipate responses. One can practise on various profiles even "play" different behavioural strategies.
Through the "Pharma Game" project designed for Alphega Pharmacy with kit “Clever Talk”, participants directly saw the potential offered by this tool, in which the player is a healthcare professional responsible for providing information to a worried patient.

"SYSTEMS & WORKFLOW"  is a kit for understanding complex dynamic environments.

“Blossom Flowers” – for MEA-I in partnership with HP - is the first Serious Game project made on the basis of this kit. This training designed for micro-entrepreneurs is based on an iterative construction of a mental model in the learner’s brain. The game engine transferable to many training contexts will be customized to meet KTM Advance future customers’ needs.

HUGE MEDIA FALL OUT

Jean DECOTTE from Reuters agency, present at the Convention, devotes a first article to the future of Serious Games in France and the development potential of this market. He also mentions the positioning of KTM Advance on the "generic softwares responding to common needs for several companies" aiming at "democratizing Serious Games" which until now were bespoke products only. Read the article...                         

In a second article on the video games educational virtues, Mr DECOTTE refers to the Serious Game "HairZisland" produced by KTM Advance for L'OREAL.

Jean-Marc ROCHE - Training Project Manager, BNP Paribas - is quoted in relation to the success of Starbank the Game which "praised the effectiveness of this new learning mean that he judges more motivating." According to him, Starbank "gives an overview of the company [...] more efficient than a flowchart." Read the article ...                         

E-learning-info.com devotes a complete article to the integration of the Scorm norm and the development of generic Serious Games. Read the article...                    

With this second success, KTM Advance Serious Games Convention is becoming a key event for training actors interested in Serious Games.

A note in your calendar for next year!


Links to items mentioned

Le "serious game" en entreprise, avenir du jeu vidéo ?

http://fr.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idFRPAE59Q01N20091027             
http://www.lesechos.fr/info/hightec/reuters_00195725.htm?xtor=RSS-2059              

Les Serious Games se diversifient
http://www.formaguide.com/article.php3?id_article=3686           

KTM Advance : vers le « scorming » et la création de Serious Games génériques
http://www.e-learning-infos.com/info_article/m/830/ktm-advance--vers-le--scorming--et-la-creation-de-serious-games-generiques%E2%80%A6.html