Many companies are looking to outside-the-box employee education models to get the most bang for their training buck; however, it’s important to be able to draw a line between what’s beneficial and what’s simply entertainment. “Games are a great way to teach at any level, usually because they stimulate many senses, provide fun (and therefore attention) and generate personal interaction,” said Bill Goodspeed, a former corporate executive and author. “Some examples I’ve used include scavenger hunts in new cities (team competition), cooking contests, a logistics board game (The Beer Game), re-building Lego models and building kites or boats. These are all very appropriate.” Relevancy is the most important consideration, according to Mike Kerr of Humor at Work, a Canada-based company. “In a corporate setting, the best training games are ones where the participants have a clear understanding of why they are doing the game, and even more importantly, what the intended purpose or lessons from the games are. A thorough debriefing post-training can make all the difference between success and failure.”