Get Certified!
Online training program to empower
Product Leaders, Entrepreneurs & Service Providers
to master the tools & techniques of Game Thinking
What’s the smartest way to innovate?
If you’re developing a new product, you can’t afford to waste time building the wrong thing. That’s why modern design methods, like Design Thinking and Agile/Lean methods tell you to
Talk to customers, iterate fast, and test prototypes early.
All good. But which customers do you talk to? Which slice of your product do you prototype first? And how do you design a product that will keep customers coming back?
That’s where Design Thinking and Agile/Lean methods fall short. When it comes to knowing exactly what to do next, you’re on your own.
Game Thinking is the answer
Fortunately, there’s a better way to innovate. It’s called Game Thinking. It builds on Design Thinking and Agile/Learn principles, and adds powerful new design processes from the fast-moving games industry.
When she worked on breakthrough hit games like The Sims and Rock Band, Amy Jo Kim noticed that top game designers use advanced design techniques uncommon in the business world. She packaged these techniques in a 5-step system and called it Game Thinking.
If you’ve been following Game Thinking, you know that
Game Thinking isn’t just for games.
Amy Jo has coached hundreds of companies around the world achieve breakthrough innovations with Game Thinking. Now you can super-charge your product discovery and get better innovation outcomes with the system trusted by global brands, game studios and startups worldwide. 
Master Game Thinking in 6 months
We want product teams everywhere to use Game Thinking. Over the past 10 years we’ve taught Game Thinking to thousands of entrepreneurs, product leaders and service providers in such industries as health, finance, education, entertainment. And because our training is entirely online we’ve reached people all over the world.
Run by game designer and startup coach Amy Jo Kim, Game Thinking Certification gives you the tools and training to master the Game Thinking system, apply it to your own run your own project, and get your whole team up to speed.
It’s more than a course.
It’s the weekly coaching, step-by-step templates and learning community you need to move your project forward and get breakthrough results.
And if you are a coach, you can even learn to run your own Game Thinking programs. ⚒
We want product teams everywhere to use Game Thinking. Over the past 10 years we’ve taught Game Thinking to thousands of entrepreneurs, product leaders and service providers in such industries as health, finance, education, entertainment. And because our training is entirely online we’ve reached people all over the world.
Run by game designer and startup coach Amy Jo Kim, Game Thinking Certification gives you the tools and training to master the Game Thinking system, apply it to your own run your own project, and get your whole team up to speed.
It’s more than a course.
It’s the weekly coaching, step-by-step templates and learning community you need to move your project forward and get breakthrough results.
And if you are a coach, you can even learn to run your own Game Thinking programs. ⚒
CERTIFICATION BASICS
WHAT IT IS
6-month training program
WHERE IT HAPPENS
Online, in your time zone
WHEN IT HAPPENS
Next Session October 2020
WHO IT’S FOR
- Product leaders who help teams find product/market fit
- Coaches who want power-tools for better client outcomes
- Trainers who want to offer a powerful new approach to product design
- Consultants who want better retention and engagement for clients
- Learning professionals who want to create engaging experiences
- Service providers who want to dramatically improve client outcomes
6 months of expert training & coaching
Live Certification trainings with Amy Jo Kim & guests
Get your questions answered & hear real-time case studies during our live coaching calls. We post recordings in your Members area.
Opportunities to observe expert coaching in action
You can observe our private Coaching meetings with entrepreneurs and business owners, and jump in with feedback when you’re ready.
Monthly AMA with VIP experts
We bring in a world-class expert in game design, Lean UX, product management and other topics. monthly. You get a front-row seat.
A library of Game Thinking courses & templates
Advanced courses add to your knowledge
You get access to our Game Thinking Innovation Sprint signature system, plus Cooperative Design & Product Teardown mini-courses.
Step-by-step templates streamline your work
Our proprietary Game Thinking templates take the guesswork out of building your MVP by showing you what to do, and how to do it. These templates will help you make smarter design decisions.
Sample Workshop Agendas kickstart your results
We make it easy for you to create your Game Thinking Workshop by giving you sample Game Thinking workshop agendas to customize.
A Curated Peer Community to accelerate your growth
Peer feedback amplifies your progress
One powerful aspect of a learning community is peer feedback. In every coaching meeting, you get the opportunity to learn from your peers. You’ll then continue those connections in our private certification group — filled with people like you who are eager to learn and happy to share their knowledge and experience
VIP Experts expand your horizons
To enhance your learning & broaden your network, we host monthly meetings with a VIP Guest Expert. These bonus meetings expose you to world-class designers & product leaders — and give you the opportunity to get their feedback on your project.
A Personal Project to launch your Game Thinking career
To complete your Level 1 Certification, you apply Game Thinking to a personal project and share your results. Your final presentation will include:
- A Game Thinking teardown of your nearest competitor
- Hot-core Superfan Insights and how you gathered them
- Customer Journey paired with a coherent mental model
- Game Thinking Agenda for your first planned workshop
What you’ll learn in 3 minutes
Boost your long-term engagement
Talk to the right early customers
Give your team a clear process
Nadia Benedetti – France
Ellis Batholomeus – The Netherlands
Tiago Sizenando – Brazil
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
When is the course?
Our Fall Certification program kicks off in October 2020
When is the course? When do meetings happen?
Meetings happen Thursdays at a time that works for everyone (TBD)
Where do I need to participate?
Ths program runs completely online. You need an Internet-connected computer or mobile phone to access the materials and attend our coaching meetings.
What topics do you cover?
We teach innovation skills that accelerate cross-functional teams. Thus we cover product strategy, customer research, game & UX design, and product management.
What happens if I get busy?
All the materials are online, and you get lifetime access. You can move at your own pace & never worry about missing out.
What if I miss the Q&A calls?
All the weekly calls are recorded and published online – so you can download and listen to them on your own schedule.
Game Thinking sounds great, but I’m building an app/platform/enterprise system. Is this only for games?
Game Thinking will improve any product experience that can be built around learning, mastery and empowerment. It works for games – and ALSO for products, apps, blogs, marketplaces, and events where the goal is long-term engagement.
This reminds me of Gamification – but I’m not hearing a lot about game mechanics. What’s the difference?
Gamification opens the door and gets people interested in the power of games. Game Thinking is the next step. You’ll learn how to bring your ideas to life like a game designer, and create Learning Loops that empower your players
This course covers a LOT of material. How can I do it all?
You’re right – it IS a lot of material. We’ve broken it into manageable chunks, organized around activities with step-by-step instructions that move your project forward. You’ll get short-term gains from this material – AND long-term skill-building as you use these techniques on future projects.
What if I don’t have the time I need, or the right skills?
That’s a great question. This program is not for everyone – it’s for those who are passionate about running smarter product experiments and getting amazing client outcomes. Skill-wise, you don’t need to be a trained researcher or designer; you DO need to be willing to follow directions and learn how to iterate towards success.
Will my employer cover the cost of the course?
If your company has a training budget, this should be easy to cover. Participating will enhance your product design and management skills – and your entire team will benefit from the techniques you bring back to the company. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE
Is this a good fit for me?
It’s all about what kind of outcomes you’re looking for. If you want to help your clients, students and colleagues 10X product/market fit, build deeply engaging experiences, and leverage the true power of games – this program is a GREAT fit for you.
Benefits of certification
- Learn product design skills that will level-up your career
- Run Game Thinking programs with confidence & ease
- Showcase your certification on the web, LinkedIn, etc
- Customize our Templates to serve your specific market
- Be featured as a Coach on gamethinking.io
- Earn revenue by selling Game Thinking programs to your clients
More from our Certified Coaches
Ambikesh Prasad – India
Rob Alvarez – Spain
CERTIFICATION LEVELS
How it works
Our Certification programs deliver high-impact, hands-on training and tangible business results. Here’s how we do it.
Meet the Coaches
Level 2
Jaxton Cheah
Jaxton co-leads our Game Thinking Asia team. Learn more…
Lisa Cui
Lisa is a Consumer Insights Manager at Jam City. Learn more…
Kacie Hsu
Kacie is a Senior User Researcher at Jam City. Learn more…
Ambikesh Prasad
Ambikesh runs our Game Thinking India practice. Learn more…
Level 1
Rob Alvarez
Rob hosts the popular Professor Game podcast. Learn more…
David Anderson
David is a Director of Technology at Liberty Mutual. Learn more…
Ellis Bartholomeus
Ellis helps companies innovate smarter with playful learning. Learn more…
Nadia Benedetti
Nadia helps companies innovate smarter with playful learning. Learn more…
Bonnie Chiurazzi
Bonnie is the Senior Manager, Consumer Insights at Jam City. Learn more…
Andy Chong
Andy is uses gamification and game design to manage change. Learn more…
Munachimso Duru
Munachimso is Digital Wealth lead at First City Monument Bank. Learn more…
Laura Ferguson
Laura is the Senior Engineering Manager at Social Tables. Learn more…
Roy Lamphier
Roy is the CEO and founder of Excelerate America Learn more…
Jeff McNab
Jeff is a Lead Game Design at Jam City. Learn more…
Laxman Murugappan
Laxman is a technology professional specializing in playful apps. Learn more…
Mel O'Connor
Mel is Lead (Narrative) Game Designer at Jam City. Learn more…
George Ogbonnaya
George is VP & Group Business Lead at First City Monument Bank. Learn more…
Lara Oliveti
Lara is the CEO of Melazeta, a gamification and mobile app company. Learn more…
Tiago Sizenando
Tiago is a product manager and game/gamification designer Learn more…
Lisa Spano
Lisa is the VP of Consumer Insights at Jam City. Learn more…
Chris Swain
Chris is a game designer, product strategist & entrepreneur. Learn more…
Dylan Watkins
Dylan is founder of Reality Smash, a VR development company. Learn more…
10X YOUR INNOVATION OUTCOMES
with our proven five-step system
STEP 1
Clarify your Product Idea
Plan your high-learning experiment
Adopt the right mindset and habits and you’ll be set up for success. In module 1, you’ll clarify your product hypotheses & prioritize your assumptions with our MVP Canvas.
STEP 2
Leverage your Superfans
Identify your high-need customers
When you find the right customers, everything falls into place. In module 2, you’ll identify your hot-core early adopters, and figure out who most NEEDS what you offer with a Superfan Screener.
Surface relevant habits & unmet needs
Customer insights inform design. To create a compelling product, you need to know who you’re designing for. You’ll use Speed Interviews to surface product-ready insights from the right people.
STEP 3
Plan your Mastery Path
Distill insights into design-ready form
Turn customer knowledge into product design decisions. You’ll use Job Stories to connect your insights about customer motivation & habits to your product design.
Design a compelling customer journey
Design your product for long-term engagement. You’ll use the 4-stage Mastery Path model to sketch out how your customer’s experience gets better as they use your product over time.
STEP 4
Playtest your Learning Loop
Prototype your Core Learning Loop
Build a simple, pleasurable MVP (Minimum Viable Product). To get product feedback quickly, you’ll prototype a stripped-down Learning Loop that captures your Day 21 experience.
Test your ideas with early customers
Get real customer feedback FAST. You’ll test your ideas in rough form with vetted early adopters – and get actionable insights on your core experience .
STEP 5
Validate your Product Idea
Validate your strategy & design
Update your roadmap with customer data. After you’ve tested your ideas, you’ll validate your assumptions, update your designs & decide whether to pivot or persevere.
Apply for Certification
Fill out this form to apply for the program. We’ll get back to you within 2 business days to let you know next steps.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
When is the course?
Our Fall Certification program kicks off in October 2020
When is the course? When do meetings happen?
Meetings happen Thursdays at a time that works for everyone (TBD)
Where do I need to participate?
Ths program runs completely online. You need an Internet-connected computer or mobile phone to access the materials and attend our coaching meetings.
What topics do you cover?
We teach innovation skills that accelerate cross-functional teams. Thus we cover product strategy, customer research, game & UX design, and product management.
What happens if I get busy?
All the materials are online, and you get lifetime access. You can move at your own pace & never worry about missing out.
What if I miss the Q&A calls?
All the weekly calls are recorded and published online – so you can download and listen to them on your own schedule.
Game Thinking sounds great, but I’m building an app/platform/enterprise system. Is this only for games?
Game Thinking will improve any product experience that can be built around learning, mastery and empowerment. It works for games – and ALSO for products, apps, blogs, marketplaces, and events where the goal is long-term engagement.
This reminds me of Gamification – but I’m not hearing a lot about game mechanics. What’s the difference?
Gamification opens the door and gets people interested in the power of games. Game Thinking is the next step. You’ll learn how to bring your ideas to life like a game designer, and create Learning Loops that empower your players
This course covers a LOT of material. How can I do it all?
You’re right – it IS a lot of material. We’ve broken it into manageable chunks, organized around activities with step-by-step instructions that move your project forward. You’ll get short-term gains from this material – AND long-term skill-building as you use these techniques on future projects.
What if I don’t have the time I need, or the right skills?
That’s a great question. This program is not for everyone – it’s for those who are passionate about running smarter product experiments and getting amazing client outcomes. Skill-wise, you don’t need to be a trained researcher or designer; you DO need to be willing to follow directions and learn how to iterate towards success.
Will my employer cover the cost of the course?
If your company has a training budget, this should be easy to cover. Participating will enhance your product design and management skills – and your entire team will benefit from the techniques you bring back to the company. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE
Is this a good fit for me?
It’s all about what kind of outcomes you’re looking for. If you want to help your clients, students and colleagues 10X product/market fit, build deeply engaging experiences, and leverage the true power of games – this program is a GREAT fit for you.
