Credit: IDG Rackspace EMEA CTO Lee James discussed gamification and creating winning teams in a video interview at the 2019 CIO Summit. James had delivered a morning keynote at the annual CIO gathering in London, and in a video interview with Scott Carey shared some of the key messages about creating a culture where employees are empowered to be themselves, and what CIOs can learn from how younger generations engage on a game like Fortnite. [2019 CIO Summit photos and highlights] “The workforce is changing, we have to align ourselves with their needs, their requirements, and think about how we bring those into the workforce and really see the benefits of that,” he said. Team ethos James said that the current crop of CIOs and CTOs might have grown up playing single-player computer games on an Atari, Commodore or Sega machine, but that there was much to learn about team building and engagement from modern multiplayer games. “I talked about Fortnite because Fortnite helps you customise and allows you to go after small tasks and achieve those tasks together as a team. That team has got to work together – and it’s done in very short sprints that we see very much in the kind of Agile space. “What really hit home is Fortnite allows me to be me. I can pick my own costumes, I can go after the tasks that I want to, I can be in the squad that I want to be in. I want to be in that squad because it excites me, it inspires me, I believe in it. And I’m allowed to be me, and we have something at Rackspace called, ‘it’s okay to be me at Rackspace’. “That’s what we see the younger generation wants when they come to work. They want an ethos, they want to understand what your sustainability policies are. They want to understand the team that they’re going to work into.” ‘Feedback forward’ James also augmented modish startup phrases like ‘fail fast’ and ‘fail forward’, saying he preferred to use the term “feedback forward” – making iterative improvements based on feedback to please your customers. “Feedback forward is taking that feedback and making it better; that’s what people want,” James said. “If you please the customer, make the customer happy, go above and beyond for that customer, you’ll get that back in terms of their business and their support.” Register for upcoming CIO UK events Related content feature 7 ways to spot hidden IT talent within your ranks Your organization has hidden IT superstars in the making — both within and outside IT. Here’s how to find and elevate them for maximum impact. By John Edwards Jun 07, 2023 8 mins Staff Management feature The NBA’s digital transformation is a game-changer The National Basketball Association’s move to Azure cloud is helping improve fan experience and in-game performance due to analytics- and AI-assisted tools aimed at unlocking data’s full potential. By Paula Rooney Jun 07, 2023 9 mins Microsoft Azure Media and Entertainment Industry Digital Transformation case study How Palladium targets tech to better serve the business Palladium Hotel Group has prioritized strategies surrounding its digital transformation, with a focus on two primary objectives: to improve the business and better customize the customer experience. By Nuria Cordon Jun 07, 2023 4 mins CIO Travel and Hospitality Industry Digital Transformation Saudi Vision 2030: Why the Kingdom is becoming a hub in EdTech education By Andrea Benito Jun 07, 2023 5 mins Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe