Before I founded Hoogly, I spent a decade trying to solve a different impossible problem: How do you make children fall in love with mathematics?

My first startup, Mangahigh, used game mechanics to teach math to millions of students across 50 countries. Recently, I sat down with Lucas Hakewill on the Programmable podcast to discuss how the lessons from that journey are directly applicable to the crisis of disconnection we see in the modern workplace.

The “Bowling Alley” Theory of Engagement

In the interview, we discussed a common criticism of gamification: “Shouldn’t people just do the hard work?”

My response is the Bowling Alley Analogy. If you take a child bowling and every ball goes into the gutter, they will hate bowling. They will quit. But if you put the bumpers (rails) up, they get the satisfaction of hitting the pins. Eventually, they don’t need the rails.

Culture is the same. If you force employees to connect via awkward, forced “fun” or long surveys, they disengage. It feels like throwing the ball in the gutter. Hoogly acts as the “bumpers.” We provide the prompts, the nudges, and the safe space so that employees can feel the intrinsic joy of connection.

Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation

There is a misconception that gamification is just about badges and points (Extrinsic). Real engagement comes from the activity itself (Intrinsic).

  • Extrinsic: Filling out a survey to get a gift card.
  • Intrinsic: Sharing a story about your weekend and having a colleague truly listen.

At Hoogly, we use light gamification not to “trick” people into using the app, but to make the barrier to entry low enough that they discover the intrinsic value of human connection.

The Future is “Systematic Empathy”

As I told Lucas on the show: “The world of work has changed, but people haven’t.”

We still have a biological necessity for connection. By applying the rigor of computer science and the insights of behavioral psychology, we aren’t just building a tool; we are building a Culture OS that helps teams scale empathy.

Listen to the full episode on Spotify or watch on YouTube.

gamificationleadershipbehavioral science