Escape the Ordinary: Turn Corporate Updates into Digital Escape Rooms

We’ve all been there: trapped in a quarterly update meeting where you feel the minutes and hours of your life slip by slower than the heartbeat of a hibernating toad. But what if you could turn those deadly updates into an enjoyable game — specifically, a digital escape room?

By gamifying the experience, you’ve got a much better chance of getting employees to engage with the content by making it more interesting. And guess what? When something’s more interesting, people pay more attention.

Why It Works

Gamification taps into our competitive nature and transforms passive consumption into active participation. When employees have to solve puzzles or complete challenges to unlock key information, they’re forced to think about what they’re learning, rather than zoning out during a presentation.

Plus, it encourages collaboration across departments, which is a win-win for team building.

Daniel Pink: Motivation Through Mastery and Autonomy

@Daniel Pink’s work on motivation — particularly his theory around autonomy, mastery, and purpose — would back this idea all day long.

Digital escape rooms tap into two of those motivators: mastery and autonomy. When employees are given the freedom to explore, solve puzzles, and figure things out for themselves, it’s a direct hit to Pink’s theory on what drives us to do great work.

In an escape room, teams get to exercise their skills (mastery) and choose how they approach each challenge (autonomy). Pink would say this is exactly how to keep employees engaged, because you’re tapping into their intrinsic motivation — the desire to improve and solve problems, not because they have to, but because it’s challenging and satisfying.

In his world, this isn’t just gamification for gamification’s sake — it’s creating a work environment that aligns with what motivates people at their core.

How to Make It Happen

The great thing about this idea is you don’t need a team of developers or a massive budget to create a digital escape room. Start small and scale up as you see fit.

1. Pick a Theme: First, tie the escape room’s storyline to your update. For example, if it’s a quarterly review, design each challenge or puzzle reveal a part of the company’s performance metrics. Or, if you’re announcing a new product, set the escape room within a virtual product launch journey.

2. Build the Challenges: Use platforms like Lockee or Drimify, to create your escape room. You can build puzzles based on riddles, deciphering codes, or completing tasks that reveal parts of your message or company news.

3. Collaborative Play: Encourage cross-team collaboration. Set up the escape room so different departments have to work together to unlock key insights — this is great for fostering (or forcing in a fun-way) interdepartmental communication.

Practical Tips

• Keep it Focused: Don’t overcomplicate things. The goal is to make your update more engaging, not to lose people in complex puzzles that frustrate them.

• Time-Limited Fun: Set a time limit to keep the game pace exciting — say, 30 minutes. Any longer, and you risk losing interest.

• Schedule correctly: If you’re making a day of it, due to the brainpower and energy required, this activity is best scheduled for the beginning or middle of an event, rather than at the end when people want to go home.

• Test Before You Roll It Out: Try a beta version with a smaller group before launching company wide. This way, you can iron out any kinks in the clues and ensure the game flow is smooth.

Scaling Up

Worried that running a digital escape room for hundreds of employees sounds like chaos? Relax—it’s not only doable, but it can be a hit if you plan it right.

1. Use the Right Platform

Tools like Drimify or Escape Room Master can handle large groups, keeping things organised while teams work independently. The platform tracks progress, and your escape room runs smoothly, no matter how many people join.

2. Split into Teams, Stir Competition

Instead of throwing 300 people into one virtual room, break them into smaller teams — 4 to 8 people per group. Each team tackles the same puzzles in their own digital space. Add a live leaderboard to fuel some friendly competition.

Pro Tip

If a full-scale digital escape room feels like too much for every update, save it for major announcements like annual strategy rollouts, product launches, or big plenary meetings. And add prizes. You can make report backs a tradition employees look forward to rather than dread.

Stand By

From digital escape rooms to podcasts and employee-generated content, there are loads of easily actionable ways to transform corporate communications from boring to brilliant. Want all 12 creative strategies in one handy guide? Keep an eye out for the upcoming ebook that breaks down each idea with step-by-step instructions to help you engage your audience in new and exciting ways.