While the intersection between meat-space and gaming doesn't often stray beyond showing up bleary-eyed for work, Forbes has a piece on how leadership in MMOs mirrors, and could potentially enlighten, real-world business practices.
The article focuses on CEOs in EVE Online, citing studies that suggest that the complexity of managing players and virtual economies provides insight that is applicable in the real world.
Games aren't a replacement for proper economic study, or even a legitimate training tool. They serve instead as a microcosm, where (comparatively) risk-free business stratagems invoke an entrepreneurial spirit, that leads some players from their desktop to the boardroom.
I've spent a significant chunk of my EVE career staring at Excel spreadsheets and studying the in-depth Economic Quarterly Reports (image: CCP Games) not to mention the number of enterprises I've successfully run in countless Flash games. I'm clearly qualified (Forbes said so), so take a look at the article, and then feel free to send any spare venture capital my way.
From MMO To CEO [Forbes]
Image: Kugelfish/Flickr
