A Digital Dojo workshop at Spark Minda: nine Smart Dojo principles as hands-on AR and VR zones

Summary

Spark Minda, an automotive component manufacturer, trains its people on nine Smart Dojo principles. We replaced the classroom-style delivery with hands-on learning zones, one per principle, using AR, VR simulations, interactive displays and gamified challenges, and ran them as a one-day interactive event. Participants worked through problems in each zone instead of sitting through a presentation.

The challenge

Spark Minda already had a clear training framework, the Smart Dojo, built on 9 core principles from safety and quality to teamwork and performance. The content and structure were sound.

The problem was engagement. Slides, lectures and handouts delivered the information, but people were not taking it in. Spark Minda wanted training that employees would experience, not just hear.

What we built

We turned each principle from a slide into a zone participants could walk into and use. We also designed two structured canvases to frame the programme: a visual experience showcase and a full 9-principle framework.

• Know your company: vision, values and business goals through interactive company timelines and AR brand storytelling.
• Safety Dojo: a zero-accident mindset through hazard identification simulations and real-time safety scenario walkthroughs.
• Maintenance Dojo: equipment care and downtime control through hands-on diagnostics and predictive maintenance demos.
• Product Dojo: product knowledge through 3D exploded views and AR component exploration.
• Process Dojo: SOPs and workflows through process mapping exercises and visual workflow builders.
• Ergonomic Dojo: safe posture and injury prevention through posture analysis technology and ergonomic workstation set-ups.
• Quality Dojo: continuous improvement and zero-defect thinking through quality inspection challenges and root cause analysis games.
• Teamwork Dojo: collaboration and accountability through team problem-solving challenges and trust exercises.
• Performance Dojo: a KPI-driven mindset through personal performance dashboards and goal-setting workshops.

How it worked on the day

The zones ran as a one-day interactive event covering all 9 principles. Employees gathered around tablets and pointed them at real components to see AR overlays, worked through safety protocols in simulations, and competed in team challenges that felt more like a game than a training session.

Results

Participants worked through each zone in teams, instead of sitting through a presentation.

The event covered all nine Smart Dojo principles, from safety and quality to teamwork and performance, in one day.