UNT AI in Action · Dr. Scott J. Warren

Coherense
Gamified Human-AI Collaboration for Executive Digital Transformation, Training, and Decision-support

University of North Texas · Department of Learning Technologies
Live demos ↗ coherense.systemly.space — training platform ↗ meridian.systemly.space — learning game

Why digital transformations fail

60–70%
Overall DT failure rate
42%
Organizational factors
38%
Cultural resistance
35%
Leadership gaps
31%
Implementation problems
The core problem is usually not the shiny tool. It is the messy human system wrapped around it.
Sources: Syed et al. (2023); Oludapo, Carroll, & Helfert (2024); Gartner (2025)

What the app actually does

1
Users move through short mission-based scenarios that simulate real transformation constraints: stakeholder conflict, capability gaps, governance pressure, and uncertain technology fit.
2
Instead of asking the AI to "solve it," the user is prompted to justify choices, compare options, and explain consequences.
3
The system then produces a structured output that can be reviewed for coherence, defensibility, and organizational fit.

Human-AI collaboration model

The AI layer acts as a reasoning collaborator rather than a generic chatbot
It helps clarify intent, surface assumptions, and compares strategic options
Players identify second-order effects before implementation decisions are finalized
This ensures leaders know to ask why, can, and should before IT adoption
Sources: Warren, Beck, & McGuffin (2023); Warren & Beck (2023); Grotewold et al., 2024

The Products: Coherense and Meridian

Coherense
Training platform
AI-guided training for executive digital transformation decisions
  • Mission-based scenarios with real DT constraints: stakeholder conflict, capability gaps, governance pressure
  • Human-AI collaboration model: AI reasons alongside the user, not instead of them
  • Decision artifacts: every session produces a usable output for real planning
  • Three learning arcs: AI Integration, Quantum Readiness, Emerging Tech (ECET)
  • Structured feedback on reasoning quality and coherence of choice
↗ coherense.systemly.space
Meridian
Learning game
Narrative learning game for digital transformation leadership
  • Story-driven game: players navigate a fictional organization undergoing digital transformation
  • Consequential decisions: choices ripple through stakeholder relationships, resources, and outcomes
  • Companion to Coherense: transfers analytical frameworks into applied narrative practice
  • Replay and branching: learners test alternate paths and compare outcomes
  • Under ongoing Delphi study validation with executive participants
↗ meridian.systemly.space
Live Demo — Coherense
Coherense Training Platform
Open the live demo in your browser or switch to this tab during the presentation
Open coherense.systemly.space ↗
Live Demo — Meridian
Meridian Learning Game
Open the live demo in your browser or switch to this tab during the presentation
Open meridian.systemly.space ↗

How Coherense supports gamified learning

Mission structure

Users do not passively read about digital transformation — they enter bounded scenarios with goals, constraints, and decisions to make.

Progression and replay

Users can revisit missions, test alternate choices, and learn through comparison rather than one-shot exposure.

Feedback loops

The platform gives structured feedback on reasoning quality — closer to a simulation game than a lecture deck wearing a fake mustache.

Decision artifacts

Every mission ends with a usable output, so the game mechanics reinforce transfer to real planning practice.

Game-based learning grounding: Warren, Roy, & Robinson (2021) and Warren & Jones (2017)

Research and validation path

Current study
Delphi Study with Executive Participants
Focus areas
Usability · Learning experience · Guided Human-AI decision-making
There is an ongoing Delphi study with executives examining usability, learning experience, and perceptions of guided human-AI decision-making using training from Coherense and the associated Meridian learning game.
That matters because the platform is not just software — it is a training intervention that needs evidence of learning value and decision quality improvement.
Takeaway: If it changes behavior in organizations, not just screens, it has value.
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