Our world in 2020, is well and truly a digital era. The newest generation of workers to join the workforce—Generation Z—are known as digital natives: they were born and raised in the age of digital technology, and so have been immersed with the internet and technology from an early age. The digitisation of the workforce, alongside fast-changing technologies, has changed the way people interact and engage with each other. As a result, there has been a pressing need for systems and processes to evolve, including within the human resources space. Recruiters are having to adopt new and innovative ways to source and qualify new talent.

One of the ways this has been done, is through the introduction of gamification to the recruitment process.

What is gamification?

Gamification is the act of applying gaming principles and design elements to non-gaming situations. This can involve activities where participants complete tasks in order to score points, earn badges, or pass levels. Elements of competition amongst participants can sometimes be present. All of these activities are played out within the rules of game play.

Gamification in itself is not a new concept and has a well-established history in the realm of training and development, and in society itself. Games have been used for generations to teach children such cultural norms as following the rules, taking turns, and healthy competition etc. Subsequently, and as a result of the digitisation of the workforce and changing forms of communication, Gamification (when used correctly) presents a fun and exciting way to engage new candidates in the recruitment process.

How can gamification be utilised?

Gamification can be applied throughout the entire business and has varied uses, including as a marketing tool to engage new customers with your brand or new products, assessing employees’ learning and development needs, and engaging candidates in your recruitment process.

When employing gamification in the recruitment process, it is essential that skill- or industry-specific scenarios create the foundations of the game. This allows for a candidate’s skills and abilities to shine through in real time, and can demonstrate their aptitude for certain roles.

Many large international corporations have already begun to use gamification as part of their recruitment process. Take PriceWaterhouseCoopers for example, when their Hungary office was looking for a more effective way to recruit college students, they developed an online simulation that invited students to take part in a 12-day gameplay. This allowed candidates to experience a virtual version of what it would be like to work for the accounting and consulting firm. They were expected to meet quarterly goals, complete tasks that were based on key competencies, and were provided feedback from company coaches. This proved to be a fun way to engage potential candidates, while at the same time giving them an insight into audit and consulting profession.

Gamification isn’t only useful in enticing potential candidates to consider your employment offering. It may also influence the perception potential candidates have about an organisation, promoting a fresh and innovative image, and encourage higher levels of engagement and motivation.

Considerations for implementing

Of course, introducing gamification also comes with its challenges. Here’s a handy summary of pros and cons if you are thinking about introducing gamification in your organisation:

Pros

• Attracts a broad range of talent.
• Demonstrates in real time, a candidate’s potential for certain roles.
• Provides a preview of a candidate’s skills and abilities.
• Encourages higher levels of engagement.
• Projects fresh and innovative image of an organisation.

Cons

• The investment and resourcing required to implement, analyse the performance and continually update each scenario so that you achieve the desired purpose can be a significant cost to the business.
• A challenge for gamification designers will be engineering variety and novelty into the experience to keep it novel. Employees may tire of badges, leader boards and challenges designed to keep them motivated in jobs that they otherwise wouldn’t want to do.

If you’re considering gamifying your company, here are a few additional things to keep in mind:

• Set realistic, measurable goals. If you’re running an inbound or outbound call centre, define your goals and reward employees when the goals are reached.
• Make sure your employees understand the benefits and base your program on shared goals.
• Track progress! Determine a baseline performance metric before you launch the program, and track progress as you go.
• Establish a rewards program. Games should always be fun. Little rewards along the way encourage people to keep moving toward the end goal.

When considering implementing gamification, it’s important to keep your end goal in mind. It is essential that time is invested in correctly identifying which tasks and activities are relevant to the skills and abilities required to be successful in the role. For a gamification solution to be successful, it must be well designed, executed and maintained. The methods should be varied, and the information it provides should be used to improve not only your business, but the application itself.