Gamification in Recruitment

The HR industry is a bit like the Japanese economy: it doesn't create innovations, but it masterfully absorbs, deepens and adapts them to its needs. A good example confirming these words is a phenomenon borrowed from the world of marketing – gamification, which is already changing the way we recruit, train and motivate employees.

An invitation to play

Gamification consists in using mechanisms known from games in the real world. It is a kind of overlay that we use to make everyday tasks more engaging. It all comes down to two simple instincts: competition and collecting. Nothing stands in the way, however, of appealing to higher motivations as well, such as self-development or the need to cooperate with others.

Why do companies bet on gamification? Because they care about engagement. According to research conducted for over 10 years by Aon Hewitt, only half of the employees of Polish companies feel "engaged by their employers to perform their duties as well as possible and go beyond the standard of work, and want to recommend them and tie their professional future to them". Across the ocean it is even weaker. According to Gallup Institute data, 34% of employees of American companies are engaged in their work, 51% are disengaged, and 17.5% are actively disengaged). These are averaged figures. If you consider Generation Y, the engagement level drops to 28%. Organizations therefore need better ways to draw employees into the life of the company – in particular, ways that would appeal to millennials. Two things are certain:

1. They will soon make up 75% of the workforce.
2. Computer games are one of their favorite pastimes.

The next level

Since we have mentioned mechanisms known from games, for the sake of order, let's list at least a few of them. To avoid creating an ad hoc typology, we can use the clear and universal proposal developed by Oracle —

Feedback mechanisms serve to inform the user about their progress and motivate them to keep participating in the game. They should constitute a form of reward for engagement (symbolic – e.g. a badge, or more tangible – points exchangeable for benefits). These mechanisms also help determine the value of specific actions from the organization's point of view (e.g. by differentiating the number of points for particular actions).

• points
• levels
• badges
• bonuses
• notifications

Indicator mechanisms tell us what we are missing to complete our tasks and how we compare to other users. A clock counting down is meant to build a sense that urgent action is needed. A comparison of the results of everyone involved in the game is meant to stir the desire to compete. These mechanisms are also meant to make it easier for the player to understand what their goals are, what they need to achieve them and how far they are from achieving them.

• countdown
• progress bar
• leaderboard

Mechanisms proper to game design create the internal logic that governs the game. They divide tasks into "missions", "challenges" or "quests"; they establish laws and rules that users must follow; they engage players in a "virtual economy" where buying, selling, exchange or barter takes place; they create a narrative binding the whole story together, e.g. by introducing plot threads.

• missions
• contests
• virtual economy

Psychological mechanisms work in a more subtle, but no less effective way. They boil down to observing human behavior and then calibrating the mechanisms described above so as to encourage desirable behaviors and discourage undesirable ones. For example: the organization benefits when a user participates in the game often (high appointment dynamics), so it should give them a bonus (e.g. more experience points for the same actions) that gives them an advantage over those who are not equally engaged. As Jeanne Meister of "Forbes" rightly repeats – "gamification is 75% psychology and 25% technology".

• fear of failure
• appointment dynamics

Mission: Referrals

Few things are as important for building a culture of engagement and participation as a well-thought-out job referral program. The team (sometimes: also the community gathered around the brand – clients, contractors, candidates, etc.) has a real sense of co-deciding about its fate. It also has the opportunity to win rewards, help others, and participate in the life of a community to which it feels attached. When we say a "well-thought-out" referral program, we mean a system that skillfully introduces elements that make the whole game more interesting and attractive. Such as gamification.

The creators of the Zao app, the first referral system that made gamification the core of its offering, know this well. The main value of the mechanism lies in its simplicity: every desirable activity is rewarded, in proportion to the benefits the company derives from it. To illustrate this right away with an example, let's consider a hypothetical scoring system:

• Sharing an offer (e.g. on Facebook) – a thank-you

• Each unique view from our link – 1 point
• Referring a friend – 20 points
• A referred friend submitting an application – 100 points
• The referred person being invited to an interview – 2,000 points
• The candidate we referred being hired –  10,000 points

Points can then be exchanged for rewards: material, symbolic, monetary. Some companies even offer team rewards, e.g. for the most effective department. We have covered the topic of rewards in referral programs before, so here let's just say that a choice of rewards that takes into account the organizational culture and employees' preferences greatly helps them get on board with the gamification mechanism.

According to Assaf Eisenstein, creator of the GooodJob.com platform, gamified referrals work particularly well if we want to engage young employees from Generation Y. The reasons are as follows:

• they get to bring an element of fun and smiles into their work, which they value;
• while having fun they receive benefits, which they value all the more;
• they compete (or cooperate) with other people belonging to the team, and thus have the opportunity to get to know their colleagues better

Game over? Quite the opposite

Companies such as Hays, WalMart and PriceWaterhouseCoopers have included gamification elements in their recruitment processes. The Hungarian branch of the latter, from the moment its recruitment game Multipoly launched, could boast an increase in submitted applications of as much as 190%. The time an average candidate spent on the Careers page also grew from 5-10 minutes to as much as an hour and a half. How was this achieved? Candidates were offered a game in which they could solve problems resembling those PwC employees really face. According to recruiters, Multipoly had a positive impact on candidates' knowledge and confidence during interviews and significantly facilitated onboarding. The new employee had already gotten to know a bit of the company culture and knew more about its expectations of them. Those, in turn, who gave up after a few minutes or did not do well in the game usually did not submit an application. It was therefore a form of pre-selection. People who were uninterested or weaker withdrew from the competition themselves, saving the recruiter's time.

Gamification can be used in various aspects of HR work – in recruitment, referral management, onboarding. It is something more than an add-on to these processes. A well-prepared and well-communicated gamification project changes their essence, increases efficiency and... makes working in HR something much more interesting.

If you are curious about gamification and community-based solutions in recruitment – I invite you to get in touch and explore the ShareHire.pl offering. I also encourage employees of companies that already have experience with this kind of implementation to get in touch – I believe it is always worth exchanging observations and experiences.

m.gielzak@sharehire.pl

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