Can gamifying employee engagement improve retention?

Meet Anne, a young IT talent with much potential whose daily tasks can be tedious, challenging, and stressful.  However, Anne remains motivated because of her company’s gamified help desk system, where she can earn points for successfully resolving issues, receive badges for continuous excellence, and compete on a leaderboard. 

Climbing to the top of the leaderboard, Anne feels proud and motivated, posting this feat on her social media accounts for her friends to see. 

This simple way of gamified work environment has given her a sense of achievement. It makes her more loyal to the company, which is crucial in today’s highly competitive job market.

Gamifying employee experience has been a go-to strategy of many companies today to increase engagement, retention, and productivity.

Research by job-seeking platform Zippia shows that an astonishing 90% of employees say that gamification makes them more productive in the office. 

The same study shows that companies that gamify work experience have become seven times more profitable than those that don’t.

READ MORE | 5 ways a ‘super app’ can revolutionise your employees' experience

What does a gamified work environment look like?

Gamifying employee engagement involves applying game elements and principles to non-game activities within the workplace. 

This approach leverages elements such as competition, rewards, challenges, and feedback to make work-related tasks more engaging and enjoyable for employees. 

Gamified work environments usually incorporate these elements:

Leaderboards and points systems

Employees earn points or badges for completing tasks or meeting specific goals, and their progress is displayed on leaderboards, fostering healthy competition.

Challenges and quests

Employees are presented with weekly or daily challenges and quests that encourage them to achieve specific objectives, offering a sense of accomplishment upon completion.

Rewards and recognition

Tangible rewards, such as gift cards or extra time off, are given to employees who excel in specific areas or reach predetermined milestones.

Narratives and storytelling

Creating narratives or stories around work tasks can make them more engaging as employees become characters in a larger narrative.

Read: Losing team spirit? How to gather remote workers with the intention

How gamification can help you retain your people

With a global talent shortage, engaging employees for satisfaction and retention has become critical for business success. 

Engaged employees are more productive and stay with their organisations longer, eventually becoming brand ambassadors. 

As HR managers strive to enhance employee satisfaction, boost productivity, and improve retention rates, one innovative approach has gained traction: gamifying employee engagement. 

Increased motivation

Gamification taps into employees' intrinsic motivation by offering them a sense of achievement and progress. 

When employees see themselves making progress on leaderboards or earning rewards, it boosts their motivation to excel.

Enhanced learning and development

Gamified experiences can be used for training and development purposes.

Interactive modules and challenges can make learning new skills or processes more enjoyable and effective.

Improved team collaboration

Gamification can foster teamwork and collaboration. When employees work together to achieve common goals or compete as teams, it strengthens their bonds and enhances communication.

Real-time feedback and recognition

Gamification provides instant feedback to employees, enabling them to track their performance and improve in real-time. 

Additionally, publicly recognising and rewarding top performers can boost morale and motivation.

How to start gamifying your employee engagement programs

Determining the specific objectives that you want to achieve through gamification is the best start when you’re planning to gamify your employees’ work experience

It can be improving employee retention or increasing sales performance – it’s up to you, and there are no wrong answers. 

You must also think of the best platforms and how they can be integrated into your HR systems, which may entail consulting with your organisation’s tech experts. 

Get the buy-in of the higher management as this may need their support for the rewards system. Show them that this project can deliver tangible results. 

Gamifying employee engagement is a powerful tool that HR managers can leverage to improve retention rates, boost productivity, and enhance overall employee satisfaction. 

By incorporating game elements into the workplace, you create a motivating, productive, and fun environment for everyone in the organisation.