How gamification is revolutionising the workplace

Today, most business executives know what gamification is and they recognise it as a data-driven motivation strategy that can improve company performance across the board. Many are eager to get platforms in place because they understand that engaged employees form the foundation of the service-profit chain.

If you have questions about gamification in the workplace and how it can improve business results for your company, here are the top reasons why we predict gamification will revolutionise the workplace:

Gamification taps into intrinsic motivators. We all share the same basic intrinsic motivators, factors that inspire us to initiate an activity for its own sake because it is interesting and satisfying in itself. The five most important intrinsic motivators — Autonomy ("I control"), Mastery ("I improve"), Purpose ("I make a difference"), Progress ("I achieve") and Social Interaction ("I connect with others") – are common to everyone, and behavioural research has shown that satisfying them can make anyone's work more productive and more pleasing. That means gamification can be used to unlock potential across all employees, all job titles and all departments.

Gamification in the workplace connects the dots between employee motivation and company success. Tapping into your employees' intrinsic motivators is necessary, but it's not sufficient. You also need to be able to connect their increased engagement directly to the company's better performance. In other words, a well-designed gamification platform starts by inspiring active participation geared to specific business goals. Then, it monitors results, measures the business impacts and supports perpetual learning and improvements that fuel even greater satisfaction and engagement.

Gamification is data-driven. Simply put, gamification uses data to motivate performance. Years ago, most business got done in face-to-face meetings or via memos sent around the office. But today, sales, training, service, collaboration and almost every other aspect of business occurs in systems that produce mountains of data. Gamification platforms capture the relevant data and put it to work to create engaging experiences that drive performance, business results and competitive advantage. With gamification, you can use data to build a 360-degree view of all your employees and take advantage of opportunities to motivate them everywhere they work.

Gamification is sustainable and proven – across sectors and departments. BI WORLDWIDE's customers span every industry you can imagine, and our gamification platform is just one solution helping them improve business results in a variety of different ways. For example, gamification is being used to:

• Increase adoption and use of learning management tools.
• Promote retention and results among hourly employees.
• Drive up employee knowledge sharing to increase service levels.
• Boost call centre employee performance and satisfaction.
• Enhance customer loyalty and drive revenue.

Gamification can impact employees from all generations, departments, tenures and educational backgrounds. Moving forward, we'll be hearing many more success stories from companies using gamification to achieve real business results.