The future of recruitment or just a passing fad? In a guest post for Crunch Simply Digital, our very own James Morris explained why we should sit up and take note of gamification. Read his thoughts below
Let’s face the facts: recruitment is not all fun and games. Digital natives are influencing the spring of recruitment. An increasingly candidate-led market means recruiters have to compete more than ever to attract the best talent. Despite this, many companies are starting to adopt gamification to become more innovative and creative in their recruitment process, drive motivation and engagement, and increase internal competition.
It’s time for traditional recruitment strategies to become more fluid with a flair of creativity even an interactive methods of assessment. Interviews are no longer enough to reflect an applicant’s true potential. Companies have started looking into gamification to reach candidates outside of their typical barriers.
How does gamification work?
Gamification applies game elements to various business scenarios to intensify candidates’ interest in the employer brand and test their aptitudes at the same time. It puts a fun spin on the recruitment process as it uses company related quests and quizzes to get a better view of candidates’ suitability for the job. Applying computer game logic to recruitment processes achieves a combination of advanced talent analytics and improved candidate experience. This ultimately allow recruiters to attract and retain the best employees.
Most noteworthy, this industry, although seemingly new, has existed for a long time. There have been elements of this in rudimentary formats for many years. For example, Psychometric testing outside the barriers of simple question and answer formats. Individuals are given a series of choices to be made and from these decisions, a profile of the individual’s identity is formed. Are they a leader or a follower, team player or a lone wolf? From these experiences, candidates can be whittled down to the ideal candidates for these roles, although modern techniques are far superior, and the level of engagement and measurability have improved the principle remains the same. They assess the candidate’s ability, skills and knowledge within a simulated experience. In addition, they provide incremental rewards for completing tasks to create a sense of competition.
But no game is complete without a reward system. Badges and rewards are received after each completed task keeping players engaged and motivated to give their absolute best.
The Benefits
Gamification can help cut down time to hire by testing key skills like time management and creative thinking in a quicker, more engaging environment. What’s especially relevant is that it also helps candidates better understand the company’s mission and values. A win-win situation!
Such online games are not a universal solution to recruitment, however. Whilst they may be popular with some demographic groups, it’s important to note that not all candidates have the means or tools necessary to access them. Before jumping on the gamification bandwagon, review your talent pool and ask whether they can all equally benefit from it!
The adoption of gamification for recruitment will increase as more and more companies realise its value. The recruitment process is more entertaining and engaging. Recruiters can use gamification data to make smarter recruitment decisions.
Read James’ full blog post for Crunch Simply Digital here.
