Quarter Three 2024

Gamification in Training: Engaging Employees for Lasting Impact

In today’s fast-paced work environment, keeping employees engaged during training can be a challenge. Enter gamification, a strategy that blends game mechanics with learning processes to foster motivation, improve retention, and create an interactive experience. Incorporating elements like points, rewards, and challenges into training can transform a mundane task into an engaging, competitive experience. But what exactly is gamification, and how can you use it to boost your employees’ engagement?

What is Gamification?

Gamification is the application of game-design elements in non-game contexts, such as workplace training or professional development. By introducing mechanics like badges, leaderboards, and challenges, gamification taps into human desires for achievement, recognition, and competition. Whether it’s a quiz to earn points or a simulation where employees can “level up,” gamification enhances motivation and learning outcomes.

The Benefits of Gamifying Employee Training

1. Increased Engagement: Employees are more likely to participate actively when training feels like a game. Instead of passively watching videos or reading manuals, they become part of an interactive experience.
2. Better Retention: Studies show that people learn better when they are engaged and having fun. Gamification not only helps employees absorb the material but also retain it for longer.
3. Immediate Feedback: Instant feedback on progress, such as completing a quiz or moving to the next level in a scenario, helps employees know where they stand and what they need to improve. This is much more effective than waiting for traditional evaluations.
4. Encourages Collaboration and Competition: Leaderboards and team-based activities create healthy competition and encourage employees to work together. This fosters collaboration and builds stronger teams.
5. Promotes Self-Paced Learning: Gamification allows employees to take control of their learning at their own pace. They can progress as they feel comfortable, which accommodates different learning styles and speeds.

How to Engage Your Employees Through Gamification

1. Start with Clear Objectives: Determine the training goals and what behaviors you want to encourage. Gamification should reinforce key learning objectives and not distract from them.
2. Incorporate a Points and Rewards System: Employees are more motivated when they can see their progress and earn tangible rewards. Consider offering badges for completing tasks, or points that can be redeemed for small incentives.
3. Use Challenges and Quizzes: Break training into smaller, digestible modules, each with its own challenges or quizzes. This keeps employees engaged throughout the training process.
4. Encourage Friendly Competition: Set up team-based games or individual leaderboards to ignite a sense of competition. However, ensure the competition is fun and collaborative, rather than stressful.
5. Offer Immediate Feedback and Recognition: Recognize achievements immediately, whether through an in-game prompt, a shoutout during team meetings, or a rewards system. Immediate acknowledgment encourages further participation.
6. Make it Fun and Relevant: Tailor your gamified training to fit your company culture and the roles of your employees. Whether it’s a themed competition or a simulation of real-life work scenarios, making the content relatable ensures that employees stay engaged.
7. Monitor and Adjust: Pay attention to how employees respond to the gamification elements. If engagement starts to drop, don’t be afraid to adjust the format or game mechanics.

Real-Life Success Stories

Companies like IBM, Deloitte, and Microsoft have successfully implemented gamification in their training programs. IBM, for example, used gamification in its Leadership Academy to simulate real-world leadership challenges, while Deloitte’s Leadership Academy features a point-based system that rewards users for completing training modules. The result? Higher completion rates, increased engagement, and more effective training outcomes.

The Future of Training

As more companies turn to remote or hybrid work, gamification in training becomes even more relevant. It offers a way to keep employees engaged, motivated, and connected, no matter where they are.

By adopting gamification into your training programs, you can make learning a fun and meaningful experience for your employees, leading to better retention, improved skills, and a more motivated workforce.

Ready to Gamify Your Training? If you’re looking to revolutionize your company’s training and development programs, consider incorporating gamification strategies. Not only will you boost engagement, but you’ll also foster a culture of learning and growth within your organization.

The Ergonomics Center’s 30th Anniversary Symposium Recap

The Ergonomics Center held it’s first ever symposium to celebrate it’s 30th Anniversary. A wide range of topics, including Participatory Ergonomics Programs, Emerging Technologies in Ergonomics, and Ergonomics, DEI, and Universal Design were presented by industry and university experts. On Day 2, Industry Priority Round Table discussions were held. Here are the notes from those conversations:

Student Education and Project Skills

What skillsets are which are weak / missing from today’s graduates?  What are employers looking for?

• Engineering Economics (ROI, Cost justifying projects/improvements)
  • Being able to talk the language of business (finance sheets, mgmt. metrics & bus. processes)
• Importance of employee involvement and interaction
  • Voice of the floor & interaction w/ employees
• Lack of awareness of a strong safety culture among hourly employees
• Lack social skills (communication) – soft skills (managerial courage, etc.)
• Improve training in the application of emotional intelligence
  • How to ask questions
  • How to listen, etc.
• Understanding how to interview (moderator training)
• Incoming graduates / new hires are afraid of failure and/or have a feeling of empowerment
• Incoming graduates / new hires have an expectation that they can invent something & get rich quick
• Rapid prototyping skills (3D printing, etc.)
• Human digital modeling skills
• Multi-disciplinary teams / group project work (bus., engr., etc.)
• Solution development skills (practical, realistic, cost-feasible)
• Understanding of comprising / level-setting (ability to negotiate or propose multi-level solutions) vs. getting frustrated by their first proposed solution being shot down & then being done with the job
• Benefits of longevity & loyalty
• Leveraging data analytics to make bus. decisions & performance metrics
• Industry actions – More Interaction & partnerships between academia & private industry to provide experience with needed skills:
  • Structured onboarding process to teach missing skills
  • Using universities to conduct student projects (capstone, senior design projects, applied research, etc.)
  • Internships, mini co-ops / senior design projects
  • Partner with business school to understand C-suite needs/metrics & communicate to students

Practitioner Tools (Assessment, Training, etc.)

What needs do industry have regarding practitioner tools, as it relates to ergonomic assessments and/or training?  What is missing or needs to be improved?

• Improved risk assessment tools/methods

• Tools to self-assess & self-correct
• Use of technology (computer vision / AI & wearable sensors) to automate/semi-automate assessment tools
  • Goal: Improve productivity, accuracy, & provide a simple report (non-neutral postures) & actionable insights; New tools using tech should be low-cost
  • Development & validation of new assessment tools (current tools use different anchor points & angles), so normalization of new tools that use tech is needed
• Cumulative exposure risk assessment methods
• Multi-task risk assessment methods
• Tools that integrate multi-factorial risk models (Physical factors, Individual factors, Social factors)

• Standards group to provide design criteria, std. testing, std. validation of CV & wearable sensors
• More oversight or ergonomist / practitioner involvement in the development of new tools
• Non-biased, 3^rd party assessment party/group to upload videos, process, & correct the issues
• Use of technology (virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed realty (VR/AR/XR)) to enhance ergonomics training 

Applied Research

What research do you feel is missing that would help industry? What do you wish universities would research?

• See Practitioner Tools Notes above
• Use of emerging tech to develop better risk prediction & prevention tools
• Better direction on the use of tech to direct better tools (new longitudinal, epidemiologic studies)
• More research & contribution to risk assessment methods that integrate psychosocial impacts
• Quick, easy, application-based assessment tools based on fatigue (that may help w/ job rotation, etc.)
• Job rotation research (when does it help & by how much)
• Why so much focus on behavior-based safety vs. getting to root cause(s) of problem & addressing it
• Upper extremity exoskeleton research that shows ROI / benefits (i.e. Shoulder version of ExoLifft)
• Partner with business school to understand C-suite needs/metrics & conduct research around those needs / metrics (obviously involving students in this type of project work/research)
• Better KPIs/metrics for preventing serious injuries or fatalities (SIFs)
• Surgical ergonomic interventions research that are practical / feasible

• Knowledge, education & research on engr., admin, work practice controls as it relates to surgeons and the healthcare industry

• Ergonomic Improvement Competition facilitated through NCSU & The Ergonomics Center

To encourage more ergonomics-related applied research projects, there could be an Ergo Cup award added for Applied Research at the annual Applied Ergonomics Conference