"An effective orientation program is not just about familiarizing new employees with their workspaces - it's about creating a roadmap to success. It streamlines the settling-in process, catalyzes their adjustment to the new environment, and fosters robust team dynamics from day one."
A well-planned and executed onboarding process for new employees is essential for a business's long-term success. However, traditional onboarding processes can be tedious and overwhelming for newcomers. This is where gamification comes in. By incorporating game elements into the onboarding process, companies can introduce a fun and engaging way for new employees to learn about their new roles and the company's culture. In this post, we'll explore the benefits of gamifying the onboarding process and the steps to build an engaging orientation game for new employees.
Benefits of Gamifying the Onboarding Process
Gamification can have a positive impact on the onboarding process in the following ways:
- Improved engagement and retention: Gamification makes the onboarding process more interactive and engaging, which helps new employees to remain interested and motivated. This leads to increased retention rates, and the employees are more likely to stay with the company for an extended period.
- Foster team building and collaboration among new employees: Gamification challenges can be designed to encourage team-building activities, collaboration and communication among new employees. This helps to create an environment where the employees feel motivated to work and can connect with their peers more easily.
- Better assessment of understanding and learning progress: With gamification, it is easier to track the progress of new employees. As the orientation game includes various quizzes, challenges, and rewards, it becomes easier to measure learning progress and adjust the content as necessary.
- Positive impact on company culture and employee satisfaction: By infusing fun elements into the onboarding process, the company culture will reflect that the company values are centered on employee satisfaction and productivity.
Steps to Build an Orientation Game for New Employees
After understanding the benefits of gamifying the onboarding process, the next step is to create an onboarding game.
Here are the steps to follow:
A. Define objectives and goals: Firstly, you need to define what you want to achieve with the onboarding game to align it with the company's overall objectives. Determine what new employees should learn and how they should perform after completing the orientation game.
B. Design game structure: Next, design a game structure that is simple to navigate and includes clear instructions. The game should incorporate various game elements, including competition, progression, achievement, and recognition, to keep employees motivated to complete the game.
C. Create engaging content: Ensuring that the content is visually appealing, interactive, and informative. Utilizing interactive features such as videos, quizzes, and challenges, generates new ways of displaying work-related information, which helps in satisfying employees.
D. Encourage Collaboration: The onboarding game should incorporate team-building activities that encourage communication, collaboration, and problem-solving among new employees.
E. Gather and incorporate feedback: Allow new employees to provide feedback throughout the onboarding process and implement tips and changes as needed.
F. Recognize and Celebrate Success: Recognize and celebrate employees who have successfully completed the onboarding game and achieved the goals set for them as this helps to create a positive atmosphere and motivate them even further.
A smooth and efficient onboarding process can make a huge difference in an employee's experience at a new company. Luckily, there are a variety of tools available to make the process more engaging and interactive. Among the top gamified orientation and onboarding tools in today's market are Wildgoose, a customizable app and game that encourages team building and collaboration, along with Eloomi, which offers a sophisticated onboarding app that streamlines the training process and encourages ongoing employee development. Another notable tool is Roundtable Learning's Orientation App, which offers personalized and interactive training modules that can be tailored to a company's specific needs. Whether you're looking for fun icebreakers or a more structured training program, there are plenty of gamified tools available to take your onboarding process to the next level.
Conclusion:
Gamification of the onboarding process can improve employee satisfaction and retention rates, which, in turn, improves the company's long-term success. By adopting this approach, it is possible to create an immersive, engaging, and interactive orientation game for new employees that foster collaboration, learning, and fun. With these steps in mind, it's time for HR Managers and University Event Organisers to leverage technology and gamification in the onboarding process to enhance employee satisfaction in a fun and interactive way.
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