Everybody has gone through a job application process at some point in their lives. 

Let's be honest,  who hasn't sent the same application to several companies? Many application processes invite you to do so. Imagine how many similar applications HR and recruitment experts have to sift through every day. Of course, some applicants stand out, but filtering hundreds into only a handful takes time. 

Gamification, the use of game elements in a non-game context, offers a new way to make the job application process more engaging, simple, and fun. The aim is to generate interest in the company or brand with prospective employees while giving the recruitment team a far easier and streamlined approach to finding the best candidates. 

Gamification as part of the hiring process 

The average job application process is standardized, tired, and often repetitive. Success in a job interview often relies on a candidate‘s ability to answer scripted questions which don't always deliver a reliable outcome. 

Gamification offers variety and creates an engaging reliable recruitment process. For example, quizzes, challenges, or job behavior simulations it allows applicants to demonstrate their qualifications, creativity, problem-solving skills, and attitude towards the company. 

Advantages of gamification in recruitment

The main task of recruiters is to filter the best applicants from many. Gamified application approaches can play a major role to help filter the data obtained to create a shortlist of candidates to interview. 

Gamification can also be used to create awareness among potential applicants about job opportunities at a specific company. It should be noted that, due to its playful and digital character, it naturally seems to appeal more to younger generations, but the positive effect on older ones should not be underestimated. 

How are companies using gamification in recruitment?

Some companies have already successfully integrated gamification into their application process. Among them are big names like Siemens, Marriott, and PepsiCo. The latter is the umbrella company for many brands including Doritos, Ruffles, Cheetos, Tropicana, Quaker, Gatorade, Naked, 7UP, Walkers, as well as Pepsi. PepsiCo's gamification recruitment includes all of these brands, which makes it no less complex. 

The main objective for PepsiCo was to highlight both the candidate and the company itself so that both sides can learn as much as possible about each other. The potential candidates register in a specially created app, based on the talent recruitment platform Agorise. They can then take part in various animated games for each of the individual brands. Here they have to work quickly to get as many points as possible within a set time limit. The participants are entered directly into a leaderboard with their data and score. This can only be viewed by the recruitment team admin accounts giving them a full overview across all of the candidate data collected. These games help PepsiCo to source a much more diverse range of candidates rather than relying on the traditional CV approach. Resulting in a recruitment process that is not only more fun and engaging, but also attracts a larger and more diverse pool of talent while educating them about the brand. 

The first results of the new PepsiCo application process are already very encouraging: In the first three weeks of the application process using Gamification, more than 200 registered applicants have already been listed.  Many more are expected to follow. 

Gamification is evolving the recruitment process by delivering fast, reliable, and measurable results for hiring teams – making the process easier and more engaging for everyone. From simply drawing attention to companies as employers to identifying skilled potential candidates, the future of recruitment is now through gamification.