Knowledge Base · Engagement
Does gamifying improvement actually work?
In the book's hospital case study, yes. A large hospital turned dry annual compliance training into a game show, with modules, interactive quizzes, challenges, case studies, a host, buzzers and prizes. The hospital passed its next audit, with compliance reaching nearly 100%. The format was then adopted for other training programmes across the hospital.
The problem was familiar. The hospital's annual compliance material was dry and complex, employees found it boring and hard to retain, compliance was low across the hospital, and failing the next audit was a real risk. More of the same training was unlikely to fix that.
The training team rebuilt the material as a game show. The content was divided into modules, then presented as interactive quizzes, challenges and case studies. Teams competed against each other, with recognition at a hospital-wide meeting for the team that won.
The result was striking: the hospital passed its next audit with flying colours, and compliance climbed to nearly 100%. The book adds that staff were enjoying the game so much they did not even realise they were learning, and that the format was adopted for other training programmes.
That is one case, not a guarantee for every team. The transferable point is narrower: friendly competition and a game format made required material people had been avoiding into something they joined in with, and retention was the aim throughout, not points for their own sake.
Related questions
- What improvement games or activities work in a team session?
- How do I get my team engaged in improvement?
- How do I run an innovation day for my team?
Source: Continuous Improvement in the Workplace, Ch. 10 (Engaging Activities for CI).