26 Oct Playing For Keeps: The Gamification of Graduate Screening

As anticipated by the HR community, gamified assessments have taken the Graduate recruitment realm by storm. A world leading-leading Australian professional services firm we met at AAGE this year informed us that this new form of assessment provides a more positive experience than traditional assessments. At the same time, response data shows that gamified assessments are capable of delivering valid and reliable measures of cognitive ability and learning agility.

Gaming is big and getting bigger

Gamification has been a hot topic within business circles for years. The rapid emergence of the digital gaming industry – expected to hit $100 billion in worldwide revenue this year – is a testament to the human appetite for interactive tests of skill and/or knowledge, as well as instant feedback via a reward system of points or digital prizes.

Hopping on the bandwagon

Recruitment tech is not the only, nor the first to join the game-wagon. Gamification has already been harnessed for motivating desired behaviours in customer loyalty, employee motivation, and other programs. Recent introduction of game-based talent assessments in the US has spurred Australia and New Zealand to follow suit.

Reality, virtually

Gamification virtually auditions candidates in a realistic on-the-job simulation. This creates an immersive and engaging experience for graduates who are new to the work environment. The scenarios move away from strictly academia by imitating real-life situations, hence empowering the candidate to think on their feet.

Can games be trusted?

Based on scoring data, gamified assessments do have the capability to measure key competencies with the same degree of reliability and validity as traditional assessments. Although it is still early days to relate tests scores to on-the-job performance, the distribution of raw scores is in line with traditional testing outcomes.

Unlike traditional assessments, the gamified assessment presents an opportunity for candidates to experiment and learn. The fact that they are learning even as the test progresses is a key indicator of Learning Agility.

If you would like to know more about gamified assessment and how your business could utilise this innovative testing format, have a look at our Gamification whitepaper and assessment catalogue.