eBook IPI GAMIFICATIONHOW TO ENGAGE YOUR CONTACT CENTRE EMPLOYEES THROUGH GAMIFICATION

www.ipintegration.com

INTRODUCTION

In the post-pandemic business economy, the question of how to

effectively motivate your team is a constantly recurring theme.

How do you engage your people to deliver results? How do you

challenge your agents to exceed their previous performance?

How do you inspire your team to be the best possible version

of themselves at work? As organisations embrace the “NEW NORMAL” and a new hybrid workforce emerges – with workers

split between the office and home – boosting employee

motivation has never been more important than it is today.

Motivation comes in many forms, but one proven method lies in

turning an activity into a pseudo game and rewarding participants.

This is gamification in its simplest form – the art of applying the

principals of game play (point scoring, rules and competition

against other participants) to other activities to increase

engagement.

Whether you’re aware of it or not, you’ll have experienced

gamification in your every-day lives. Whether it’s as parents

rewarding kids for completing a task, smartwatch users receiving

badges for reaching a certain milestone, or collecting stamps on

a loyalty card for a free coffee – the concept of gamification has

been well and truly baked into our everyday lives.

A seemingly simple concept, gamification can deliver impressive

results if its underlying principles are understood and a

programme is well structured. Within this eBook you will learn

how gamification has evolved over time, and how it can be used

to best meet the needs of the 21st century contact centre. We

will share our best practice tips gathered from IPI’s 20 years’

experience of working with contact centres, helping you to kick-

start a well-structured gamification programme that ensures

success.

GAMIFICATION in its simplest form – the art of applying the principals of game play (point scoring, rules and competition against other participants) to other activities to increase engagement.

THE USE OF GAME MECHANICS AND EXPERIENCE DESIGN TO DIGITALLY ENGAGE AND MOTIVATE PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS. “

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MODERN BUSINESS TACTIC, HISTORIC ROOTS

Whilst the term ‘gamification’ was first coined in 2002 by British-born

computer programmer and inventor Nick Pelling, its origins can be

traced back almost a century earlier. In 1908 the Boy Scouts organisation

was founded, and Scouts were given badges in recognition of their

achievements in certain skill areas. This is gamification in its PUREST FORM.

From a business perspective, the topic took a little longer to come to

the fore. The launch of the 1973 book “The Game of Work” by author

Charles A Coonradt marked a key turning point. Designed to address

the productivity crisis in the US, the book suggested game play as the

solution to the issue of employee engagement. Elsewhere, strides were

being taken to WEAVE THE CONCEPT INTO SOCIETY – the late 70s

saw the introduction of the first multi-user social video game, while the

early 80s brought about the advent of the first frequent flier programme

that recognised customer loyalty with rewards. Fast forward to the 21st

Century and the concept started gathering pace with the launch of social

app Foursquare in 2009, the ground-breaking 2010 TED Talk ‘Gaming

can make a better world’, and gamification’s inaugural placement in the

Gartner Hype Cycle in 2011.

It wasn’t all plain sailing and success stories though. While many found

success through gamification, the market became over saturated and

over time organisations moved further away from the core principals

of the concept – ignoring the need to link initiatives back to corporate

objectives. In fact, there was so much confusion in the marketplace,

and such a high rate of project failure, that in 2014 Gartner issued a new

definition of gamification as:

As our understanding of how to enhance employee

performance has increased, interest in gamification in

the corporate world has gathered pace once again. The

main principal of gamification – motivating ‘players’ to

meet/exceed a set of desired goals – means that it is

perfectly suited to the modern workplace and helping to

meet corporate objectives. According to Gartner, “When

successfully designed, gamification apps ENHANCE USER ENGAGEMENT and DRIVE CUSTOMER ACQUISITION AND RETENTION” – delivering universal success.

As we navigate through changes in the workplace, many prompted by the

pandemic, and new structures evolve to incorporate a greater proportion

of home workers, new challenges will inevitably emerge. With a displaced

workforce, worker disconnect can be a common problem, with research

from Workplace by Facebook finding that only 14% of remote employees

feel connected to their corporate headquarters and executive team. This

has a resulting knock-on effect on engagement– negatively impacting

productivity levels. However, when issues around engagement are

addressed, organisations typically report a 17% increase in productivity and

a 41% reduction in absenteeism (Gallup).

Gamification is a proven technique for boosting engagement. A study

from Talent IMS found that gamification made employees feel MORE PRODUCTIVE (89%), whilst 88% WERE HAPPIER at work. In addition, 87%

of employees said that introducing game elements made them feel more

SOCIALLY CONNECTED and provided a sense of belonging at work.

A GAMIFICATION RESURGENCE

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“GAMIFICATION IN THE CONTACT CENTRE

Added to this is the CHANGING NATURE of the workplace – which, post-

pandemic, has evolved considerably, particularly within the contact centre

world. With more remote agents – the CCMA estimates that the sector

will experience more blending between home workers and office workers

– many contact centre agents are now even further removed from the in-

person buzz of the office. That culture of learning from others around you

and being seen to excel amongst your colleagues doesn’t really translate

to the home office environment. In addition, traditional office-based tools

such as interactive whiteboards, featuring employee stats on key KPIs

reached, or office incentives like food treats or extra breaks, have now

become significantly less effective for the new hybrid workforce.

In the context of this, a strategy built around gamification principles is a

sound approach for many organisations looking to revitalise their contact

centre operations – particularly after such a turbulent start to the new

decade. Gamification can introduce a structured, yet seemingly fun, way

to boost employee engagement and drive employees towards desired

corporate objectives. But how do you go about developing a programme

that delivers?

STAFF TURNOVER IN THE CALL CENTRE INDUSTRY IS AROUND 26% ANNUALLY, CONSIDERABLY ABOVE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE OF 15%.

The contact centre can often struggle to motivate and engage employees

in the long term. The industry is particularly prone to high rates of

staff turnover (CCMA puts this figure at 26% annually as compared to

the national average of 15%) as well as higher than average rates of

absenteeism. With contact centre work typically repetitive, and agents

often following the same set scripts call after call, staff can easily lose

interest in the job at hand. Performance is also often assessed on metrics

such as Average Handling Time, or Compliance – which limits the way

that an agent can deal with customer contact, hardly leaving room for

agents to excel.

As with most things – there are many ways to develop a gamification

programme that suits your organisation and will generate success.

Rather than provide a step-by-step approach which might not fit your

organisation’s needs – there is no one size fits all here – what follows

are IPI’S TOP TEN TIPS FOR SUCCESS, collated from our experience

in working closely with leaders in the contact centre industry. These

are what we believe to be the foundations of a successful gamification

programme – no matter what your sector or size of organisation.

Follow these, and your programme will be off to a solid start.

IPI’S TEN TOP TIPS FOR GAMIFICATION SUCCESS IN THE CONTACT CENTRE:

1. Gather support beyond the contact centre team

2. Set clear KPI’s

3. Set clear ground rules

4. Make it time bound

5. Start small and scale

6. Keep it fun

7. Use it as a long-term development opportunity

8. Watch out for anomalies

9. Analyse, refine, repeat

10. Work with a trusted consultant

GAMIFICATION - DESIGNING YOUR PROGRAMME

For any gamification practice to truly take flight, it must be more than a siloed

departmental initiative. As a strategy designed to improve employee engagement within

the contact centre, HR has a central role to play in helping to shape the direction of

this policy. HR is experienced in how to effectively engage and reward employees and

therefore can add a valuable perspective to your plans.

In addition, launching an innovative initiative is a great way to connect the leadership

team into your department. As gamification is intended to increase employee

engagement, and more importantly productivity, it should make an appealing business

case to the C-suite. With high-level support and budget behind your project, your

gamification plans will hit the ground running.

GATHER SUPPORT BEYOND THE CONTACT CENTRE TEAMTOP TIP #1

Most gamification programmes fail because they’re not linked back to central

business objectives – so choose your metrics well. A well-structured gamification

programme provides the ability to define what success looks like within the contact

centre and what behaviours and attributes you want to promote amongst your agents.

Ask yourself; what are the key metrics that encourage the right behaviours? Is it

the number of calls handled? Is it overall customer satisfaction? Is it the number of

customers completing a satisfaction survey?

In defining these benchmarks make sure that the KPIs can be judged objectively –

so rather than measuring “the nicest contact centre agent” think about tracking the

highest CSAT ratings on a call. You need to be comparing like with like based on

statistical data.

Also, make sure you track your progress against these KPIs – they will be essential

when assessing the success of your initiative and making future plans.

SET CLEAR KPI’STOP TIP #2

Make sure everyone understands the rules of play. Everyone should be made aware

of what the KPIs are and how they can reach them so that the competition is fair

between agents. Set these up from the get-go so that agents are operating on a level

playing field. A poorly framed programme without rules and clear guidance will fail, so

make sure this is done before your programme gets off the ground.

SET CLEAR GROUND RULESTOP TIP #3

They say nothing focuses the mind like a deadline and the same is true here. There

is no point having a game with no end point. Set some clear boundaries and focus

attention by having a clear timeframe for people to work within. Depending on uptake

and success levels, you can then look to run a new programme once your initial

activity has run its course.

MAKE IT TIME BOUNDTOP TIP #4

As with any new initiative you are best to test the waters on a small pilot project

before running ahead with multiple complex initiatives. All of our clients have a short

testing period prior to going live with their implementations which is invaluable to iron

out any unforeseen issues. Do the same here, and extend your programme slowly –

building traction within your department to ensure long-term success.

START SMALL AND SCALETOP TIP #5

Remember, this is meant to be an exercise to boost motivation – so keep it playful.

Make sure the reward associated with the “game play” has meaning as well. A

branded t-shirt isn’t going to yield results, but equally just offering lump sums of cash

can go too far to the other extreme. In our experience, vouchers for experiences or

for a retail outlet work well. You know your team best though, so make sure that the

prize reflects their interests and is enough to generate the results you want out of the

programme.

KEEP IT FUNTOP TIP #6

The benefits of gamification extend far beyond motivating your workers to meet

desired corporate behaviours in return for short-term reward. You can use what you

learn throughout the programme to identify how to help staff to perform better long-

term. Staff who are motivated by the gamification programme will want to succeed

and learn how to work more effectively to meet their targets.

If you think strategically, you can springboard off the initiative to offer agents further

training and development opportunities – again, work closely with HR to make

sure that staff have an appropriate development plan in place that enables them to

perform at their best.

USE IT AS A LONG-TERM DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITYTOP TIP #7

Every programme will have its discrepancies and this is no different. There will be

some agents that approach the programme at full throttle and put themselves at risk

of burnout to meet set targets. If this is the case, work with the agents to manage their

work levels and revisit your KPIs if they are set too high. Equally look out for those

not participating in the programme. Is your reward/incentive enough? Do they need

further training to help them achieve their goals?

Also, ensure you keep tracking your KPIs to look for trends in the data. If the same

agents are repeatedly winning the rewards, you should reassess your programme

framework. Your agents will lose interest quickly if they feel that they do not have a

chance of winning. Remember, you want to promote the desired behaviours amongst

many, not just a few select employees, so make sure it is a fair game.

WATCH OUT FOR ANOMALIESTOP TIP #8

Once you have established your gamification programme framework, test it amongst

a select group of employees. Look at how the competition aspect works, check that

the metrics set are achievable, and make sure that participants feel the competition

is fair and, more importantly, fun! Based on your findings, refine the programme and

make any necessary changes before repeating the cycle.

Once the programme is live, continue analysing the success of the programme. Look

at the KPIs – are agents meeting the desired objectives? Do the objectives still match

the correct business outcomes? Is the reward right? How can you make the next

programme better? Iteration is key to success – so constantly review the details and

the outputs of the programme.

ANALYSE, REFINE, REPEATTOP TIP #9

Gamification programmes have been self-implemented by organisations with

great success. However, working with a consultant can often yield better results.

Consultants can draw on their extensive experience working across numerous

industries, using this to design a best-in-practice programme. They also can save

money – helping to reduce costs in the programme through spotting efficiencies that

can be made.

WORK WITH A TRUSTED CONSULTANT

TOP TIP #10

ENHANCED CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Our Consulting team is expert at problem solving and opportunity

spotting. They’ll understand the true nature of your operation and

will be invaluable in delivering a wide range of innovative ideas and

opportunities to optimise your contact centre.

They know the intricacies of contact centre technology, processes, roles

and demands. They understand the realities of running a contact centre,

as well as the practicalities of making advanced software reveal its full

potential.

At IPI, we offer a blend of deep contact centre expertise with decades

of technology experience. This unique balance means that we can bring

you the best that contact centre technology has to offer, and ensure

your people are equipped to deliver exceptional customer experiences.

We will ensure your business gets the full benefit of your contact centre

technology, and consistently moves towards your goals.

TAKE THE NEXT STEP

IP Integration LtdIntegration HouseTurnhams Green Business ParkPincents LaneReading, BerkshireRG31 4UH

0118 918 4600

enquiries@ipintegration.com

https://ipintegration.com

NEXT STEPSIf you are considering starting a gamification

programme and would like to talk to IPI’s

consultancy team about how to get a project

off the ground, please visit our dedicated IPI

Consulting page or get in touch with one of

our expert consultants.