Gaming technology makes learning new software fun

Corporations worldwide are investing in IT to meet digital transformation goals and offset any shortfall in talent. Spending on software alone is projected to hit $675 billion in 2022.

But as employees struggle to rapidly adopt these new technologies companies often see poor return on investment (ROI).

This is where gaming technology can come in.

Investing in the elements of game playing technology, or the adoption of so-called “gamification” methods, can ease the implementation of new business software for employees and save companies millions.

There are a number of reasons why employees are not adopting new technologies into their working lives and, in turn, wasting the investments businesses have made.

A big one is that software is typically designed by tech-minded people. These people are good at what they do, but features and functions often take precedence over ease of use.

Enterprise software normally comes with pages and pages of online instructions on how to use the product, or, if you’re lucky, a few video tutorials. Rarely is there the opportunity to interact with the learning process.

Employees just don’t have the incentive or the patience to spend their time reading online help. Even if they do, it’s unlikely the knowledge is absorbed. The previous way of doing things has worked for them in the past, and the new system only leaves them feeling dumb for not understanding it or frustrated at the slow process of learning how to use it.

Simply put, they don’t have the motivation to learn.

More than that, they certainly don’t have the motivation to fail.

A mistake using the new software has real world implications on top of the feeling of failure. On the other hand, they see little risk in doing what they’ve always done. However the company has a high risk of falling behind, wasting money, and not achieving its ROI.

Serious gaming interface technology can ease the adoption of new software, providing employees an enjoyable, engaging, and motivating experience.

But how does this gamifying help? And how can it be incorporated into the learning and development of employees?

Mobile application developers have shown the way. Duolingo is a great example of taking the intimidating prospect of learning a language through textbooks and condensing it into a fun, easy to pick up, progressive system of learning.

Removing the need for text or video instructions, gamification teaches through interaction and instant feedback. In businesses, it can extend to peer learning through team-based business simulations. In real-life, learning is social, so why not provide an environment that encourages team members to ask one another how they performed a particular action? In real-life, enterprise software is a team sport; your actions in the software always affect others.

Why not make the learning team-based?

An employee who is truly engaged will have the incentive to progress more through competition. Leaderboards are a simple tool to encourage this, but real time contests go a step further. A logistics company, for example, could pit half its team against the other to see who delivers the goods to its destination the fastest, with the lowest carbon footprint, using the new enterprise software. Not only do people learn where to click, but they also figure out what drives the best business outcome, which is a missing part of traditional help online.

Putting what employees learn into practice in the real world will have real consequences. Companies can introduce simulation software with built-in gamification. Just as you can, with many stock exchanges, practice the stock market without risking real money, or crash a plane in a flight simulator without hurting anyone, you can essentially build a digital twin of your business. Here, employees can fail as many times as they need to learn the new software.

After all, failure is one of the most effective ways of learning.

Gamification gives users the one thing they need: motivation. And this is key because without it nothing much happens.

Introducing new software to a business is as beneficial to it as it is hard for employees to adopt.

Gamifications and virtual simulations can benefit many aspects of a business. With the rapid digital transformation the world is facing, using the new software a company has invested in is vital.

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