Gamification reinvents HR: Pakistan’s first 3D recruitment game is here!

LAHORE - Gamification (the application of typical elements of game playing as online marketing technique) has become quite the sensation with Pakistani recruiters in recent times.

Since 2015, corporate giants such as Unilever, PTCL, ICI, Nestle, Novartis, Shan Foods and even financial centres like HBL and Faysal Bank have also adopted gamification in their HR practices implying that the corporate world was finally acknowledging the growing need and benefits of incorporating IT into traditional hiring procedures.

Since the mainstreaming of IT into the Human Resource sector, the role of gamification is becoming pivotal and these financial hubs are playing smart and fast to innovate their HR systems.

Detailing the importance of gamification, Chief Technical Officer of software house Intwish expressed that  Gamification was the process of using game mechanics and features to achieve corporate objectives adding that it enables users to have a more comprehensive look at the candidate pool to pick the right one.

The games, employed in the process, include simulations of job criteria, giving users an insight into what the job will be like, as well as personality, intelligence and core competency tests. A gamified recruitment test typically contains interactive features that use reward systems to get the best out of job seekers.

Interestingly, Intwish, a gamification stronghold, and Ascend, an HR consultancy, are the first of their kind to bring out Pakistan’s first ever 3D animated recruitment game for Habib Bank Limited (HBL) which is the first bank in the country to take gamification to the next level and evolve it into a 3D animated simulation of their MT program.

The Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner of Ascend, Kanwer Anwar Saeed stated that his firm was committed to making an impact within its overall theme of 'Developing Future of the Workplace'.

“We stand at the cusp where all inroads and beyond are about change and transform. Our partnering with Intwish for gamification is our first major step in an exciting set of endeavours in a digitized and AI driven era.” said Saeed.

The Chief Executive Officer of Intwish, Zaid Izhar expressed that it was not only about gamification. It was about inclusion of advanced data analytics with AI driven personalized responses to thousands of candidates, within a minute.

With the thriving IT industry, It’s safe to say that Pakistan’s leading banks and businesses are harnessing technology, even into their conventional practices and Pakistan’s youth because they’re loving it!

A harbinger of the burgeoning gamification is the fact that with over 18,000 registrations and 8000 game plays across 12 of the major cities in Pakistan, Faysal Bank’s recruitment gained an overwhelming response last weekend.

A recently passed out graduate of IBA Saadya Saleem declared that without matching the pace of the rest of the world and without gamification, Pakistani companies would lag behind.

"It’s great to see a change in traditional hiring practices and to see HR and IT collaborations such as these,” said Saleem.

With the recruitment season at its peak during this time, it is the perfect chance for companies avoiding gamification to learn from their peers and catch up with the times as gamification in HR practices is here to stay.

Gamification is not merely restricted to Human Resource procedures but is applicable and beneficial for a variety of business functions as well. It will be interesting to see how the corporate and IT worlds merge and make breakthroughs in the work environment.