Too conceptual, too formal, too boring, too distant, too corporate… CSR doesn’t always have the best reputation among employees. 

Making sure that your employees understand, engage with and embody your company’s CSR initiatives is, in fact, quite a challenge. Without the right approach, your cost-intensive CSR plans can easily fail and reduce your good intentions to…well…intentions. 

How to combine seriousness and fun? In recent years, gamification is proving to be a great tool to enhance the performance of CSR initiatives. The funky and interactive nature of games can boost employee involvement and serve to make blurry CSR commitments tangible. 

What is gamification?

No, it is not a game of UNO at lunchtime (or of Exploding Kittens here at NooS). 

Gamification is the integration of gaming mechanisms into an unrelated service to enhance motivation and increase participation. It can render rather dull activities interactive and exciting. Who doesn’t love the satisfaction of scoring points, preventing losing a few, levelling up, earning rewards and a little friendly competition between colleagues? 

What can it involve?

🏁 Challenges · Challenge accepted! Completing challenges is always a great self-esteeem boost. 

🏆Reward systems · Badges, points or vouchers, reward your employees for their commitment and boost their motivation. From the best score to the best participation rate, vary rewards to be as inclusive as possible. Make sure that the rewards do not obscure the original goal of having a good time and learning. 

🥇Rankings · A little friendly competition never hurt nobody (especially if it is for the good of people and the planet!). You can also boost team spirit by making up teams according to your company’s departments or, on the contrary, mixing people from different departments. 

🧗Levels of difficulty · For a little personal pat on the shoulder

🙋Quizzes · To test one’s knowledge and learn by making mistakes

🧑Avatars · Your employees can create their own avatar that evolves according to their performance

🗒️Dashboards · To follow-up on one’s progress

And much more! Gamification opens up a world of possibilities to put playfulness at the heart of your employees’ everyday.

Gamification and CSR: what are the perks?

Improve the participation and motivation of employees

Bring your participation and satisfaction ratings up with gamification. It serves to mobilise employees through the notion of playfulness. If digital, it also guarantees to attract a generation of both CSR passionates and digital natives.

Team-building

It is an effective way to boost cooperation and cohesion between team members. For instance, team challenges can improve team work and communication; bring out each team member’s specific strenghts; and help break the ice.

Address serious topics more easily and effectively

When we play, we learn without even realising. With gamification, CSR is no longer forced or a constraint. It is an encouraging and far from moralising approach to address serious issues such as climate change or social injustices. 

Spread your company's culture of commitment

Gamification serves as a communication tool to spread your company’s CSR message. Through gamification, one’s company’s commitments are made tangible and accessible. From there, your employees can fully embody your company’s values. 

Short of ideas?

Here are some suggestions to kick-off your CSR gamification strategy!

Promote sustainable mobility during the European Mobility Week

🚶‍♀️Walk the walk. Encourage your employees to walk to both promote sustainable mobility and reintroduce physical activity in their everyday life. Put one foot in front of the other and earn points, unlock rewards, reach new worlds etc Why not make it a team challenge?

🚴‍♀️Saddle up! Promote biking among your employees. Reward each pedal stroke: from the highest number of journeys to the most kilometres travelled or the best customised bike. You can also challenge other companies! 

Eco-friendly challenges for World Earth Day

Meatless-week, biking to work, deleting emails, not buying plastic bottles… Prepare for the big day 🌎 completing the most challenges for the good of the planet and dodging harmful daily practices. Vary each challenge’s score: some actions require more effort than others!

1 challenge for each SDG

Zero-Hunger, No Poverty, Sustainable Communities, Responsible Consumption… 🤹 For the European Week of Sustainable Development, make SDGs tangible through small and concrete challenges. Check out our resources to make the most out of this occasion. 

Ready? Set? Go!

Picture by Miikka Luotio on Unsplash