Managing shift workers can be tough business: You’re often dealing with high turnover, scheduling headaches, and staff who might feel disconnected from the bigger picture. Yet the challenge isn’t just managing shift workers. It’s finding ways to keep them genuinely engaged when the work itself can feel monotonous.
The trick is to make work feel less like work. This is where gamification — the practice of applying game-like elements to non-game situations — really shines. It’s one of the best ways to turn everyday tasks into something more engaging and rewarding (think points, badges, leaderboards, and challenges).
Using gamification for employee engagement could be the secret to creating a workplace culture shift workers actually want to be a part of.
Why gamification for employee engagement matters more than ever
If you’re not thinking about engagement differently, you’re missing a massive shift — one that’s hitting shift work especially hard.
Employee engagement in the US has hit a new low: Only 31% of workers report feeling engaged at work. This drop is most pronounced in workers younger than 35, a demographic that makes up a major share of workers in shift-based industries.
At the same time, this is the demographic most familiar with game-like experiences from their daily lives. While the old employee engagement playbook isn’t working, gamification speaks their language.
The real challenges facing shift workers
Let’s be real: The challenges of shift work go far beyond small inconveniences. They’re fundamental to the job, impacting everything from satisfaction to turnover. These challenges show up in your biggest shift worker complaints, and they’re costing you more than just money.
Scheduling inconsistencies
When employees can’t predict their hours from week to week, it becomes nearly impossible to maintain a solid work-life balance. Add in the repetitive nature of many shift-based roles, and you’ve got a fast track to disengagement.
Recognition gaps
In many shift-based environments, good work can easily go unnoticed. This is often simply logistical, because managers may not be present during every shift. Yet without regular feedback or acknowledgment, employees can feel undervalued and even invisible.
Unclear incentives
Traditional performance reviews and annual bonuses don’t always translate well to hourly or shift-based roles. Meanwhile, the path to advancement or recognition can be hazy. As a result, motivation in the workplace suffers.
Why gamification in the workplace succeeds with shift workers
Traditional engagement strategies can feel forced or disconnected from daily work when applied in shift-based environments. Gamification designed for employee engagement offers a viable alternative by tapping into universal human psychology and triggering a natural desire for achievement. It creates a sense of progression that’s rare in shift work — each day’s work becomes part of a larger, more rewarding picture.
When done right, gamification:
Provides immediate feedback
Creates clear paths to recognition
Turns routine tasks into opportunities
Encourages long-term effort
Without gamification, each shift can feel isolated, just another day to get through. With it, employees can see how their consistent efforts add up over time.
The numbers back this up — 69% of employees are more likely to stick with a company for three or more years when their workplace uses gamification. For businesses struggling with turnover, that’s a game-changer.
How to implement gamification that actually works
You can’t just throw badges and points into the mix and hope for the best. Getting gamification right requires thoughtful implementation that truly considers your workforce, industry, and company culture.
1. Choose the right gamification model
Match the model to what matters. Point systems work well for measurable activities, like attendance, safety compliance, upselling, and customer service scores. In sales-focused environments, leaderboards can drive a little healthy competition. When you need to rally your team around goals or initiatives, challenge-based systems are your best bet. Keep in mind that a mix of models can work, too.
2. Consider your specific workforce
A solid warehouse gamification strategy might not have the same impact in a hotel setting. Take into account your employees’ daily realities and build your system around them. Whether you focus on safety metrics, time management, or teamwork — or all of the above — should depend on what best serves your teams and your everyday customers in the process.
3. Account for generational differences
Gen Z now overtakes Millennials in shift work, and these workers expect immediate feedback and clear paths to progression and rewards. This demographic may value instant, digital rewards, while prior generations often prefer traditional rewards like gift cards. Offer multiple ways to engage rather than a one-size-fits-all system.
4. Keep your systems encouraging
Some systems can promote unhealthy competition and even burnout. If your gamification program prompts employees to skip breaks or work in unsafe conditions to earn points, you’ve missed the mark. Instead, focus on systems that reward quality over speed and collaboration over individual domination. Good gamification in the workplace should enhance job satisfaction, not create more stress.
5. Offer meaningful rewards
Nearly everybody loves a pizza party, but that novelty wears off fast. Sustainable gamification for employee engagement requires rewards that feel worth the effort. Maybe it’s freebies or extra vacation time — but the only way to really know what matters to your team is to ask. Survey your team and be ready to adjust rewards based on what actually motivates them.
6. Integrate with your existing systems
When employees can clock their progress through the same apps and systems they already use, engagement naturally increases. Your gamification system should work seamlessly with your existing tools, whether it’s in the software itself or bolstered by easy-to-gather performance data you can use to track and display progress.
7. Connect gamification to broader engagement strategies
The best gamification programs enhance everything else you’re already doing. You can incorporate gamification elements into performance reviews, team-building efforts, leadership development opportunities, and anything else you’re using to build a stronger workplace culture. The goal is a cohesive experience where engagement efforts reinforce each other rather than competing for attention.
How to tell if your gamification system is paying off
Like any other initiative, gamification needs measurable outcomes. The good news is that shift work provides plenty of concrete metrics to track.
Participation rates: If only 20% of your team is engaging with your gamification program, there’s room for improvement.
Behavioral changes:Track attendance improvements, reductions in lateness, higher sales, and increased shift coverage.
Employee satisfaction: Collect surveys to hear from employees directly, but also track absenteeism and retention rates.
Labour costs: Effective gamification should reduce turnover and optimise staffing levels, so keep an eye on hiring patterns and time spent training.
Customer satisfaction: Gamification in the workplace often focuses on service quality, which translates to better customer experiences and higher satisfaction scores.
To measure success, establish baseline metrics before implementation. As you track changes over time, the data will not only prove ROI but also help you refine your systems for even better results.
Make gamification for employee engagement work for you
Gamification isn’t magic, but when implemented thoughtfully, it addresses many of shift work’s challenges head-on. A program that offers regular recognition and opportunities for growth can go a long way toward making shift work work for your employees. The best programs work with what employees are already doing rather than adding extra steps.
The right foundation can make it easier than ever to implement and track the impact of gamification on employee engagement. Build that foundation with Deputy. Our powerful time and attendance solutions give you the insights and capabilities that make effective gamification not only possible but also profitable for you and your team.
