Where Gamification Comes From
I was expecting an article on developing games in the workplace as a teaching tool but the article is really about tailoring reward systems. I found it very good. I found the most important points at the end which I reduced here:
"We pretend we treat all employees the same: We cannot... they are not. We give each what they need... If one gets flexi time, it is because they need flexi time. If the other gets higher fixed bonus, it is not because we penalise flexi time and reward adherence to fixed time. It means that money is not the only kind of reward. Flexi time and shorts at work is another. When we create this myth of equal treatment for all employees, we perpetuate the myth that all employees are the same, they need the same things.
...We need to acknowledge that all employees are different and need different things. Acknowledge differences. Stop the "Everyone gets the same treatment" myth. Acknowledge that policies are differential, but the basis of differentiation is the need of that employee group. Comparisons happen, mostly in linear reward structures - ones based mostly on money as the reward. Suppose we were to initiate a multi factor rewards environment, where people could pick the things that work for them - flexi time, informal dressing, tele presence ... Each element has a cost to company, and it is published.
This is not THE answer. There cannot be one "THE" answer. But the more we work in this area, the more answers we are likely to have."
