It may appear counter-intuitive to try and tackle something as serious as data security with a seemingly cavalier learning technique like gamification. However, the conclusive results associated with the introduction of games in workplace learning demand the attention of anyone looking to change behaviors. This certainly applies to all hoteliers keen on establishing a shared and living culture of data security within their teams.

The Federation of American Scientists hailed gamification as “the next great discovery”. Gamification techniques (or game-based learning) strive to leverage people’s natural desires for socializing, learning, mastery, competition, and achievement. Introducing gamification keeps data security top of mind and thus, keeps employees at every level of the organization engaged.

Elearningindustry.com states that the increase in motivation for those involved in creative, immersive learning experiences using gamification far exceed those of more traditional methods:

• 89% of people surveyed reported that a point system would enhance their engagement
• 82% were in favor of multiple difficulty levels, and explorable content
• 62% said that they would be motivated to learn if there were a leaderboard involved

The fast-paced, high turnover hospitality industry demands that front-line staff and managers constantly multitask to ensure that every guest has a great on-property experience. It is during these hectic times that some may see adhering to information security best practices and compliance standards as an afterthought. Consequently, the hospitality industry has repeatedly been blindsided by security failures such as data breaches where millions of guest records may be stolen. The impact, whether financial or by way of damage to a hotel’s brand, can be devastating. Whether these attacks are initiated externally or internally, they impact everyone. However, there are proactive ways to ready hotel staff to be more inclined to following security protocol as well as more vigilant and aware of the areas where information security breaches occur.

According to a CompTIA study, 52% of data breaches are the result of human error. That number is astounding, making it obvious why mitigating that security risk through learning initiatives should be a primary focus for all hotel companies. It doesn’t matter how many stars your property has, what market segment you serve, or what high demand location you dominate – ensuring that information security breaches do not happen at your property must be a top priority.

Of course, locking down your technology and systems against hackers is necessary, but what about your biggest vulnerability –your staff? According to the late comedian George Carlin, “Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.” So yes, admittedly, motivating employees can often prove frustrating. The hotel industry, in particular, has many unique additional challenges. First, high turnover rates plague the industry. Secondly, hotels are staffed by a multinational and multi-generational workforce who may struggle to be able to communicate with one another.  Thirdly, there is a need to keep employees productive and delivering service at the highest standard in a 24/7 environment. Through the implementation of a gamification program, you can increase learner engagement with content and concepts that, in any other context, may reasonably be considered dry and uninteresting.

Pulse Learning conducted research into the corporate space and found that 70% of employees are disengaged from their work. The 7 out of 10 people in the workforce disengaged from their current position and its associated duties are those individuals most likely to be a contributing factor to a situation that may result in an information security breach.

Gamification is not simply a program whereby you “set it and forget it”. It evolves. It introduces points, levels and badges. Content must be updated periodically because of relevant industry issues such as new compliance standards or threats. Like any effective program, there needs to be a way to increase the challenges for players, along with ways to track the success rates of particular employees. Leaderboards are a proven way to drive engagement, but they should remain non-threatening and highlight positive results. The bottom line is: Keep your entire staff engaged and working as a unified team to combat instances where security protocol fails to be followed.

Favorite game-based learning techniques include:

• Badges
• Leaderboards
• Levels
• Rewards
• Challenges
• Avatars

There is no doubt that gamification is an important and powerful weapon in the arsenal for learning, marketing, and behavior change of any kind. Ultimately, the introduction of gamification into your corporate culture will boost motivation, increase learner engagement, enable performance feedback and ultimately increase productivity and awareness.

VENZA® prides itself in delivering the most innovative gamification programs to the hotel industry. It does so to ensure that your hotel is not only compliant with today’s standards, but also to help ensure that your team becomes a human firewall that goes above and beyond in securing sensitive information for the benefit of keeping your hotel guests and their data safe.