Play is fun; play is pleasing. By playing we can recreate real-life, behavior-teaching situations. Playing is crucial in the first life stages. But it’s not just for kids; the human being is one of the few species that shows playful behavior throughout the adult stage too.

Why is it so appealing? Because it fulfils a socializing, non-invasive, reward-based function, breaking down cognitive and emotional barriers in a way that would be really difficult otherwise. And it is this emotional component that makes play such a revealing activity, causing it to stray across the borders of what we would strictly call fun. Applying it to these other environments is now a growing trend and it has been dubbed as gamification.

We at GMV, true to our innovative spirit and as part of our ongoing business strategy, are now applying a new paradigm in our search for budding talent, creating added value not only for the firm itself but also for the job-applying candidates. This new method has many advantages, including the possibility of assessing a wide range of skills in an environment conducive to spontaneity, allowing the real personality to shine through the fun-based context.

The first gamification sessions were held in early 2017; results were so good we have given a second go to this new talent acquisition alternative. Both times game dynamics have been used to assess cognitive skills, such as abstract reasoning and numerical capability, stress tolerance and teamwork. This new technique favors a laid-back ambience in which different personality dimensions come through.

GMV received over 800 candidatures both times; 48 of them were shortlisted for the assessment process. After the selection process work then went on with the specialist training demanded by specific GMV projects. The net result both times was 8 new recruits, i.e., those who performed best in the previous training period. Candidates immediately take to the procedure; the experiences are very positive and this feedbacks positively on the whole process