Gaming in the office is becoming increasingly popular, and something potential employees are looking for when applying for jobs. Here’s how it can benefit your staff.
It is becoming increasingly competitive to secure excellent staff for your workforce, so offering a standard holiday allowance is no longer enough. Gaming, work socials, and opportunities for volunteering work can help your business to stand out from the crowd. You don’t need to include these benefits in an employment contract, but they are great to use in a job description and will help you to attract the kind of employees that would fit in.
You might not think there is time for gaming in the office as the workday can already be hectic. But there are many benefits for your staff, and it can help to promote a positive culture within the workplace. It doesn’t have to be just video games that you offer; you could invest in a ping pong table, air hockey table, arcade games or board games. Do your research, ask your employees what they want, and pick the best one for your team. Then, it’s game on.
Still not convinced? Read on to find out how gaming can benefit your staff and, therefore, your business…
1. Increased Productivity
Playing video games in the workplace has been argued to increase the productivity of employees, according to studies. This is because our bodies and brains become tired and overworked and have a slump.
Therefore, playing video games with the team for up to 45 minutes can help you feel refreshed and renew your energy. You’re then ready to carry on, getting more done and more work to a high standard than if you hadn’t had a brain break where you are thinking of something else.
2. Stress Reliever
Taking a short break to play a video game can also relieve stress. It may sound counterproductive, but it can improve your mood and help respond to stressors. This could help to restore work-life balance and will give employees a quick breather.
3. Attracts and Retains Talent
As mentioned, offering statutory sick pay and 25 days holiday is no longer enough to attract and retain the best talent. Therefore, you need to think about the other benefits you offer.
By giving employees the option of gaming in the office, it helps to improve culture and create a community within the team. It also allows for some great team bonding, especially if your employees are working from home. It may also boost employee retention rates, so certainly makes for a great way to invest in your current employees.
4. Increases Communication Skills
There are many transferable skills that gaming can help to improve. Communications skills are one of them, enabling employees to better tackle the workplace social atmosphere and dealing with clients. Whether interacting with guests, answering the phone, and having better communication within the team, it’s sure to help get things done and create a professional atmosphere.
5. Develops Problem Solving Skills
As well as communication, problem-solving skills can also be developed through gaming. All games have a common theme where you must achieve something and accomplish a goal despite any obstacles in the way. This gets staff thinking about how to solve problems.
Other skills that are developed include planning, adaptability, and experimentation skills to end up with the best outcome, sometimes with very limited resources.
6. Improves Creativity
Following on from problem-solving skills, gaming can help to improve employee creativity. This can be achieved by getting them to think outside the box to accomplish a goal or overcome a problem.
7. Encourages Teamwork and Develops Leadership Skills
Often, games require working with other people and working together, with one person volunteering as the team leader. This can help to improve communication and collaboration within the team. It also helps you to identify strengths and weaknesses within the team.
Playing video games in the office isn’t a new idea, so is it something you should start thinking about to improve your teamwork? It could even help to identify any budding leaders within the mix along the way.
8. Develops Critical Thinking Skills
Critical thinking skills are developed whilst gaming because individuals are having to assess their decisions, analyze choices and weigh up the risks and consequences. These skills can be transferred into the office. It also teaches you to remain calm in high-pressure and stressful situations which can be beneficial for the workplace too.
9. Increases Risk-Taking Abilities
Gamers are required to regularly navigate unfamiliar situations, whilst usually being thrown obstacles and setbacks. This increases the risk-taking abilities of individuals, which can be transferred into the workplace.
An employee that takes risks is more likely to come up with new ideas and think outside of the box, which can be desirable for many job roles. Perhaps gaming in the office could help to improve your team’s ideas all-round!
10. Improves Patience and Perseverance
Gaming helps develop patience and perseverance, which are integral skills for any workplace. These can also help a person to succeed personally too. Someone who has patience will be willing to work hard and work their way up. They can be a vital asset to your business!
Ready to Start Gaming in the Office?
There are so many benefits to investing in gaming for your staff that can improve concentration, mental health and boost the morale of your employees. So, it really is worth investing in this idea to boost that afternoon lull. No doubt it’ll be very attractive for recruiting new talent and retaining current employees too.
If you’re not ready for video games yet, there are plenty of other games you can implement. Make sure to find out what types of games your employees would enjoy the most, so you don’t waste the business’s time and money, and watch your employees thrive!
Does your office allow gaming or are you a manager that wants to invest in gaming for the office? Let us know in the comments below.
Photos by ELLA DON on Unsplash, Igor Karimov on Unsplash, Leon on Unsplash, and Sam Pak on Unsplash.
