Once upon a time, onboarding meant watching a grainy training video from 2011 and nodding through a PowerPoint full of clipart. Now? You might be racking up XP for completing your HR paperwork or unlocking secret Slack channels after answering trivia about the company’s first product launch.
Gamification has escaped the app store. In 2025, it’s now embedded in everything from new hire orientation to workplace training, internal communications, remote work, and even how you learn to use your company’s coffee machine (don’t laugh-it tracks bean usage now).
As Sun Tzu never said, but probably would’ve if he saw Notion in 2025:
“The supreme art of onboarding is to engage the employee without them realizing they’re being trained.”
What Is Gamified Onboarding, Really?
It’s not just adding a badge for “completing Day 1.” Done well, gamified onboarding:
- Motivates behavior with clear progress markers
- Delivers knowledge in bite-sized, interactive formats
- Celebrates wins (no matter how small-yes, even submitting a W-9)
- Reinforces company culture through playful immersion
And when it works, new hires feel like part of the team faster-and without the dread of reading a 74-page PDF on internal procurement policies.
Table: Traditional vs. Gamified Onboarding
| Element | Traditional Approach | Gamified Approach |
| HR Paperwork | Static forms | Checklist with progress bar + animations |
| Company Values | Slides + quizzes | Interactive storytelling module |
| Tool Training | 1-hour Zoom session | Mini-challenges in real-time environment |
| Social Integration | “Say hi in Slack!” | Team scavenger hunts + digital missions |
| Retention After 30 Days | Meh | Noticeably higher |
Tip for Teams
Gamification is not infantilization.
You’re not building a kindergarten classroom. You’re designing experiences with feedback, progression, and reward loops. And adults-especially ones learning new systems-respond surprisingly well to that.
Who’s Doing It Well?
- Duolingo (for onboarding translators and moderators)
- Notion (internal new hire quests)
- Airbnb (cultural immersion with role-based narratives)
- Multiple remote-first startups that use onboarding bots in Slack to simulate RPG-style learning trees
A Lighthearted Joke
Why did the new hire high-five the printer?
Because it awarded them 10 points for “first successful document retrieval.”
Open-Ended Question
If we learn best when we’re engaged, and we’re engaged most when we’re playing…
Why did it take this long to treat onboarding like an experience instead of an obligation?