June 11, 2021 The Gamification of Work

Gamification is going strong, driving profound economic and cultural changes in business, sports, medicine, and elsewhere. Human brains are wired to enjoy play and competition, and applying this biological fact to how we pursue and perform work makes good sense.  Beyond the individual dopamine hit, competition builds community. As a platform with a strong community and a competition-based model at its core, Topcoder is naturally a fan of gamification’s growth.

CEO Mike Morris recently offered insight into “Gamification 2.0: the Global Language of Data, Competition and Opportunity” in a two part series for DevOps Digest. Mike has provided thought leadership in the world of crowdsourcing for many years now, and this series highlights how gamification is a mechanism for the future of work.

data, competition, and The Future of Work 

Since 2001, Topcoder has created enterprise software using a competition-based delivery model. In that time, our platform has accumulated millions of data points that track community members and their demonstrated achievements across hundreds of technologies and skills. 

Through gamification, software development professionals are measured according to performance, which is perhaps the fairest measurement of all — and one on which people can build lifelong careers. As one example, Topcoder uses data to verify talent for TaaS, our freelancer on demand offering. TaaS talent is vetted through real-world work they have accomplished on Topcoder’s platform. These individuals have demonstrated their technical capabilities through strong performance, and we have the data to back it up.

here’s What happens next

Gamification’s next phase will be for remote and virtual workforces, enabling individuals to showcase skills and demonstrate value in ways previously unavailable to employees and employers. This Data-informed approach to hiring and working has accelerated the long awaited shift to a gig economy marketplace. 

Use-cases for gamification are extensive and demonstrate how healthy competition drives engagement, change and outcomes. For more, read “Gamification 2.0 and the Global Language of Data, Competition and Opportunity” Part 1 and Part 2, by Topcoder CEO Mike Morris.

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