Professor Game Podcast – Episode 430

Gamification Where You Least Expect It with David Dand
Released: February 2, 2026 | Host: Rob Alvarez | Guest: David Dand

Episode Overview

This episode explores the transformative power of gamification in unexpected places, focusing on recruitment, HR, and especially traditional industries like accountancy. Host Rob Alvarez and guest David Dand—an HR professional, career coach, and director at Chorus HR consultancy—discuss how introducing play, joy, and game-thinking into employee and candidate experiences can boost engagement, retention, employer brand, and business performance. They tackle both the potential and the challenges of gamifying recruitment, including bias, subjectivity, and cultural fit.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. David’s Background & Perspective on Gamification (02:10–05:27)

• David’s HR career spans 15+ years across multiple sectors; he now leads Chorus, a consultancy specializing in gamified recruitment and people practices.
• Advocates for applying gamification not just in customer-facing contexts, but crucially in the employee experience: “Where is that concept, the point of fun and games and engagement with staff as a way to motivate and retain?” (04:15 David)
• Observes a void in most organizations, where external sparkle fades the moment employees are onboarded.

2. Gamification in Recruitment: A Candid Case Study (05:27–11:17)

• Example: Developed a gamified selection process for a small accountancy firm hiring senior managers/partners.
  • The process measured both technical skills (e.g., regulatory compliance) and behavioral attributes (e.g., dealing with monotony, accuracy) via technical questions and a custom interactive game.
  • Insight: The company gained deeper, more reliable insight into candidate fit, beyond the resume or interview.
  • Lesson Learned: Crafting questions is tricky—subjectivity can distort responses, leading to misalignment or misleading signals.
  • Quote: “...The phrasing of a question has so many leading, misleading, over hidden elements to it... the concept was there, our heart was in the right place, but the phrasing needed so much more consideration” (07:21 David)

3. Gamification Builds Employer Brand & Candidate Experience (11:17–14:28)

• Unconventional approaches stand out: Candidates appreciated the process as “quality and different,” which improved company reputation and attracted high-caliber applicants.
• Even if statistical “predictive validity” isn’t perfect, gamification enriches selection as a complement to traditional tools: “It stood out as a quality experience…helped with recruiting and attracting [talent].” (10:21 David)

4. Traditional Industries as Opportunity Zones (14:28–18:47)

• Accountancy, often perceived as a “boring” profession by outsiders, offers fertile ground for innovation via gamification.
• Rob shares parallel experience teaching “Quantitative Methods,” highlighting how “traditional” areas can become more engaging through playful, game-inspired approaches.
• David: “The spaces that you would least expect to engage in this subject are the ones where you can make the biggest splash and the biggest wave.” (17:40 David)

5. Best Practices, Challenges, and Bias in Gamification (18:47–23:14)

• Best Practice: Both Rob and David emphasize the importance of selecting and fully following an established gamification framework before improvising. “Whichever one you choose…dive and go all in with a framework that you can stand behind…” (19:12 Rob)
• Cultural fit of the game/tool matters; what works in one context (pirate-themed games, e.g.) may flop in an investment bank.
• Critical Issue: Bias and Subjectivity
  • Gamified selection tools and AI introduce or amplify bias unless carefully designed and monitored.
  • David: “Bias within gamification and AI is a problem…how can candidate selection, recruitment and gamification work to reduce bias rather than encourage it?” (21:09 David)
  • Rob: “There has to be a lot of intentionality there...” (22:02 Rob)

6. Inspiration, Book Recommendation & Personal Motivation (23:14–29:15)

• David would like to hear the Director of Talent Acquisition at McKinsey discuss their global gamified recruitment tool.
• Recommended book: Smart Recruiters (French CEO author; recommended for smart hiring and integrating gamification in recruitment).
• David’s Superpower: Keeping a “people experience” lens at the core; obsessed with building and preserving high-functioning, joyful workplace culture.
• Story: One poor leadership hire can unravel a whole positive team culture, underscoring the stakes of great recruitment.

7. Games that Inspire – and Why Rules Matter (25:46–28:42)

• David’s favorite games: Chess and Football (Soccer)—for their blend of individual responsibility, clear goals, teamwork, competition, and joy.
• Rob expands on the metaphor: “If you don’t have any rules, there’s no fun to it…all the nuances, that is actually what makes the game fun.” (27:44 Rob)
• In business, clear, consistent goals are equally critical.

8. Final Advice & Where to Find David (29:15–29:57)

• David’s advice: “Have fun. Joy, joy, joy, joy. Happiness, fun, funny, funny. Humor. There’s not enough of it, especially in professional services.”
• Contact: Chorus.co.uk or find David Dand on LinkedIn. Look out for their “wit and wisdom” campaign tying famous quotes to the people experience.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On bringing fun to HR:
  “A lot of my focus around gamification has been less…about the customer experience as it is the employee experience…Where is that concept, the point of fun and games and engagement with staff as a way to motivate and retain?”
  —David (04:15)

• On selecting the right framework:
  “Whichever one you choose, I would say dive and go all in with a framework that you can stand behind…”
  —Rob (19:12)

• On bias in gamification and AI:
  “How can candidate selection, recruitment and gamification work to reduce bias rather than encourage it?”
  —David (21:09)

• On the transformative power of gamification:
  “Spaces that you would least expect to engage in this subject are the ones where you can make the biggest splash and the biggest wave.”
  —David (17:40)

• On advice to professionals:
  “Have fun. Joy, joy, joy, joy. Happiness, fun, funny, funny. Humor.’”
  —David (29:15)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:10 – David’s background & company mission
• 05:27 – Real-world recruiting case study & first attempt lessons
• 11:17 – Building employer brand & candidate experience through gamification
• 14:28 – Challenges in “boring” or traditional industries
• 18:47 – Best practices & advice for launching gamified projects
• 21:09 – Addressing bias in gamified selection & AI
• 23:31 – Future guest wish: McKinsey recruitment team
• 24:07 – Book recommendation: Smart Recruiters
• 25:46 – Favorite games & business metaphors
• 29:15 – Final advice and contact details

Tone and Style

Both speakers maintain a mix of enthusiastic, conversational, and practical tones—balancing excitement for gamification’s possibilities with candid reflection on its technical and cultural challenges. There’s an undercurrent of advocacy for more fun, creativity, and intentionality in places you might least expect—like recruitment, accountancy, and HR.

Further Resources

• Chorus.co.uk – David’s HR consultancy with a gamification specialism.
• Smart Recruiters by Jerome Ternynck (book)
• Connect with David Dand on LinkedIn for insights and their “wit & wisdom” campaign.

This detailed summary captures the essential discussion, insights, and actionable takeaways for anyone interested in practical gamification, especially within traditional or overlooked business functions.