Gamification stuff we love: McDonalds Till game

McDonalds till training game

For the introduction of their new till system, Mc Donalds wanted to make sure the customers wouldn’t suffer with increased waiting times, they also wanted keep mistakes to a minimum and service as high as possible. their solution was to introduce a training game which provided the safe environment for staff to learn without the pressure of immediately impacting the customer.

The staff was set the challenge to take part in a training game designed to target skill and knowledge – using a simulation of the new till system so that learner’s ability to take orders could be tested and using questions to assess knowledge on how to deliver the best customer experience. Learners deal with customer orders, going between customer conversation and till entry, whilst being timed, to display their knowledge of the till system and keep their customers happy.

The training till panel included game elements such as lifelines and bonuses to encourage knowledge acquisition. Some of the types of achievements to be obtained included:

• Perfection: Get the order 100% correct
• 3 on the bounce: Get 3 correct orders in a row
• Beat the clock: Finish the game with time to spare
• Happy camper: Keeping the customer satisfaction meter high
• Time to spare: Complete the order before the timer runs out

85% of crew members believed the till training game helped them understand the new system and will help with their future performance. In terms of business objectives, it delivered big success rates, increased participation in training and better retention of knowledge.

Since the implementation of the till game, McDonald’s have measured:

• A reduction of 7.9 seconds for each till service
• An increase in their average cheque by 15p (totaling an increased average of £18,000 per restaurant). That’s £23.7 million in the UK alone.

Where have you experienced increased knowledge retention with the assistance of gamification in learning?