PepsiCo’s onboarding challenge wasn’t information delivery. New hires could learn brand values through traditional modules.
The question was different:
How do you embed brand-aligned behaviour early enough that it becomes default and not theory?
When new hires encounter real customer interactions, judgement under pressure determines whether values are lived or simply remembered.
PepsiCo wanted new hires to:
Internalise brand values
Apply them in practical scenarios
Build early behavioural confidence
Align decision-making with brand intent
Onboarding needed to move beyond awareness.
It needed activation.
Totem designed a custom microlearning game built specifically around PepsiCo’s mission and brand principles.
But this wasn’t a generic quiz.
It was a scenario-based activation tool where:
Decisions were contextual
Consequences were visible
Brand alignment was reinforced through interaction
Delivered in three weeks, the experience was scalable and fast to deploy but intentionally designed to make brand judgement active, not passive.
Onboarding is often treated as orientation.
But it’s actually the first Behaviour Activation Window.
If brand values are not rehearsed early, they remain abstract.
PepsiCo’s onboarding game ensured new hires didn’t just hear the mission — they practised how it shows up in action.
Engagement was high.
But the deeper outcome was behavioural alignment from day one.
So, how did it go? The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Let's look at some survey results that speak volumes:
A whopping 99% of players reported enjoying the game
Another 99% found it interesting, proving the power of gamification in learning.
An impressive 99% acknowledged learning something new that would help in their roles.
More importantly, the experience created an early behavioural reference point. New hires encountered brand-based decisions before facing them live.
That matters. Because behavioural defaults form early. And early activation increases the likelihood that brand values hold under pressure.
What can organisations learn from this case? Onboarding is not just orientation. It is the first moment where behavioural defaults begin to form.
If brand values are introduced passively, they remain conceptual. If they are activated through decision-based interaction, they become behavioural reference points.
PepsiCo’s approach demonstrates that onboarding can move beyond awareness, becoming an early Behaviour Activation Window where new hires practise how brand principles show up in action. That shift matters. Because once people enter live environments, pressure shapes behaviour.
Early rehearsal increases the likelihood that values hold when it counts. This is not about gamification. It is about embedding behavioural alignment before exposure.
