When most of us of think of virtual reality, we think of video games, movies, and clunky headsets. But experts predict that in just two years the VR market will be worth nearly £25 billion. As it grows and floods the mainstream, virtual reality will transform the way we work and the places we work in. Here are five ways VR could revolutionise your workplace.
Improved Recruitment
Recruitment is one of the biggest problem areas companies of all sizes are facing. But VR could change the process altogether. By experiencing simulated work environments, prospective candidates could see first-hand the roles and responsibilities of any given position.
Not only could this streamline the talent acquisition faze by flushing out unqualified candidates but could also transform the interview process. With recruiters able to assess soft skills like problem solving and pressure management, VR could provide a truly comprehensive judgement of character and capability.
Remote Working Reinvented
VR presents a tangible solution to one of the biggest workplace problems – the office space rental marketing and the soaring costs. Hypothetically, virtual offices could allow companies to slash their spending and focus on expansion and growth.
In the short term, VR looks set to accelerate the trend of remote working. Innovations like Facebook’s virtual reality chatroom could help employees connect and collaborate, wherever they are in the world.
Improved VR could also help freelancers feel a greater sense of connection to parent companies. And with Google already investing heavily in its Daydream platform, these innovations could arrive sooner than expected.
Interactive Training
Though companies are always looking to improve their training techniques, it’s incredibly difficult to prepare for high risk scenarios like meltdowns, data breaches, or terror attacks. VR will allow employees to put themselves in fully immersive scenarios to hone vital skills like never before.
These techniques are already being employed by a range of companies from NASA to Walmart. VR can be used to put learners in situations that simply wouldn’t be feasible to recreate in real life due to cost or safety, to provide high quality, cost effective training.
Empathy Made Easy
Empathy is the cornerstone of any HR regime. And with VR, walking a mile in someone else’s shoes has never been more possible. Thanks to its immersive nature, virtual reality could help employees truly gauge the thoughts and feelings of others.
In fact, the ‘VR empathy machine‘ is already being used by the NFL for its diversity training. By putting players, coaches and staff in a position of prejudice or disability, VR is helping to expand horizons and encourage empathy.
Personalised Customer Service
VR won’t just transform the workplace but it will also inevitably change the way companies interact with their customers. Restricted by distance and technological capability, traditional support platforms like call centres and chat bots often fall short in providing adequate customer service.
But by facilitating hands on immersive support, VR could provide the personal, empathetic interaction customers crave. Automated services may be superseded by virtual reality in the quest to build stronger relationships between brands and consumers.
Ed Jones writes for Inspiring Interns, which specialises in sourcing candidates for internships and graduate jobs.