Human Resource (HR) managers are always looking for technology that can improve their employee productivity and communication, particularly ones that are impactful and easy to deploy. Virtual Reality (VR) checks both those boxes. Large organizations and agile startups alike are using VR for everything from hiring to training to employee communication.
We’ve covered the impact of VR on a number of industries in this blog, including VR for Marketing/Sales, VR for Real Estate, VR for BIM. Nowhere is the impact as widely felt as in human resources though. There are so many different facets of human resources that can be energized and improved with smart uses of virtual reality.
Below, we’ll cover some of the top existing use cases for 360 media in human resources. As VR matures, and we’re sure to see this list expand. But in the meantime, regardless of what company you’re with, there’s sure to be a way to incorporate VR into your human resources workflow to positive benefits.
1. HR Should Use VR for Hiring
Hiring top notch employees is the most important job function of HR. Really, it’s the most important job function in any company. Businesses thrive on having the best employees. And if you can’t convince the best employees to work for you, you are at a strategic disadvantage.
We live in a current economic climate where unemployment is relatively low. And traditional hiring approaches are being upended. Just over a decade ago, most MBA graduates wanted to work at the big name consulting and finance firms. They wanted the “safe” occupation with the guaranteed career path and big salary.
But the world has changed. Technology and society has made companies like Google, Amazon, and tech startups much more appealing to top graduates. According to Fortune, Millennials want a flexible workplace, interesting career development buoyed by non-traditional learning environments, and a workplace that cares about social causes and a sense of purpose.
How do you convey those workplace opportunities in an interesting and engaging manner to prospective employees? At employee fairs, how do you get people to your booth beyond handing out stress balls? Since Millennials crave experiences over things, what type of experiences resonate and become memorable?
The answer, obviously, is Virtual Reality
2. Use VR for Onboarding New Employees
We covered this topic extensively in a guest post we wrote for Training Industry earlier this month. The basic facts around VR and new employee training are clear: VR is cost-effective, scale-able, and independent of geographic location. Using VR is a great way to both convey information and get new employees excited for their job. And it’s particularly well-suited for high stress or dangerous jobs.
One client of InstaVR works with a division of the US Federal government. With multiple regional offices throughout the country, distribution of a long-form 20+ minute VR training to these regional offices is simple and efficient. And employees get their first taste of what they’ll experience in the field through the VR training. This makes them feel more comfortable and acclimated once they really do go out to do their actual job.
You may also want to consider our new module, Guided VR Co-Viewing. It allows you to do real-time training in VR, and incorporates a level of interactivity unparalleled in packaged VR applications.
3. VR for Continual Employee Education and Communication
Let’s be honest — e-mail is an overused and less-than-ideal way to communicate with employees. It’s efficient and simple, but it also gets lost amid a sea of other emails. And it’s not dynamic or memorable.
Video is better. But still, watching a video on your computer is passive, and you can get easily distracted as the video plays.
VR is immersive, interactive, and memorable. It transports you into a world where your attention is 100% on the VR videos or images you’re seeing in your headset. It can also be really fun! So for either ongoing employee communication or one-off events, what better way to connect in a more impactful manner than with VR?
Conclusion
Human Resources touches on a lot of different facets of the employee experience: hiring, training, and communication. (to name but three!) And Virtual Reality offers HR employees a new and exciting way to improve all those areas.