This article has been written by Rashmi Mahalwar, pursuing a Diploma in Labour, Employment and Industrial Laws for HR Managers from LawSikho and edited by Shashwat Kaushik.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Recently, Bill Gates stated that “within two or three years, most of the virtual meetings will move from 2D camera image to the metaverse, in our 3D digital avatars.”
Sounds interesting? Wanna know more? Let’s first understand what the metaverse is. Definitely, it’s going to be a game changer in the tech world and soon everywhere in the world. Your whole experience of video calling is going to be converted into meeting that person sitting far away from your location with your digital avatar, and that’s going to give you the feeling of meeting them in person. We all remember watching sci-fi movies a few years ago, where people using technology (mostly in space) projected their reality on the other side. The metaverse is exactly like this, where individuals are replaced by their digital selves, irrespective of their geographical location.
We all know how AI and automation are growing and taking us ahead of the time. Organisations are adapting to AI and automation on a vast scale, and no one wants to be left behind. The metaverse is going to change the way we interact with technology. What piqued my curiosity about the metaverse is that it’s part of the creation of a new version of the World Wide Web – Web 3.0. That’s revolutionary!
What is metaverse
Metaverse is an emerging technology, and it will change the Web experience. Where people may come to the space of the organisation (permanent footprint) and experience the company culture, services, products and environment in a whole new way. This will change your experience of the Web into a 3D experience. I’m sure it’s going to change the world sooner than we can expect. Something big is on the horizon, and it’s going to broaden the way we think. We can communicate with or meet someone or people altogether. It’s going to make our communication with someone online more interactive. It may consist of AR (augmented reality), which includes facets of physical and digital reality and VR (virtual reality), which still remains in the absence of the person. It sounds breathtaking, yet it promises an exciting future to come.
When you’re wearing your headset, your mind is convinced that you’re in a different space. Soon, there will be a shift towards attending online meetings. We used to go to the breakout rooms in Zoom meetings to interact with other participants and separate from the larger group. Imagine using Metaverse, if someone were to meet someone, he would be shaking their hands and they would be interacting with the environment around them in a spatial way. HR is going to feel the immense change in the entire HR function it plays.
For example, in the past, when an employee wanted to apply for a job, they would have to submit their resume and cover letter to the company. However, with Metaverse, employees can now create a virtual avatar of themselves and interact with potential employers in a more immersive way. This could lead to a more personalised and engaging hiring process for both employers and employees.
In addition, Metaverse could also be used for training and development purposes. For example, employees could participate in virtual simulations of real-world scenarios, which could help them learn new skills and improve their performance. The metaverse could also be used for onboarding new employees, as it could provide a more immersive and interactive experience than traditional onboarding methods.
Overall, the metaverse has the potential to revolutionise the HR function by making it more personalised, engaging, and efficient. As the metaverse continues to develop, it is likely that we will see even more innovative ways for HR to use this technology to improve the workplace.
How is the metaverse going to affect HR
Change in hiring procedures
There’s no doubt that it’s going to change the way we look at the world somehow, and HR is not an exception. Most of us assume Metaverse is more associated with premium gaming VR sets and has been adapted rapidly by tech giants such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple, but it’s changing the expectations of HR leaders to hire people with wide experience in gaming and mix augmented and virtual reality, no matter where they are located or what other barriers are there to hiring talent from different time zones. The interview experience is going to be amazing because it’s not about having zoom/meet calls but meeting each other’s 3D avatars, and I believe it’s going to feel like meeting someone in person. It will impact the whole recruiting and onboarding experience in the HR function. The metaverse will impact HR in a more positive way. Many companies are already using Metaverse for hiring, for instance, Samsung and Hyundai for onboarding. The UK’s PwC used Metaverse in recruitment, and they literally created a virtual park, a metaverse podium, to interview the candidates for jobs. HR would be able to use Metaverse for hiring and onboarding processes and make the recruitment process one of the most remarkable experiences for employees.
It’s going to change the entire game of remote work
Remote work is evolving all around the world due to its flexibility and cost-effective criterion. Metaverse has the capacity to change our workplaces, and it’s not just about the expensive VR sets; it can be accessed through any other technology like laptops or mobile phones. For instance, Meta’s Horizon Workrooms allow people to work in the same virtual room. Imagine the feeling of working in the same virtual room—more approachable, more collaborative and more real-time communication with teammates—unlike working from home, where you yourself are your confidence booster and we all know it gets boring at some point. Those employees 3D avatars can emerge in training. The metaverse will transform work settings to be more interactive and collaborative by inspiring people to use more hands-free devices and communicate with their avatars rather than using their laptops or mobile phones. It’s fascinating, isn’t it.
Ensuring workplace safety and diversity inclusion
HR’s role cannot be replaced when it comes to human interaction and getting the pulse of employees. At present, HR also looks at the behavioural aspects of the organisation. When it comes to diversity and inclusion, HR plays a vital role. HR ensures that employees feel a sense of belonging to the organisation. In the age of the metaverse, people will be interacting with each other in their digital avatars, but they will still interact in a work setting or work-related environment. HR will need to make sure to look over the virtual environment and how everyone feels safe in such scenarios. For example, how to make sure bullying, hostile behaviour, and abuse don’t take place. Of course, HR plays an important role here, and HR needs to look for ways to monitor or look over the employees from time to time. The best way is to educate the employees regarding unacceptable behaviours in the metaverse and amend the policies. Metaverse gives a virtual space for employers and employees to come together on a platform to share ideas, collaborate, connect and exchange knowledge. It provides various tools and features that capacitate employees to encourage a sense of belonging to the organisation.
For example, Metaverse can be used for:
- Remote meetings and presentations: The metaverse can be used to create a virtual meeting space where employees can meet and collaborate from anywhere in the world. This can be a great way to save time and money on travel, and it can also help to create a more inclusive workplace for employees who may not be able to travel easily.
- Team building activities: The metaverse can be used to create virtual team building activities that can help employees get to know each other better and build stronger relationships. This can be a great way to improve morale and productivity in the workplace.
- On-boarding and training: Metaverse can be used to create virtual on-boarding and training experiences for new employees. This can be a great way to help new employees get up to speed quickly and feel more confident in their roles.
- Support for remote workers: The metaverse can be used to provide support for remote workers. This can include providing access to resources and tools, as well as opportunities for remote workers to connect with each other and collaborate.
The metaverse can be a valuable tool for employers and employees alike. It can help to improve communication, collaboration, and productivity, and it can also help to create a more inclusive and engaging workplace.
More creative and cooperative work environment
Imagine you’re working from the office or, let’s say, you work in hybrid mode. Sometimes, getting the discussion done regarding a project narration remains pending due to the unavailability or time clash with the concerned person. I believe it will bring a tremendous change in work-related emergencies. Employees would be able to drop the projects/meeting timings/fix a meeting as soon as possible via chat/dropping the link, while using the rest of the time productively. The environment of the office, creative walls, round tables, cabins, etc., make a workplace more collaborative. The metaverse breaks the gap between hybrid and work from home settings. The virtual design of the metaverse allows employees to go beyond everyday boring boardrooms; in fact, they would be able to change the settings of a meeting room, round table or have a group discussion with their teammates at a coffee table. Employees will have the potential to work in more creative, collaborative and authentic interactions with teammates or have meetings worldwide. HR will need to use the metaverse at the workplace, which makes the team work in an efficient manner, boosts productivity and makes the work environment conducive, creative, fun and entertaining for all. HR would need to educate the leaders, teams, and management on how to work best with technology.
Fast paced learning
Employees will need to learn how to use Metaverse and perform tasks. HR will see an increase in learning and training demand. This means organisations will need to invest in new emerging technologies, and soon, there will be no place left untouched by them. In the metaverse, HR can create new and creative methodologies to make employees learn to work in a new environment with fun. Training material can be created in the metaverse, and employees can simply enter and complete the training or ask for assistance whenever needed. Employers will now need to make employees learn in real-time scenarios to perform specific tasks, and this is how they make them ready for the upcoming change. A huge change is coming and so many aspects are going to be impacted. This will make the training more adaptive and simple. For example, real-time skill development would be easy and it would reduce the time of training as well.
Entertaining and fun environment
Creating an innovative and synergetic environment is crucial for any organisation to increase productivity. It’s always been a challenge for HR to create such an environment, as one idea doesn’t fit everyone. The metaverse breaks with this old idea of productivity and achieving goals.
In the traditional workplace, productivity is often measured by how many hours an employee works. This approach is flawed, as it doesn’t take into account the quality of the work that is being done. In the metaverse, productivity is measured by the impact that an employee has on the organization. This is a more holistic approach that takes into account all of the factors that contribute to productivity, such as creativity, collaboration, and innovation.
The metaverse also allows for a more synergetic work environment. In the traditional workplace, employees are often siloed into their own departments. This can create a lack of communication and collaboration, which can stifle innovation. In the metaverse, employees from all departments can work together in a shared virtual space. This allows for greater collaboration and innovation, which can lead to increased productivity.
The metaverse is still in its early stages of development, but it has the potential to revolutionise the way we work. By creating more innovative and synergetic work environments, the metaverse can help organisations increase productivity and achieve their goals.
With the rise of remote work, organisations are seeking a way to maintain a balance between remote and real physical teams. HR in the metaverse is really going to promote a high performing work environment. Metaverse is a safe platform that allows employees to collaborate on a project or task. It does have special features such as 3D avatars, 3D spatial audio, video chat, voice commands, etc. Users can create whatever is suitable for them to communicate.
Conclusion
HR in the metaverse is still in progress, and no one can say how soon organisations will adapt to it worldwide as it is developing. It consists of huge costs for the companies to implement. Companies will eventually need to provide the VR sets to their employees, and there’s a cost to it. Apart from this, remotely working employees would need to increase the bandwidth, which will be borne by the company itself, and companies will have to spend a hefty amount on training. That’s an enormous amount of money in today’s time when technology is changing fast. Most of the tech giants are already spending a lot on HR systems and using 10 to 15 systems at the same time; they would need thoughtful consideration before adding another.
The changes come slowly but steadily and employees will be introduced to the metaverse. As market leaders are already experimenting with emerging technologies like VR and augmented reality,. Here comes the key role of an HR to understand whether the organisation needs improvement in terms of adding new technology or updating some existing learning practices. The metaverse is not without its challenges to adapt, including raising a question about data protection and its high costs. It advocates for the new age revolution, and it will bring an imminent change to our workplaces, not only because world tech leaders are using it, but it will also bring value. Metaverse allows more people to work remotely and allows employees to participate in real time scenarios. HR will need to navigate the direction of the metaverse in an organisation.
References
- https://www.peoplehum.com/blog/hr-in-the-metaverse
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeshumanresourcescouncil/2022/06/03/three-ways-the-metaverse-could-transform-hr/?sh=4068602
- https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/technology/pages/what-hr-needs-to-know-about-the-metaverse.aspx
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