Canadian HR Reporter

www.hrreporter.com 13 anywhere and that alone is a super-valu- able tool." Potential downsides to VR However, there is one downside to the current technology, he says. "As a whole is, it's not something you want to be immersed in for a long period of time; there would still be some fatigue that happens. Personally, I recommend 15 to 20 minutes at a time inside VR, and [in] most of our corporate enter- prise rollouts, the simulations that we developed are usually capped out at around 15 minutes inside of a headset." While VR has many potentially posi- tive applications, there are a few hazards that one should be aware of, according to Jennifer Elliott, vice president, human resources at Cloudworks, a part of Accenture in Toronto. "The biggest pitfall is probably the privacy concerns; and it really depends on the VR software that you are using," she says. "If you're using one of those VR head- sets, the software can be collecting facial and physical movements, so you want "The best feature for VR that makes it [an] effective learning tool is that you're distraction-free. When you're inside of a headset, you can't be looking at messages on your phone or other noti- fications online, so you're really focused on that learning outcome. It aids in memory retention for the scope of work that they're learning and, overall, is a much more focused experience." These and other similar uses may herald a bright future for VR in HR, says Fade, as more companies see its potential. "More than anything — especially with the new developments with Oculus Workrooms [Horizon Workrooms] — you can now scan a portion of your desk for example, and have an onscreen keyboard in virtual reality, which allows you to work inside of a virtual environ- ment, which also gives you a lot more features inside that environment. You can work collaboratively for white- boarding with a team at a virtual confer- ence table and then you can have all your team members around the world — they don't have to be physically in one location — that can be pretty much to make sure that that's disclosed and consent is obtained from the employee who's using the VR software." Employers should also be mindful of the impacts that the training can have, says Elliott. "We're hearing about some companies that are training real-life scenarios in emergency situations and workplaces, so you have to be really mindful of the psychological impact with VR, because you're immersed in it," she says. "Employees feel like they're living it so… you have to make it optional because some people may not want to participate." While Facebook promises to revolu- tionize team meetings, the technology isn't fully viable and mature, says Fade. "I don't think we're there yet for having a team meeting in VR where it's going to be an hour long. I just think that fatigue would set in. [But] there would be a bit of a need for having it as a tool where you're using it sporadically for any type of visual interaction that you'd want to showcase in a VR envi- ronment where you need more space… whether it's on a whiteboard or using "You have to be really mindful of the psychological impact with VR, because you're immersed in it." Jennifer Elliott, Cloudworks some interactive elements that are only going to be useful in VR." At this point, VR's real-world use as a true HR tool is currently in its infancy, he says. "Platforms like that are really going to push the envelope in terms of collabora- tion for teams, especially remotely, due to COVID. More and more, we're seeing corporate interest in brands looking to adopt the technology for team meetings, whiteboarding strategy and collaborating remotely. But it is still very early days in terms of enterprise adoption." CHRR

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