Companies are turning to virtual reality to revolutionize old training practices by bringing employees immersive training experiences. As both a safer and more cost-effective solution, virtual reality has the ability to enhance procedures for a variety of different industries, writes Will Winston, Partnerships Director, Pico Interactive.
For years, companies have been turning to technology to solve corporate problems and offer new solutions for old practices. While virtual reality (VR) may have gained popularity in the gaming industry, many companies are now implementing new VR applications to assist and revolutionize how people train.
Work-from-home may have been a temporary solution during the COVID-19 pandemic, but remote work is here to stay long after the world returns to normal. This change has brought on the new challenge of training a remote workforceOpens a new window . As the need for virtual and remote training tools continues to grow, especially because of the pandemic, many companies are exploring opportunities to implement VR in the enterprise.
VR gained popularity for its ability to create immersive experiences emulating real-world situations. This same concept is used to a company’s advantage when needing to train employees via VR. VR training applications place employees in their work environment without physically being there. Though VR is a consciously simulated experience, the brain responds to what users are seeing as if it were processing balance, cognition, spatial awareness, and more in the real world, making VR a viable option to teach employees “on the job.â€
The effectiveness of training via VR shows promising results based on a research by PwCOpens a new window . Not only do people trained with VR learn four times faster than in classroom settings, 40% of VR learners saw an improvement in confidence compared to classroom and e-learners.
Learn More: VR Learning Can Lead to Smarter and Faster Workforce Transformation: Q&A With PwC’s Emerging Tech Leader
Let’s dig into a few examples of companies and industries using VR to elevate their training methods:
First Responders
The ability to simulate a work environment is especially important when training can be difficult to recreate, dangerous to execute or expensive to simulate. First responders, including firefighters, healthcare professionals, and the armed forces, benefit from VR trainings by reducing the risk of harming trainees, models, and property in the process.
According to the U.S. Fire AdministrationOpens a new window , more than 100 firefighters lost their lives due to training injuries in the last 10 years. Traditional training typically involves setting real fires, which, despite being controlled, could be dangerous for an unskilled employee. Training in a virtual setting allows employers to test a trainee’s communication, empathy, and decision-making skills without the associated risk.
Cosumnes Fire DepartmentOpens a new window in California utilizes RiVR’s VR training technology to illustrate the challenges of communication, visibility, and danger that responders are going to face in the field. However, the VR environment offers trainees the opportunity to make mistakes and fail without the repercussions of damage or injury.
Fire departments have also seen a positive environmental impact from VR training, as the virtual setting allows them to emit less dangerous chemicals into the air, waste less water, and reduce smoke pollutants in the air.
Financial Services Professionals
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Fidelity InvestmentsOpens a new window needed to find new ways to facilitate its onboarding process and help its employees build workplace relationships with remote coworkers. The company turned to VR to provide the necessary training sessions for new recruits or promoted employees. It also used the technology to hold collaborative sessions with employees all across the country. This ultimately reduced the need to provide travel and accommodations for employees, as well as eliminated rental costs for space and other expenditures.
VR Training Developers
For businesses looking to have employees train in engaging educational settings, virtual reality is a solution. Companies such as Strivr, VRtuoso and Showtime VR are dedicated to advancing training best practices – all through virtual realityOpens a new window .
Strivr, for example, is helping Fortune 500 companiesOpens a new window train in a variety of areas, including health and safety, operational efficiency, customer service, and soft skills. Through immersive learning places, employees are set in realistic work environments and can experience a wide variety of situations they may encounter in their job – from annoyed customers to armed robberies.
VR also offers companies a cost-effective solution to traditional training procedures. Though the upfront costs may be high, companies quickly see a return on investment when looking at the overall reduced costs of training materials, travel, simulation repetition, and more. According to ADPOpens a new window , the average cost of training one employee is $1,886. However, VR virtually eliminates several of those costs, as materials and simulations are housed within the headset and travel is eradicated.