Companies Shift to VR for Employee Training in Remote Settings

Remote work has been a godsend over the past year, and most companies in corporate America are fortunate enough to have the resources to continue to keep moving during the pandemic. But even after the pandemic ends, it is likely that remote work will be a permanent fixture in the business landscape. This certainly can be advantageous in some ways, but management leaders are beginning to notice that soft skills are decreasing in new hires as human contact becomes minimized.

This realization has caused many company leaders to turn to virtual reality for a new type of training, in hopes that the immersive technology can overcome the limitations of remote training. A recent study by PPI  found that 59% of surveyed hiring managers and 89% of executives reported difficulty recruiting candidates with the requisite soft skills, such as communication, teamwork, and leadership. Virtual reality training programs may offer a way to refamiliarize trainees with critical social skills during this unusual time.

For instance, H&R Block, the global tax preparation firm, has implemented VR training software for new call center employees to help enhance interpersonal skills. Call Center positions require a number of social skills, such as active listening and conflict resolution. But remote activity can hinder this learning process, because much of this training is usually done physically. The virtual setting allows trainees to experience realistic simulations using virtual avatars, without the consequences of dealing with actual callers.

Kim Iorns, Director of Learning and Development for H&R Block, elaborated on this new method of training, “Fundamentally, our employees were doing all the things we wanted them to do, but there was something missing in our customer interactions. There was not enough of a human connection — so we made it a priority to focus our training on developing empathy.”

Along with customer service, VR also allows employees to engage in other areas of training, such as employee evaluation, client presentations, and sales meetings. All of which can be done in a virtual setting, allowing companies to offer proper training from any location. And many employees seem to prefer virtual reality training, with H&R Block reporting that 70% of employees prefer it over traditional training methods. Not only is virtual reality a convenient tool during the pandemic, it may also help make employees engage in training more enthusiastically.

Edited by Maurice Nagle