OPTIMIZE YOUR EMPLOYEE ONBOARDING EXPERIENCE WITH VR

In the first six months, more than 90% of employees decide whether they will stay with an organization or leave. So, it is natural that businesses are increasingly considering the use of technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) to develop rich, immersive employee onboarding experiences for their new hires. New breeds of Employee onboarding software or hr onboarding software are including bleeding edge technologies to improve the employee onboarding experience to enhance employee engagement and reduce attrition.

 

The newest item on the market that businesses are trying to explore for creating a successful onboarding strategy is virtual reality or VR. No matter if an enterprise trying to deliver individualized onboarding experiences or an SMB aiming to acquire the top talents, VR is suitable for everyone. Therefore, VR and AR are quickly making their way into corporate enterprises from the consumer and gaming sectors.

 

Companies including multinational giants have been experimenting with virtual reality over the past year to find creative ways to boost employee cooperation, collaboration, and onboarding experience. Virtual reality (VR) gives new hires the best possible impression and feel of their new workplace without being physically present. Imagine holding a brainstorming session at the company’s headquarter in Paris, where one can carry out the meeting while enjoying n the magnificent views of the Eiffel Tower. This is what is possible in VR. Candidates can now experience their company and career in a 360-degree three-dimensional way through VR-enabled solutions.

 

There are three ways that VR can boost the onboarding process of an organization.

 

 Functional training:

Virtual training modules can be very useful for industries that demand the use of expensive machinery or tools, are stressful, or are particularly risky. For example, to teach new interns or surgeons, medical personnel can utilize VR to recreate certain situations where they need to perform surgeries. The use of VR isn’t restricted to these domains. Organizations can use it for onboarding and educating the marketing team, field service team, contact center agents, and other groups of people. And the simulation of real-life scenarios can help them to train more effectively and learn how to behave in such circumstances. The immersive experience VR offers also increase knowledge retention and learners can pick up a skill faster with these programs. Onboarding applications or HR onboarding software with training and learning capabilities can include and provide access to the VR onboarding and training videos to the new hires.

 

Gamification:

VR can expand the concept of the game beyond simple points and badges to provide breath-taking multi-sensory experiences. While gamification is one of the most successful onboarding tactics, VR pushes it a step further with interactive gamification. Gamification with VR capabilities not only can be used for improving the way a company is presented but it can also be used for turning the tiresome, drawn-out onboarding process into an extremely engaging, personalized experience. Imagine the hour-long power point presentation on corporate regulations transformed by utilizing VR and what kind of effect it can create on its viewers. A standalone onboarding solution or HR onboarding software can add VR-infused gamification features to optimize the onboarding experience.

 

Team Integration:

One of the main reasons new recruits leave their jobs within the first six months is because the organization frequently fails to establish a connection with their employees, which often results from a poor onboarding process. Integration sessions for teams sometimes don’t work out as expected and especially when remote teams are involved in such a process. This is where virtual reality or VR can really help; it can really improve communication between distant teams and workers.

 

You can allow new hires to experience being welcomed into the organization by the CEO or meeting each colleague virtually who is located on different continents and offer a perception of the organizational environment and culture through these kinds of programs. An employee onboarding software or onboarding module in an HRMS, CRM, or other systems with VR-enabled team communication facilities can be a great way to create more familiarity and camaraderie among new hires.

 

 Best practices to implement a VR onboarding program

 

From a small company to a large corporation can incorporate VR into the onboarding process now as the costs of creating VR videos is down significantly. The availability of web-based VR authoring platforms has increased, and more affordable and ergonomic headsets are available for users. More and more HR onboarding software and other onboarding solutions are including VR in their offerings. But following a few best practices will help organizations to reap the most benefits out of a VR-infused onboarding program.

 

Start with short VR videos: For some individuals, experiencing a 360-degree immersive experience right away might be a little disorienting. So, use short VR videos to kick off the onboarding process.

 

Make it more interactive: Do not hesitate to develop more creative, engaging, and active VR training simulations. VR can help create a truly realistic and immersive experience by using interactive elements like hotspot overlays and voices for directions.

 

Measuring effectiveness: Keep in mind that if you cannot measure it, you won’t be able to do it. Gather user feedback and opinions about the VR onboarding experience. You may get an idea of where viewers were paying attention inside a scenario from a heat map generated by VR analytics. Though, just as with any other UX development, the process of enhancing the VR onboarding experience is iterative and continuous. So, incorporate the suggestions and pay attention to the feedback to improve the VR- enabled onboarding program.

Organizations can also use it for onboarding and educating your marketing team, field service team, contact center agents, and other groups of people. And the simulation of real-life scenarios can help them to train more effectively and learn how to behave in such circumstances. The immersive experience VR offers also increase knowledge retention and learners can pick up a skill faster with these programs. Onboarding applications or HR onboarding software with training and learning capabilities can include and provide access to the VR onboarding and training videos to the new hires