Exploring the Potential Impact of Metaverse Technology on the Future of Work 👩💻
Many are trying to predict how Metaverse technology, namely VR/MR/AR (virtual reality/mixed reality/augmented reality) devices will be leveraged in the context of work and to understand how this new frontier will develop. Will it be like the world in the Wall-E movie? Will we be completely immersed in a digital environment for our 9-5? Some could argue that we are there already! I do spend much of my day in the land of Zoom and Teams. So how will Metaverse technology change the way we work?
What will be the role of the office in the Corporate Metaverse? 🏢
I believe one of the first areas where we will see the influence of Corporate Metaverse technology is the role of the office. We will now have a new and immersive digital “work destination” to collaborate with our colleagues. So what then will be the role of the office? Even with working from home becoming more prevalent than ever, the role of the office was already in flux, but with the applications of corporate Metaverse technology, we could see a complete shift.
A recent Harvard Business Review article stated that “The Metaverse isn’t the end of cities. Rather, this evolution of the digital world should be seen as a complement to the physical world, and companies should develop their location strategies to maximize the potential of both the megacities that have become centers of talent and innovation and the new opportunities presented by the Metaverse. In developing this strategy, companies should think of the physical world and the Metaverse as channels, both of which are good at communicating different kinds of information.
The real world is good for creating an emotional connection, while the Metaverse is better at transmitting huge amounts of information. As such, companies should tailor their consumer and office strategies to utilize the strengths of both channels.” - HBR, 2022
This conclusion that HBR has come to in this article is fascinating. They believe that large cities and offices will become cultural hubs for human connection and that productivity and work collaboration would be better suited to the Metaverse. For now, it seems there is no replacement to being in person when creating bonds and deepening connections. However, their key point as to why the Metaverse might be changing the way we work and collaborate is that information will be infinitely accessible and its also pretty compelling to think that your most ideal office setup could be created at a very low cost. Imagine having 6 monitors all around you or instantly shifting your layout of screens depending on what you are working on in that moment – it’s all possible in the Metaverse.
When I go to the office now, one of the main drivers is to build on the working relationships we have developed as a team. As this becomes more common, we are likely to see offices become increasingly social, less reliant on fields of cubicles, and more aligned to human centered design principles and building community. For many people, in the next few years they will enter the corporate Metaverse to gain access to information, have immersive work experiences, and to collaborate with increasingly global teams.
At LineZero, when we help launch organizations into the Metaverse, we want to keep the human element that is being considered for reengineered offices also prevalent in their digital experience, and we will help them make their Metaverse spaces a destination for community and connection too.
If you want to learn more about taking your first steps into the Metaverse, reach out to us.
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Want to see how Workplace could take your internal communications strategy to the next digital level and help you to reach everyone across your organization in a more efficient and effective manner? Give us a shout! Through a live demo of the Workplace platform, we’ll help you to brainstorm ideas on how to utilize Workplace to achieve your organization’s goals and objectives around internal communications.
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If you’d like to explore more opportunities to learn how to use Workplace to improve your internal communications strategy and be part of the corporate Metaverse, we’d love to chat! Give us a call if you want to learn how to use Workplace to enhance employee interaction and engagement.
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