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a different perspective on human capital

Virtual Reality – The Future of Recruiting?

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Virtual Reality (VR) is an up-and-coming tool in the recruiting industry. But what exactly is it and why is it so revolutionary? Well, according to Reality Technologies, VR makes it possible for an individual “to experience anything, anywhere, anytime. It is the most immersive type of reality technology and can convince the human brain that it is somewhere it is really not.”

Although this technology is typically used in the entertainment sector, it is slowly starting to expand into new territories, including human resources. In fact, employers invested $7.17 billion dollars last year on VR, and that number is expected to increase to 75 billion by 2021! Large, multi-billion-dollar companies, such as Jaguar and Deutsche Bahn are utilizing VR to identify and attract top talent, demonstrate their company culture, and reduce job training costs. Furthermore, thousands of hiring managers expect virtual reality will regularly be used in the interview process in the near future.

Jaguar Land Rover, a British multinational automotive company, is already using the Gorillaz mixed reality app to incorporate the VR experience into their recruiting system. The app contains an augmented reality code-breaking test that assesses an individual’s engineering skills. Candidates who beat this game demonstrate their abilities and are therefore expedited through the firm’s recruitment process. Hundreds of thousands of people from 35 countries have already participated in the challenge and 555 have successfully completed the game. Alex Heslop, head engineer at Jaguar, believes this traction would not be possible without this VR experience, as it’s attracting more innovative, challenge-seeking individuals, who would never have considered a career in the automotive industry. Besides the advantage of attracting a wider variety of people, VR also allows hiring managers to illustrate what a specific role entails and assess whether or not a candidate can be successful in that job.

Deutsche Bahn, a logistics provider in Berlin, has a small library of augmented reality videos to show candidates the perspective of working in various roles.  For example, a potential employee who is interested in a substation distribution electrician role with Deutsche can wear their VR headset and follow an electrician through their daily routine. The hiring manager of the firm, Kerstin Wagner, believes that using these videos not only allows recruiters to better assess whether or not a candidate has the skills needed for a job, but also allows the candidate to determine if the particular role would be a good fit for them. Employing a VR process is also expected to increase efficiency, retain top talent, and decrease costs associated with training new employees.

Although virtual reality has yet to be utilized by a majority of firms, experts believe that is simply a matter of time before this technology is adopted. Here at Treehouse Partners, we like to stay informed on all trends and how they may affect recruiting in the future. We hope you learned a little bit more about virtual reality and how it can be employed in a number of ways. And if you’re not still convinced that VR is the way to go, be sure to go out there and check it out for yourself!

Sources:

http://www.realitytechnologies.com/virtual-reality

http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/virtual-reality-industry-revenue-2017-1202027920/

https://media.jaguarlandrover.com/news/2017/06/jaguar-land-rover-and-gorillaz-seek-new-engineering-talent-alternate-reality

http://www.talenteconomy.io/2017/03/13/firm-uses-virtual-reality-recruit-others-follow/

 

 

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