BUSINESS AND FINANCE Virtual reality in an upturned reality

Virtual reality in an upended reality

By Christina McLean

The way we work has seen an enormous shift during 2020 as more people than ever are working from home. However, for many of the self-employed, working from home isn’t a new concept. According to research conducted by the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) in 2018, the vast majority (87%) of self-employed people had worked remotely in the last 12 months, of which an overwhelming majority (97%) worked from home, at least occasionally. That said, the scale of remote working for both employees and the self-employed is, dare I say it, unprecedented, and as a result many rely upon various video conferencing apps to effectively communicate with teams and clients, and to remotely co-ordinate projects. These communication tools have proven important not only from a productivity perspective, but also for wellbeing. Even over the course of two months, new updates and technologies are constantly evolving to help facilitate this. Many claim that this will impact the way we work not just in the present pandemic, but also once we “return” to a new normal. As the way we work evolves and tools adapt or are created, the question is – does Virtual Reality (VR) play a role in this, and will this be its chance to plant roots in our working lives?

WHAT IS VIRTUAL REALITY?

In basic terms, VR in its current form typically allows the user to wear a headset covering their eyes and presents a view into a virtual space using a screen in the headset. Depending on what you’re using it for, this virtual space can

be programmed to be anything from underwater diving to boardrooms with whiteboards.

For an even more immersive experience, users can wear headphones to hear the sounds of their virtual environment (perhaps a colleague giving a presentation), and they can use controllers that function as their hands in the environment and allow them to perform certain tasks (like writing on a whiteboard).

What makes VR different from, and more desirable, than other media is that it’s meant to trick your brain into processing the experience as if it were happening, allowing for a more immersive event. If you compare a VR meeting to a video conference for example, it could be argued that VR content is more engaging and memorable, especially when you consider that other distractions are eliminated.

One of the biggest benefits of the medium from a business perspective is its ability to make people feel like they are in the same space together. You can recreate that boardroom team meeting or that on-site pitch to potential clients. The virtual environments can be designed for optimal comfort and creativity.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO USE VR?

Historically, one of the biggest barriers to the widespread adoption of VR was cost and practicalities of the equipment. Top quality VR requires a relatively powerful computer, a bulky headset, and handheld controllers. This makes it nearly impossible (or at least impractical) to implement into people’s home working lives. However, recent developments have meant that entry into VR is becoming more affordable and accessible.

Headsets that you slot your smartphone into to act as the screen can be made of cardboard, like the Google Cardboard that costs around £12. Then, you will just need to find a compatible VR app to download on your phone. This is probably the most basic option, and certainly won’t give you the same experience as higher-end alternatives, but it’s a good entry point into the world of VR. As the headsets themselves upgrade, the technology needed to run them does too.

The programs and apps used for VR are also adapting to become more accessible to the wider public. For example, for joining video calls in

VR, users could use Spaces, a new PC VR app developed in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Spaces markets itself as a “Bridge between a VR world and Zoom, Skype, Hangouts and more,” and allows users with VR to join regular video conferencing calls. Users are placed in a virtual environment with a virtual whiteboard and markers, alongside an adjustable virtual camera. This means that not everyone on the call has to have VR to still use it as a tool.

If you're looking for something more collaborative, you might be interested in a service like meetingRoom. According to their website, meetingRoom is a service for people to work with each other using well-known meeting room staples, like whiteboards, in a virtual environment. An added benefit is you can return to rooms anytime and pick up where you left off. meetingRoom claims that their rooms are secure by design, built with "industry-standard encryption.

There are a variety of service providers, some of which are industry specific, so there is certainly research to be done if you’re looking for something that specifically suits your needs.

WILL WE EVENTUALLY BE USING THIS TECHNOLOGY?

In recent months we’ve all gotten better at video conferencing. But VR triumphs over video calls in the sense that because participants are all taking part in the same virtual space, they are likely to be more engaged and present. Many argue that this improves productivity, responsiveness, and collaboration, and in the future it would also reduce travel costs and have a lower environmental impact.

One downside of VR in its current state is that the avatars (computer-generated characters that represent the users) are visually simple and cartoonish due to technical constraints.

When researching VR service providers, you will be met with countless demo videos that feature disembodied heads and floating hands. It feels a bit like “uncanny valley” meets “this meeting could have been an email” in the sense that for what it does - replace video conferencing with virtual versions of ourselves - the distraction of the odd avatars alone might derail the purpose of meeting. However, this area is developing, and I have no doubt there will be better solutions very soon.

VR presents new opportunities for the way we do business remotely. But with technological barriers to entry and some still not-so-perfect visuals, whether VR enters mainstream business is yet to be seen.