Como o metaverso pode apoiar sua força de trabalho distribuída

How the Metaverse Can Support Your Distributed Workforce

This approach to office work is still very new, but it can solve some of the problems associated with remote and hybrid work.

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Adding to the many activities we do online, including socializing, gaming, shopping and banking, some companies are starting to experiment with virtual work . Taking office work a step beyond “remote” or “hybrid,” virtual work leverages metaverse technology. Platforms are available to help companies build their own virtual offices that workers can access – using avatars to indicate their presence – to perform a variety of functions.

This approach to office work is still very new, but it could solve some of the problems associated with remote and hybrid work, including uncertainty about if and when to reopen physical offices and the complications of hybrid work arrangements. At the same time, it is not a perfect solution due to issues such as surveillance concerns and the potential for steep learning curves.

In the following sections, we explore what it's like to work in a virtual office and how it can support distributed workforces.

What's it like to work in a virtual office

Metaverse office spaces are not limited to the boundaries of the physical world. Buildings can be created in any shape and with any means (like fun tunnels) to travel between levels or smaller office units. In these spaces, employees can visit each other, hold meetings, work on projects, and perform other typical office functions. Just like in the physical world, workers can have impromptu conversations. This way, team members who are physically distant from each other can be together in a central location.

Unlike the physical world, metaverse environments allow companies to change easily. For example, a company that needs more virtual space can quickly add a section or floor to occupy more virtual workers. The following video shows what a real virtual office space would look like.

Improved productivity

Virtual offices combine many of the benefits of remote work with many of the benefits of working together in a physical office. Some of them are as follows.

  • It creates a common experience for everyone in the company, no matter where they are geographically located.
  • This common experience creates a foundation for building or strengthening corporate culture.
  • It provides flexibility of where team members can work.
  • It encourages greater diversity, provides equal access and reduces opportunities for prejudice based on issues such as gender, race or physical ability.
  • Companies can also bring clients or clients to avoid the need to travel to meetings.
  • There is no need to create policies around COVID vaccination status, masking, and so on.
  • There is no need to worry about the spread of disease in general.
  • People can work individually or meet in pairs or groups as needed.
  • Companies can experiment with the virtual work model for a while and abandon it if it doesn't work well.

Virtual office challenges

Early adopters of virtual office technology note that using an avatar to represent your presence can be awkward at first, similar to playing a new video game. Users are not sure how all the controls work or how to perform the tasks they want.

Plus, learning a whole new system of etiquette can be challenging. A recent Protocol article stated, “As with any new interaction on the Internet, users may want to think about how social norms translate into a virtual office. Is my floating video bubble too close to your floating video bubble? Can my avatar come into your office unannounced?” Just like in physical offices, each company must create its own rules and regulations.

Additionally, companies looking to do business in the metaverse have to contend with issues such as surveillance concerns, resistance to working entirely online, and a steeper learning curve for some.

Although virtual office platforms are not intended to track employee attendance and activity, some companies may use them in this way. However, what they can gain in data collection and even productivity, they lose in employee loyalty. Workers don't like being tracked and may become more stressed as the process progresses. With employees still leaving positions in large numbers, companies would do well to find other ways to ensure work gets done.

Plus, some workers may resist being online all the time to begin with. These are the same employees who couldn't wait to get back to the office when COVID restrictions were lifted. They may feel that they work better when they are physically in a group or have a social need to be around people more often. Employers should be careful about insisting that all employees adopt this model, or be aware that if they do so, some may desert.

Another challenge is the potential for a steep learning curve, which may be more pronounced for digital immigrants (those who lived much of their lives before the Internet).

How to build a virtual office

Companies that want to experiment with virtual workspaces can find several platforms that offer this service. Experts recommend choosing carefully based on things like avatar style, which can enhance visual cues, directional sound, which can make users feel more present in their environment, and the ability to avoid virtual reality headsets ( VR), which can be cumbersome to use all day.

Companies should also choose a platform that offers robust work tools that allow team members to perform regular tasks, such as creating and collaborating on documents, giving presentations, and holding meetings. But decision makers should also consider the possibilities of things that would seem highly unusual in a physical environment, such as the following characteristics suggested by Harvard Business Review :

  • A room for new employees full of interactive stands where they can learn more about different aspects of the company
  • Well-being spaces with forests, aquariums and other interesting environments
  • The ability to order food, books, or other supplies to be delivered to a worker's physical location
  • The ability to locate colleagues within the virtual space
  • AI beings that act as advisors or assistants

Companies that learn to navigate the virtual world will find a whole new way to support dispersed teams.

Source: BairesDev

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