Unsurprising when study after study has demonstrated the benefits of training within an immersive context\u201a with improvements in knowledge retention\u201a lower costs and reduced risk all touted as benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019re not quite at the level of Neo\u2019s \u201cI know kung-fu\u201d in The Matrix <\/i>yet\u201a but plugging in to a virtual world definitely has its benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 2017 experiment by Google found that participants who received barista training in VR got up to speed much quicker and made less mistakes than those who received real-life training. More \u201cI know a little more about making an espresso quicker than I would\u2019ve done through traditional training methods\u201d than \u201cI know kung-fu\u201d. At least for the time-being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Immersive technologies pose learning benefits for theoretical topics too. In 2016\u201a a Chinese study involving 40 test subjects found that recall and retention of astrophysical theory was significantly improved<\/a> when abstract concepts were presented in three-dimensional form using VR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In another study<\/a> by Boeing and Iowa State University\u201a test subjects using AR to assemble wing parts saw a 90% improvement in first time quality compared to participants using a desktop computer and PDF files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are plenty<\/a> of<\/a> other<\/a> studies<\/a> that have reached the same conclusions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n XR training is here to stay and is set to become a core part of training programmes across a vast array of industries in the coming years. But what about businesses that are already using the tech to get their staff up to speed? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Here are five first movers that are leading the way and reaping the benefits of immersive training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by <\/b>Mike Mozart<\/b><\/a> on Flickr<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ever wondered what it would be like to work a shift in the midst of Black Friday madness? No? Well spare a thought for workers at retailers such as Walmart who have no choice but to weather the carnage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve all gawped in disbelief at the chaotic scenes of consumerist hordes grappling for half-price 4K TVs and cut-price kettles that have become the norm every November. For retailers\u201a slashing prices and waiting for the ensuing press coverage is easy enough\u201a but training frontline staff to deal with the yearly crush is a different matter entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Working in conjunction with immersive training developers STRIVR\u201a Walmart has implemented VR elements into its employee training programme to provide a more involved experience that mimics a real-world store. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Utilising 360 degree video\u201a participants at the Walmart Academy training programme are transported into a real store and exposed to all the environmental factors that they would experience in real life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to STRIVR\u201a 70 percent of employees who took part in the VR training programme performed better on their exams than those who took part in the standard training while satisfaction levels have also been 30% higher amongst the immersive group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by <\/b>\u53f2\u83b1\u514b<\/b><\/a> on Flickr <\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n Multinational car manufacturer Volkswagen became one of the first car manufacturers in the world to roll out its own VR platform for training and collaboration in 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Developed with Munich-based Innoactive\u201a the Volkswagen Digital Reality Hub supports training\u201a workshops and collaborative work using HTC Vive headsets. The potential for employees in one office to exchange best practice ideas with colleagues in another part of the world in an immersive environment is just one of the transformative uses of the technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The car firm\u2019s VR platform is one of the most high-profile investments yet in immersive technology by a big name brand and its success will be watched closely by other major companies looking to adopt the tech themselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Encompassing 30 training simulations\u201a the platform is set to train 10\u201a000 members of staff across VW\u2019s operations in its first year in areas including logistics and car production. The German multinational has signalled that VR will form a central part of its knowledge sharing and training across its network of brands\u201a including Audi\u201a Seat and Skoda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by <\/b>Dan Gold<\/b><\/a> on <\/b>Unsplash<\/b><\/a><\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n VR can\u2019t simulate the intoxicating aromas of your common restaurant kitchen (yet!) or the sweaty tension of a head chef berating your sluggish service during the lunchtime rush (again\u201a yet!). <\/p>\n\n\n\n It can\u201a however\u201a provide an engaging alternative to tedious Powerpoint presentations and unloved employee handbooks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At healthy food chain Honeygrow\u201a founder Justin Rosenberg\u201a inspired by the New York Times VR drive which saw over a million subscribers of the newspaper provided with a free Google Cardboard in 2015\u201a set about incorporating VR into their training programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Utilising 360 degree video\u201a new Honeygrow employees are greeted by a virtual representation of Justin when they don their VR headsets. What follows is a tour throughout the different functions of a typical restaurant with trainees given demonstrations of best practice and typical job roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An interactive 3D game also forms part of the training app\u201a using cartoon animals and sounds to test users on proper food storage\u201a aping a similar gamification approach by KFC. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As anyone who has been forced to complete compliance training as part of their job role will attest\u201a garnering enthusiasm for company training is an exceedingly difficult thing to do. Employees scarred by tedious elearning modules and corny training videos are inherently averse to corporate training programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With immersive technologies this problem is eradicated. VR and AR training modules are significantly more engaging than traditional methods and can motivate staff to get compulsory training completed much quicker\u201a saving money and minimising the possibility of mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is a fact borne out by Honeygrow\u2019s own engagement statistics where\u201a within weeks of the fast-casual chain rolling out its VR training\u201a the number of staff certified on company culture had jumped from 50 to 77 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by TaleTreader \/ <\/b>CC BY<\/b><\/a><\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n UK grocery chain Co-op has followed in the footsteps of US giant Walmart by introducing immersive elements into their colleague training programme. Utilising an app developed with Manchester-based Clicks and Links\u201a the retailer\u2019s training includes virtual store walkthroughs utilising 360 degree videos\u201a quizzes and virtual trainers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Paired with Google Cardboard VR headsets\u201a new employees are able to take training home with them to re-enforce what they\u2019ve learnt or complete modules in their own time. The inherent appeal of immersive technology shouldn\u2019t be underestimated when it comes to driving engagement and employee buy-in. Sending employees home with an experiential app rather than a tedious questionnaire or staid elearning module is more likely to drive engagement\u201a something which Co-op have tapped into.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As part of the training app\u201a new starters are greeted by a virtual colleague who guides them through a typical Co-op store giving participants the chance to look around as they move. The retailer believes that the natural inclination for users to look around the virtual video will subsequently translate into the real word\u201a with Co-op staff primed to spot issues in real-world stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The retailer has described VR training as \u2018the next best thing\u2019 to the real-world experience of working in a store and ensures staff hit the ground running as soon as they start working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by CAE Healthcare<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n CAE Healthcare are a little different to the other organisations on this list. Rather than introducing VR training as part of their business they have developed the underlying technology for use in medical contexts. And their inclusion is entirely warranted by the following gif:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes\u201a that is a manikin giving birth to another manikin delivered by Microsoft Hololens-sporting midwives. The thousand-yard\u201a expressionless stare of the dummy woman might be creepy\u201a but the combination of real-life dummies with top-of-the-range MR technology poses some mind boggling benefits for the healthcare industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Imagine medical students being provided with an interactive reproduction of the digestive system that charts the movement of food through the body or respiratory specialists monitoring the impact over time of smoking on someone\u2019s lungs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If we\u2019re talking about high-risk industries that can benefit from risk-free\u201a immersive training then the medical sector is the most important of all. And CAE Healthcare\u2019s LucinaAR platform is targeting one of the most fraught and high-stakes medical procedures around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Their product pairs dummy models with real-time 3D holographic representations of mother and child physiology\u201a providing insight into exactly what is happening at each stage of the delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trainees can also walk around and inspect the dummy to get a better understanding of a pregnant woman\u2019s anatomy all through the Hololens interface. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWalmart<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/619pmR918idl9L7wsLccR1\/19cff4ac0537a83934f12245aa55cb75\/Walmart.jpg\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nVW<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/6I5otGVVvdWAhgE1U1xSAv\/6319e4aabd9fe965f424b8c910de91c3\/VW.jpg\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Honeygrow<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/6KPhvh9Zj7EpVbZznPMYHV\/3fc868492ff2ee8cab567ecbd38e8ef9\/greenveg.jpeg\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nCo-op<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/xmTeSqU9Kxe8oHgoTjyGp\/1b8ecb41d06428ee14df05f06642d9e6\/coop.jpg\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nCAE Healthcare<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/3iaXMwLYzAG7MKYFD6CczA\/fd2a37817efb9ec63d358ac08d94c742\/CAEHC_manufacturing_plant_1_LR.jpg\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"[object](\"\/\/images.ctfassets.net\/o6514hijae09\/1kAtJth9XLt4lz02119fuY\/03ddbb01119c7a85e996a04bd2c51afb\/cae_healthcare.gif\" "\\"[object")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n