In the very near future, users of the metaverse will be able to work, play, and stay in touch with friends through events like conferences and concerts, as well as through virtual international travel. With the sudden shift in 2020 to the remote workplace and the rise of the Metaverse, people are now wondering what’s next for the digital workplace. Are our new remote offices headed for the virtual world that is the Metaverse?
How the Metaverse Makes Collaborative Workplaces?
The Metaverse is a setting where we, existing as 3D avatars, can walk around freely, interact with others, and experience real-life scenarios in a virtual environment that can be quite similar to our own real world, thanks to the capabilities of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). We won’t interact with this metaverse in a simple 2D fashion but rather in a way that makes it seem like we are there in person.The idea of the metaverse workplace is no longer seen as a concept for the far future but rather as an inevitable development that could assist in lessening some of the difficulties that remote work has raised, particularly in terms of workplace culture and collaboration.
To better understand employee and employer opinions on remote work and work in the Metaverse, this ExpressVPN metaverse survey asked 1,500 employees and 1,500 employers in the United States their thoughts.This study found that:
- 77% of employers were interested in immersive work environments like the metaverse.
- 63% of employees are concerned about their employer collecting their data in the metaverse
- The top concerns of employees related to workplace surveillance are the tracking of their real-time location (51%) and real-time screen monitoring (50%).
Advantages of Metaverse for Modern Corporations
By mimicking office locations, enabling real-time meetings with distant coworkers, allowing us to do business presentations in dynamic settings, and connecting “in person” with individuals from all over the world, the Metaverse has the potential to boost productivity. With the aid of these contemporary technologies, developers can build virtual environments that enable remote collaboration on projects and information access.
Convenience will be one of the main advantages of offering virtual offices to employees. Since all interactions will have equivalently effective digital substitutes, there won’t be any need for travel. Because they may design their work area to resemble their office environment, which all of their coworkers can relate to and interact with more readily, people will be able to work more productively from remote locations but as if in an office setting.ExpressVPN’s study also found that 90% of employees believe technological advances have increased their productivity, and 88% of employers agree.
Concerns about Privacy and Body Image
Despite the advantages of a metaverse workplace, several drawbacks of remote work may actually become more severe in this virtual setting. Employers must be cautious when introducing a metaverse work environment to their staff members because some may find it difficult to use a new system.When it comes to the idea of a metaverse workplace, employers are considerably more likely to express excitement, curiosity, and optimism than employees, who typically respond to the idea of the Metaverse workplace with apprehension and distrust.The tracking of their real-time location and real-time screen monitoring are the main issues that employees have with regard to workplace surveillance. Some of the words employees use to describe their feelings about work in the Metaverse in the VPN survey included “anxious,” “distrustful,” and “fearful.”But if there’s one thing we’ve learned from social media like Facebook and Instagram, it’s that body image is vulnerable to social media’s negative impacts. Identity and body image concerns must be at the forefront of our minds as the Metaverse continues to become a real part of our daily life. The ability to digitally improve our physical appearances may affect how we view ourselves and how well we fit into social norms and how others perceive us.
How to Overcome These Concerns
In today’s cutthroat employment market, having a metaverse workplace may harm firms in both hiring and employee retention if potential employees remain skeptical. Privacy and security are at the forefront of employees’ concerns about work in the Metaverse when it comes to the monitoring of internet activities, it’s crucial that employers are open and honest about what these technologies entail.
Summary
While monitoring employees may provide businesses that are managing a remote workforce peace of mind, the truth is that monitoring workers may make them less likely to adopt a metaverse workplace.The expected disadvantages currently seem to outweigh the advantages, even though employees were intrigued by the Metaverse and curious about any prospective advantages it might provide for remote work. There is still much to learn about the potential advantages and how they compare to employees’ concerns.