Employee training for jobs has usually been a lacklustre experience—manuals, lectures, group exercises, etc., etc. While these traditional methods have been used for years and years, they aren’t ideal for employers. Traditional training methods require time and money, especially if the training is to be effective and long-lasting. Looking for ways to cut down on the costs of training while still maintaining effective instruction, more and more companies are turning to virtual reality (VR) for help.
From training for the workforce to training for medical students, VR learning has proven to be extremely effective and efficient, especially compared to traditional training methods. This is thanks to the immersive capabilities of VR—subjects are able to experience and act in low-risk, educational ways that they are usually unable to as they train to master certain skills. Additionally, immersive learning with VR provides companies with employee feedback in the form of user data; companies can see user data and get a better understanding of what does and doesn’t work.
The immersive nature of VR training means that employees learn and retain more than they would with traditional training methods. This means that training times are significantly cut down while remaining as effective as the traditionally time-consuming one-on-one training methods. For instance, Nationwide Insurance found that training times went from 3+ hours to just 25 minutes with VR and that employees’ performances were no worse the wear. Similarly, Walmart has also reduced training times for employees with no loss of effectiveness.
While the overhead cost of VR can still be fairly pricey, the efficiency and effectiveness of immersive learning make it by far one of the most attractive solutions for workforce training and ongoing learning.
