How AR and VR are Revolutionizing Soft Skills Training in 2019

With 67 percent of recruiters withholding offers due to a lack of soft skills, organizations must rethink their approach to soft-skills training. We discuss how AR and VR could make it easier to disseminate soft skills and empower the workforce in 2019.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies have recently gone mainstream, exiting the experimental stage. While most of us know about AR and VR from consumer-facing applications like Pokémon Go and Oculus, they also have immense potential in HR. Initially, HR use cases for AR and VR were limited to training simulations for technical and hands-on roles – in industries such as manufacturing, logistics, and transportation. Now, as soft skills training emerges as a critical need, AR and VR could play a game-changing role, here as well.

The Need for Soft Skills Training in 2019

Today, more than ever before, soft skills are a key differentiator for employees, making or breaking the decision to hire. As the pace of innovation accelerates, AI and automation are taking over several traditional jobs. This means that the workforce needs to imbibe new skills in order to stay relevant, focusing on capabilities that cannot be mechanized.

Soft skills (communications, listening, empathy, and the like) often characterize highly skilled professionals like lawyers and accountants. In fact, soft skills training could equip a major segment of the workforce with interpersonal relationship building capabilities, making them immune to the negative impacts of automation. According to studiesOpens a new window , fields which are high on human interaction will see very little impact from AI and automation. In this context, it is important for HR to find new ways to disseminate soft skills training in 2019, ensuring rapid absorption of new insights as well as a longer shelf-life for the lessons learned.

Also read: The Human Factor – Why Emotional Intelligence is Critical for the AI GenerationOpens a new window

Can AR and VR Assist in Soft Skills Training?

Traditionally, AR and VR have been preferred by employers around the world for hands-on training. In the hospitality industry, for example, it could guide service staff on how to properly complete their duties. For complex manufacturing scenarios, factory workers could trial equipment maintenance using AR and VR, without any real risk. But these are categorized as hard skills, and it’s only recently that AR and VR have emerged as viable technologies for soft skills training.

VR setups can help recreate common workplace scenarios and let employees practice their reactions and handling of these situations. VR can take the form of 360-degree videos, allowing employees to explore different environments, or could also be deployed in an interactive format where feedback is immediately received and incorporated. In the case of interactive VR, digital assets will respond to trainee behavior, signaling errors and course correction.

AR is slightly different, in that it does not recreate an entire ecosystem, but superimposes digital objects into the current surroundings. Sales professionals could use these systems to practice selling techniques, and this is only one of the many use cases in soft skills training.

Benefits of using AR and VR in Teaching Soft Skills

By leveraging these powerful technologies in 2019, HR professionals can achieve the following benefits:

• Cost reduction – as AR and VR scenarios are repeatable and reusable
• Real-world practice – through realistic virtual simulations, which is not possible via classroom courses
• High level of engagement – thanks to immersive technology and low distraction risk
• Greater convenience – as learners are able to access soft skills training courses, anytime, anywhere
• Incremental improvement – as virtual assets react to speech in real-time and offer feedback

HR Innovators Making Strides in the Soft Skills Training Space

Did you know that nearly 67 percentOpens a new window of HR professionals withhold offers simply because candidates lack adequate soft skills? It’s no surprise, therefore, that the soft skills space is witnessing a flurry of activity, with increasing interest in new technology applications. TalespinOpens a new window is an enterprise solutions provider specializing in the use of cutting-edge technologies to boost training impacts. Their VR soft skills training tool readies employees for demanding situations in the workplace, along with real-time feedback. MursionOpens a new window , another disruptor in the space raised $8 million in Series A last months to support its immersive VR-based soft skill training program.

Inspired by solutions such as these, HR managers can preempt the rising challenge of soft skills training in the workplace, empowering today’s workers to meet the needs of the future.

Also read: How AR and VR are Changing the Recruitment ProcessOpens a new window

Are AR and VR part of your soft skills training plan for 2019? Visit us on TwitterOpens a new window , LinkedInOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window to share your insights.