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Will Metaverse soon become Metave(H)Rse?

13.06.2023
Reading time: 5 min

The metaverse also opens up completely new opportunities for the HR sector. Our experts Lucas Senzel, Director HXM Transformation, and Chiara Nottrott, Manager Customer Success, agree on this. In this guest article, they explain how you can make the most of these opportunities and revolutionize your HR.

From Mission Impossible to Make it Happen

There has always been a magic to exploring new worlds – at least for people with a thirst for exploration. We think of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus in 1492, the first moon landing led by Neil Armstrong in 1969, or Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s first appearance in the Metaverse in October 2021.

But can you seriously call virtually entering the Metaverse in the same breath as two of the greatest explorations in human history? We find already!

Granted, the journey seems less punishing at first, but that doesn’t mean it has to be any less revolutionary. Because each:r of us can discover the Metaverse from the comfort of our desk chair. Thus, a broad mass is offered the chance to get to know the advantages of virtual worlds. According to a survey by Statista, more than 50% of 14-34 year-olds are ready for this step – including Gen Z: no more and no less the generation that will already make up a third of all employees and consumers in seven years. So who can be surprised that more and more companies, from medium-sized businesses to large corporations, are following in Zuckerberg’s footsteps and taking their first steps in the metaverse? They can only be congratulated on this, because one thing is certain: Gen Z is ready for the Metaverse and is now literally waiting for exciting offers. Who wouldn’t want to be one of the first movers?

Successful brands have long been using the metaverse

Interesting Fact: Erstmals erwähnt wurde das Metaverse 1992. Der Schriftsteller Neal Stephenson erfand es für seinen Science-Fiction-Roman „Snow Crash“. Der Roman beschreibt im Wechsel das „echte“ Leben der Protagonist:innen in Los Angeles und das Leben als Avatare im Metaverse, einer einhundert Meter breiten Straße, die um einen schwarzen, kugelförmigen Planeten führt. Beim Metaversum (englisch Metaverse) handelt es sich um einen zusammengesetzten Begriff aus der Vorsilbe meta (also „jenseits“) und Universum. 

The initial plans and implementations sound more than promising. McDonald’s, for example, is about to open virtual restaurants with home delivery. Brands such as Nike and Ralph Lauren already sell their virtual clothing to avatars as a matter of course, and Kaufland owns Kauf Island, part of the successful Nintendo game Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which offers gamers a virtual supermarket experience.

The examples listed, as different as they may seem at first glance, have one thing in common: they impressively show that the metaverse has the potential to change commerce, investment, the real estate market, leisure time or the world of work.

The potential of the Metaverse for HR

Imagine being able to present yourself and your company at a digital 3D trade show with a custom-designed booth. Everything designed and branded to your brand and the possibility to reach prospects all over the world – to introduce them to your jobs, services or products and thus act as a company. How does that sound? Sustainably efficient, innovative and, above all, courageous! As a 360° digital services provider with expertise in HR consulting, creative services and technical implementation, we see ourselves as a suitable link for the variously described challenges of our customers in the metaverse.

It quickly becomes clear that the metaverse opens up completely new dimensions in the HR world, such as the desire frequently expressed by candidates to get to know each other before applying. This is exactly what you can do in the Metaverse by interacting with candidates as avatars and giving them authentic insights. This may sound as far away as the movie “Matrix” or like the planet Neptune from Earth. However, the idea just outlined is much closer than you might think.

Say cheese! mmmake selfie from the metaverse

Companies such as the Korean electronics company Samsung and the car manufacturer Hyundai are leading the way. Back in September 2021, these companies hosted a virtual job fair as part of Metaverse’s Gather Town program, and it was a success! This is because a virtual implementation is the ideal way to reach target groups that are difficult to recruit, such as members from the digital sector. On top of that, this creates a corresponding radiance in the direction of employer branding. A win-win situation.

Employee Experience in the Metaverse

Now, of course, it would not be very credible to start off by talking flowerily about the many possibilities of the metaverse for HR, only to end the topic abruptly with the presentation of virtual career fairs. Let’s continue the journey and stop at the next station, which is called Recruiting at the Transition to Onboarding. How about being able to hold virtual job interviews in digital office spaces that approximate your corporate environment in experience? What if you could also offer a virtual factory or product demonstration without having to rely on safety training or risking harm to applicants?

mmmake in metaverse

After the virtual 3D career fair including interview and acceptance, we start the onboarding process – also in the Metaverse! That doesn’t mean real-life encounters and on-site formats are on the hit list. Instead, the onboarding experience is enriched by the potential of virtual familiarization and supplemented, for example, by plant and office tours at other locations. There are no limits to your imagination.

Admittedly – the first step is, as so often, the hardest. We are therefore happy to embark on the journey to the Metaverse together with you. Why not get to know us as mmmake today. Where, if not in the Metaverse!

Our conclusion: The world belongs to the brave

At his product launch in October 2021, Mark Zuckerberg made a telling remark, “I believe the metaverse is the next chapter for the internet.” Whether it is for you and your company is entirely up to your assessment, because no one knows you and your needs better. Nevertheless, we would like to give you a recommendation: Quite traditionally, as with a book, it can be worthwhile to flip through at least once and read one or two chapters to then judge for yourself whether you like it or not.

As a first step, let’s outline together what the first chapter of your journey into the Metaverse might look like – all tailored to your needs and your venture. If you are then interested in continuing the journey and also taking the second step towards implementation, we are your crew! And who knows, maybe we’ll remember back in a few years and begin our account of our experiences in the typical narrative style of wondrous discoveries with the magical words, “Once upon a time …”


The author
Director HXM-Transformation
Lucas
Senzel
Motivating, inspiring and creative - that's Lucas. With his captivating manner, he inspires companies, employees and colleagues for HR transformation.
Contact
mmmake-kontakt-lucas-senzel