What's the best way to learn how to tie your shoelaces?

Most of us learnt by watching a teacher or parent do it first, then trying it out for ourselves – hesitantly at first, then growing in confidence until it became as easy as, well, tying your shoelaces.

This is the model for a lot of workplace training. You sit in a room with your colleagues. Your trainer demonstrates how to do CPR, or wire a plug, or handle customer data. Then it's your turn. By the end of the session, your laces are in a tidy little bow and you have the certificate to prove it.

This has its advantages. But there are some complaints about traditional training that are repeated so often that you say to yourself – surely there's a better way to do this?

First, there's the question of participant engagement. Even the most charismatic and experienced trainer will struggle to keep everyone's attention for the whole session. Sure, the class has demonstrated that they can tie their laces, but how about this time next week?

Second, training doesn't necessarily prepare you for the reality of the situation you're acting out. Going back to that CPR session – you know you can do it on a mannequin. But in the stress of the moment, are you confident you can do it on a real, suffering human?

This problem becomes even more acute when training for disaster scenarios. How can you get a team of oil-rig technicians ready for a spill? It's hard to do when all you've got is a meeting room and a smart board.

This is where extended reality technologies can help.

What is XR?

Extended Reality – or XR – is an umbrella term for technologies which alter our perception of the real world.

Picture a pair of glasses. Put in a pair of blue lenses and everything you see is that colour. This is a very basic example of AR or augmented reality. It's where objects are laid over the world in front of you – but unlike our coloured lenses, these are 3D objects that can be moved around.

Then there's virtual reality (VR). This is where you pop on a headset and are plunged into an all-encompassing virtual world. This is immersive in a way that AR isn't – and in a way, let's face it, that nothing else is.

In the gaming sphere, this 3D virtual world could be a golf course or a playing arena where you fend off sabre strokes. In the world of workplace training, it could be an oil rig, an operating theatre or a production line.

VR training has been used in aviation and industrial safety for 30 years – but it's starting to spread into other sectors.

The case of BMW

Staff on the factory floor need to be safe as well as informed. XR training opens up new possibilities for employees on the frontline.

Take BMW. Trainees learn how to assemble engines through lifelike visualisations which take them step by step through the procedure.

This is possible only because the BMW Group has been using 3D scanners and hi-res cameras to capture its plants in minute detail. It's then able to reconstruct these work environments and structures in VR. Trainees are there but not there – and they can act out engine assembly with a level of tactility and detail that's unprecedented.

Or take the world of surgery. In the operating theatre, attention to detail is literally a matter of life and death.

VR can plunge surgeons into lifelike 3D environments, where they can practice highly specialised and complex procedures. This has the potential to reduce the possibility of error in a real operation, and therefore reduce risks to patients.

Memorable training

"Unforgettable workplace training" shouldn't be an oxymoron. But let's be honest – when your life flashes before your eyes, you're unlikely to see your GDPR refresher course.

It doesn't have to be this way. OK, maybe even virtual reality can't rescue GDPR – but in contexts where trainees are acting out practical procedures, VR can make all the difference.

Learning becomes more experiential – no matter how dangerous the real-life procedure is. Learners can safely develop their skills without any chance of breaking a piece of machinery or a colleague's neck.

A team of well-trained employees is good for business. But VR training can help your bottom line in another way.

VR headsets can collect performance metrics that are simply not available in person. Want to know how long it takes your trainees to complete a task? Or how engaged they are? These performance indicators are now at your fingertips.

What are the drawbacks?

While VR training has some definite advantages over its traditional counterpart, there are some disadvantages to bear in mind. None of them is insoluble – but they all require some attention.

The first is that VR training can require updating – and if you don't keep on top of these, disruptions can occur. Ever turned on your laptop on a Monday morning only to be confronted by updates? Imagine that but at the start of a training session.

VR solutions aren't investments to be taken lightly – the upfront costs tend to be high. That's why it's essential to have a detailed business plan to make sure you get a handsome ROI.

Finally, some participants might experience "virtual reality sickness". This can manifest as nausea, dizziness, headache and eyestrain. It's possible to mitigate these – you just need to build these mitigations into your training programmes.

The bottom line

Overall, VR training can create new possibilities for immersive, memorable simulations of high-risk procedures in a range of settings – keeping your frontline staff as safe and informed as possible.

Are you interested in exploring the world of extended reality? Take a look at our assisted and augmented reality headsets – or get in touch to arrange a free try-before-you-buy demo.