I've worked in an XR office: No matter what you're imagining it's like, you probably got it wrong.

 

I'm late getting this post out. This accompanies a video. The initial hubbub about virtual offices from Meta Connect 2022 is over.

However, I like to live out the phrase: The early bird gets the worm but the second mouse gets cheese.

I like to stand back and watch the first wave, like a Twitter trending word, pass over. It's really often people rejecting something without having tried it. Then I watch for the next, slower wave of reactions. Those people that really gave something a try and then have something to say about it.

It's like watching a Gartner Hype cycle wash over.

 

 

Source: https://www.wolfsheadonline.com/gartner-hype-cycle-virtual-worlds-in-the-trough-of-disillusionment/

I think that we are now going up the Slope of Enlightenment. It is not easy going and the Gartner Hype cycle has many problems.



This video is not about working in an XR office in game design or evaluation

or spending inordinate amounts of time in VR,

and it is not about working in a VR headset for a week.

It is about working remotely and having an XR office component to your life. 

(Video credits to Meta Connect 2020, Shapes XR, and Immersed, Ben Fern at Variant )Professor Sylvia Pan crediting Brad Lynch)

In other words, adding XR to your life like you've added Zoom.

Yeah, I can hear you. You've added Zoom but you don't like it. Join the crowd.  I didn't say work was something you liked either. Buckle up buttercup, this post is not about what you will like. It's about what you will normalize. If the Queen could get into Zoom, you can get into XR.

Remote Work

I'm going to dwell on "remote" for a moment because I like to draw analogies and I think the remote work phenomenon is in such recent human memory that I can use it as a good example (and indeed, just like XR, I've worked remotely for YEARS before others warmed to it so I have a good view of the good and bad points of adopting remote work.)

Before 2020, remote work had a poor reputation.

COVID changed that. Suddenly everyone had to work remote, if they could.  And a new element was discovered: remote work does produce results. It's not a cheat. It's not worth less.

This stymied those so in love with working in the office. What? I can't actually WATCH my workers work?

You know, I'll just sit over here and eat popcorn while you--in the office--shot the shit for what adds up to HOURS EACH WEEK and you claimed that was not only work, you claimed that got you ahead at work. Yeah, that "if you talk with the boss at the water cooler, you get ahead" thing. I've got news for you. If your boss promoted based on that, your boss understands zero about diversity.

Many feel so differently about remote work that it is no longer a negative stigma attached to WANTING to work remote full time.  That's a huge, huge change from even 2 years ago.

 

I noted at a conference just 2 weeks ago that we don't even use the word "Skyping" anymore. It's "Zooming".  Did you notice that? I'm going to bring up Zoom again later. Pin that.

60% of workers now want remote options.

Meta Connect 2022 Grabs Attention 

THIS scene showing a mix of avatars and Zoom caused quite a stir.

So Meta Connect 2022 raised the specter again of working in an XR-enabled office. 

It isn't just Meta talking about virtual offices in 2022 and new interfaces. 

Apple's forray is yet to come. 

(I am struggling to find the right keywords to describe 'working in an XR office'. Society please help and come up with something quippy.)

To get ready for a business conference where I was speaking as an expert in the metaverse, I decided to study the enemy- those on social that have disdain the coming metaverse.

People try to make it all or nothing. They are eager to throw out the baby with the bathwater. They say things like can't wear the headset all day, expensive, wrong bets from a company with a bad rep, etc. Only a few are saying "maybe"

This AR Post article is has very cool data. Spoiler alert: Boomers are not against XR.


I predict that they will come around and come around to XR meetings SO MUCH that they will be embarrassed someday to think that they didn't want it.

For real, as in, working every day in XR.

So I realized the time has come to share how I worked in XR.  I bet it is NOT like what you are imagining

Here we go!

For 8 months last year, I was the Chief Operating Officer of an international research organization.

We hosted and rented XR real estate to educational organizations.

My job was to keep the organization moving forward and to put dreams into action.

"I'm a dreamer, I build worlds"- James Halliday, Ready Player One

I had a small office that could seat 6 avatars.

I had 3 Internet boards where I could display any image or web page.

I averaged 4 hours a day in-world.

For 2 hours I worked in my office and held 1:1 meetings.

The other 2 hours would be in larger meetings,

giving tours,

or checking on designs & creations.

It was all 2D XR so eye strain was less of a problem. 

There were times that I locked my VR office door and went heads down on projects and could see other avatars outside my door. 

Typing in world is, right now, frustrating and I wouldn't seriously attempt it (I'd go for speech to text instead.) But my stronger point is why would you improve on an interface that is already working pretty well right now, which is a keyboard? 


If you'd like to moan about it not being immersive enough, you belong in the finite game mindset.

Benefits of Working in an XR Office

1. No Zoom Fatigue. 

You do not have to be seen on camera.

2. Choice of How To Work 

Work part of your day in XR and part out of XR.

Attend meetings in cool spaces. Need focus time away from others? Easy.

3. The impossible experience becomes possible. 

I regularly hosted global meetings.

Because you can move through spaces in XR, there is space to move closer to those you do want to talk about and further from the topics that you don't care for.

4. Embrace inclusive workers 

How and what we work on is about the people we work with.

It is not about the technology; it is about the people.

I beg you, if you think the metaverse is even only 1% cool, you should be bringing in other people to discover it, yes! But that’s the point. It says that after all, how and what we work on is about the people we work with. It's not about the technology.  Think about that for a moment:

It's about the people, not about the technology.

You should be fighting to bring everyone in. That's fighting for accessibility.

• Employees who are blind and vision-impaired can work in XR.
• Employees who deaf or hard of hearing can work in XR.
• Employees with mobility disabilities can work in XR.
• Neurodivergent employees can work in XR.
• All of your employees can work in XR.

The metaverse IS coming. You either will join or you won't.

The metaverse is not just for the privileged if I have anything to say about it.

It will be part of all of our lives and the lives of our children. We have WAY more fun that you think. I would always end tours of our Virbela island with boat rides starting at the beach (and to make it really fun, I would have my guest take the driver's seat and then I would not tell them how to drive.)  Mind you, I'd usually just spent 1 hour literally directing them verbally on every action in VR so they knew they could trust me and that I wasn't trying to embarrass them with not giving them instructions.

I'm saying that the metaverse will be PART of your life, not your whole life.

The metaverse is just a new player in the infinite game. Your invitation is waiting.

Why don't you come on in?