Currently, over 45 percent of the firm’s employees, who are located across the United States, Canada and other international hubs, work remotely. And while remote work encourages growth and flexibility, it also presents challenges. One of those challenges is enabling employees – particularly those new to the firm – to connect with the company’s culture and values and to each other.  

BPM is committed to enabling remote work. 

While Zoom or Teams allow people to connect online, BPM was looking to engage people more effectively and give them a sense of belonging. The firm was also looking to demonstrate innovation in a field that tends to be risk adverse. This was also important as it looked to recruit recent college graduates in search of innovative organizations. “We wanted to demonstrate our willingness to experiment, try new things and push the profession forward,” says Heather Esposito, Learning and Development Director at BPM. 

Toward that end, BPM recently worked with Arthur Technologies, a pioneering XR platform, to explore the use of virtual reality (VR). At the outset, BPM didn’t have a clear mandate, according to Andre Shevchuck, Tax Advisory Partner and Bay Area Region Partner-in-charge.  

BPM then formed an internal pilot project group with about six initial members. Through an iterative process of meetings, training and trials, the group became more comfortable with Arthur’s technology and manipulating virtual environments to the point where they could comfortably invite other BPM colleagues to join them.  

“Through that experience, we generated the idea for onboarding as a good application for the technology,” says Shevchuck.  

Because VR technology provides an unparalleled level of immersion, it opens new avenues for creating more inclusive, engaging and effective onboarding experiences than traditional methods. By creating immersive, interactive experiences, companies can convey their culture and values more effectively and build strong connections among team members, regardless of their physical location. In fact, an Arthur survey found that 75 percent of new recruits surveyed agreed that VR onboarding felt more personal than video conferencing.  

Putting VR to the test

In July 2023, BPM’s Learning and Development team used Arthur’s Virtual Office solution to successfully onboard approximately 15 new tax associates over three weeks.  

A notable observation was that associates engaged in side conversations, a phenomenon rarely possible during virtual meetings. “Within the Metaverse, we can have multiple groups coexisting in a virtual space, and thanks to the spatial awareness inherent to this technology, individuals can seamlessly move between groups without disrupting ongoing discussions,” says Mo Yassin, BPM’s Head of VR/AR Customer Strategy and Experience. 

VR creates a sense of belonging and connection

Using Arthur’s Virtual Office solution, BPM used VR to transcend geographical and logistical barriers, creating an immersive experience that enabled new hires from across the globe to experience a sense of belonging and connection to their new workplace, regardless of their physical location.  

“BPM’s new associates were very impressed that we incorporated VR technology and a branded BPM Metaverse experience into their onboarding,” says Esposito. “We noticed that colleagues were opening up more about their fears and concerns with each other in the Metaverse. I attribute some of this openness to the sense of ‘protection’ that comes with expressing oneself through an avatar, which is not easily achieved in traditional video conferencing tools. Overall, we were able to deliver unique learning experiences that would be challenging to replicate without VR. The best example is a workshop where new colleagues built a visual 3-D representation of their personal brand using objects in the Metaverse.” 

“VR technology enables employees to experience a profound sense of belonging to the company,” adds Yassin. “In the metaverse, they have the opportunity to engage with colleagues face to face, physically move around to meet people, and interact in a more immersive manner, as opposed to the traditional 2D virtual platforms where only one person speaks at a time. This shift in the mode of interaction holds significant promise in building stronger bonds within our organization.” 

Beyond onboarding, Esposito says BPM is also looking into how VR could be used for social and team-building events. “There is great social power that comes from working and collaborating together using VR,” she adds. “If you have yet to experience the technology, it may be hard to believe that you can feel a sense of physical presence and personal space, but you can replicate some of the in-person experience without the cost and time to travel.” 

VR could also be used for things like practicing challenging customer interactions in a realistic manner without having to get up in front of peers to do a role play. “Those are the things that we’re looking to explore and take advantage of,” says Esposito.
 

How to put VR to use in your business

When it comes to corporate workplaces, VR technology has a wide array of uses, ranging from holding one-off meetings and trainings to managing the day-to-day operations of a warehouse to building a full-scale interactive office space. A big challenge can be identifying how VR fits into your existing operational structure and strategy and ensuring you’re leveraging the technology in a way that provides the most impact. We can help.  

To find out more about how you can use VR to reduce costs while enabling innovation, contact us.