HRHeadStart #8: Metaverse & HR; Analytics; Confident Humility

Nov 23, 2021

The Talent Agenda

By now, most of us have heard that the next big thing in the field of tech is supposedly going to be Metaverse. So far, humans have focused on bringing tech to the physical world. Metaverse will probably be about bringing the physical world into tech. There are multiple visions of how it might turn out to be, but the core idea seems to be a virtual world that is persistent and connected to the real world. So, are there any implications for HR? I see two areas to start thinking about. These are not likely to turn into immediate priorities for HR, but some ideation keeps life interesting and helps in creating a competitive edge.

Firstly, Metaverse's vision could create new ways for businesses to operate, sell and engage with their customers, seamlessly (hopefully) switching between the physical and virtual worlds. This would imply that such organizations would need new capabilities. New types of jobs would be created and the skill requirements would shift. A lot of these skills might relate to areas like Augmented / Virtual Reality, Gaming, User Experience / Interface, Digital Art, Blockchain etc. - all areas where there is already intense competition for scarce talent.

Secondly, many organizations are pivoting towards hybrid and distributed ways of working. We relied on tech immensely over the course of the pandemic to connect with colleagues and get things done. Despite leaps in technology, we still pretty much work with two-dimensional video with mediocre audio - not necessarily the most natural way in which humans like to communicate. Gesturing is hard (and hard to read for others), audio is unidirectional and the experience of whiteboarding ideas is not exactly the best. The Metaverse could change that, albeit questions remain on how hardware (e.g. VR headsets) and software will integrate and make meetings a bit more realistic, if not still completely natural. Learn more about how companies like Microsoft and Meta are innovating for this future. But one thing is for sure - all the tech is not going to fix bad meetings. That responsibility squarely sits with each one of us!

Working Better

Correlation and causation are deceptively similar. The human brain has a tendency to simplify incoming information and we fall in the trap of treating correlation and causation as the same. While both concepts can co-exist at the same time, correlation does not imply causation. Correlation simply means two things show a linked pattern, but causation implies one causes the other to happen. Dive in here to explore this fundamental topic in analytics.

A Productive Workout

A workout is a great way to create mindspace for processing and learning new ideas. And it primes you for creative thinking. For your next walk, run or workout session, hear Adam Grant interview Indra Nooyi (former CEO and Chairperson of PepsiCo) in a lively conversation about leadership, finding mentors and making big career decisions. They also discuss ideas about reimagining the future of work with an emphasis on flexibility and inclusion, so that employees can make families a real priority. Grab the links - Spotify, Apple Podcasts.

Tiny Thought

Humility is not a limitation. It is earned through confidence. It takes confidence to say you may not be right, but you have worked diligently and explored options. Humility keeps you wondering what you might be missing. Humility makes it easy to ask for help from others. Nothing accelerates learning like confident humility.