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insight story extended reality

How virtual and extended reality are transforming business

  • min read
    • Between virtual reality (VR,) augmented reality (AR) and assisted reality – or their catch-all names mixed reality and extended reality (XR) – you might feel like you're losing your grip on all of them. But many businesses are reaching out to these emerging technologies to help solve tough problems like getting the team together remotely and hands-on training. On Kaspersky's new podcast, Insight Story, Episode 6, I look at extended reality with Dr. Paul Tennent (UK,) Associate Professor, Mixed Reality Lab, University of Nottingham and David Kim (South Korea,) Business Development Manager for Soma virtual office by Zigbang. Insight Story unpacks emerging tech trends with global specialists and businesses successfully applying the technology. VR, AR, XR – what are the different realities? These technologies all fall somewhere on the virtuality-reality continuum, according to Paul. "We've got these two ends – virtuality and reality. All the way along this spectrum are these technologies. They're generally about replacing our senses with something else – for example, our vision with a screen close to our eyes, hearing with headphones or touch with haptics. Augmented reality (AR) involves putting digital things in the real world. Assisted reality involves telepresence. Mixed and extended reality (XR) are catch-alls for everything from virtual reality to assisted reality to telepresence." Business has applied these technologies for over a decade. The IKEA app uses AR to let you superimpose their furniture on your room. Chat video filters that make your face look like a cute dog are also AR. While we're familiar with these kinds of consumer uses, businesses are increasingly using XR in their work with other businesses (B2B.) Paul has seen engineering companies make good use of assisted reality. "You can support on-site engineers with assisted reality, having somebody sitting behind them, watching what they're doing." "If you were installing a heat pump, it's useful to see a geothermal survey of the area before you drill a big hole. AR can add that layer of data onto real life," says Paul. An engineer could see the extra data layer by pointing a smartphone or tablet at what they're working on. One award-winning use of haptics – technology that transmits tactile information like vibration, feel and force – in training vets often provokes laughs but helps solve a serious problem. "A virtual, haptic simulation of a cow's back end helps vets-in-training feel different contexts, like something cancerous or moving a calf. With virtual glasses, it looks like a real cow. We see similar uses in medicine, with point-based haptic systems imitating a scalpel cutting through skin." Virtually solving the remote collaboration problem Few businesses need to teach how to deliver a calf, but almost all are looking for ways to better facilitate collaboration in remote and hybrid work. Proptech startup Zigbang started creating virtual office Soma during the pandemic. David says, "When our company went remote, we did what everyone did – endless Zoom calls where you fall into Zoom fatigue. A missing core element was togetherness – small conversations that turn into bigger ideas. We wondered if there's a way to better go about this remote thing." Zigbang's existing work creating 3D models of apartments sparked an idea. "We thought, why don't we create an office we could go into together? We started testing it with developers and thought it was good enough to bring in the whole company." In Soma, avatars represent colleagues, with their device's camera feed over the avatar's head. Like in real life, if you're far from someone, you can't see or hear them. As you walk closer, you start to see them and, when really close, hear their audio and see them clearly. David says, "We wanted to create that instantaneous communication – being able to walk up to someone and ask, did you get that email?" If, like me, you enjoy the solitude of remote working, and find the idea of your boss's avatar stealthily approaching and interrupting you unappealing, there's a middle way. Soma lets staff ensure they're left alone to do deep work. "We designed spaces for people to get away from others and get work done – bookable conference rooms and 'pods' – by walking into a pod, you're saying, I don't want to be disturbed." David also has ideas to address some of the challenges for office-less businesses. "Employees who don't have enough space or privacy to work at home may prefer to be in the office where everything's set up, and companies pay for air conditioning, electricity and internet. There are different ways to handle that – one is a stipend to help staff set up a home office. We've also set up lounges across the city where employees can go to work." The shared office space market is booming – expected to be worth 123 billion US dollars by 2028. Reducing cybersecurity risk with realities Kaspersky's Fabio Assolini sees several privacy and cybersecurity risks for businesses using extended reality tech. "During the pandemic, we saw the rise of so-called Zoombombing – when someone accesses a conference call without permission and shows obscene or violent material. It can affect VR devices too." How Zoombombing happens isn't high-tech. Fabio says, "People openly share passwords. Employees must be trained not to." Meanwhile, VR headsets are in a league of their own for privacy concerns. Meta's Quest Pro headset has four front-facing cameras, three on each controller and several to track eyes and facial expressions. These devices could give deep insight into users' activity, read emotional reactions to ads and make inferences from your home interior — from what colors you like to how many pets and children you have. But none of this should deter businesses from exploring what immersive tech can do as a training aid. "The tech is already in use to help people learn about security problems or cyberattacks," says Fabio. Kaspersky Interactive Protection Simulation sees teams, including technical staff and leaders, protecting a virtual business from cyberattacks. Players use a limited budget and a moderator's input to build an optimal protection strategy. It helps managers and directors understand cybersecurity budgets better. Realities' future Asked where extended reality might go next, Paul predicts "a shift slightly away from VR towards AR. We're headed for a fluid reality, which is part physical and part digital." David urges businesses to get on board with these technologies. "Things are changing now in the realm of work. Companies more willing to look into and implement changes early will be the ones that succeed down the line." Listen to the full Insight Story audio series on Podbean or your usual podcast provider.
digital presenteism

Presenteeism threatens flexible work gains. Here’s how to beat it.

  • min read
    • The pandemic forced many businesses to make a swift move to enable      remote work. But it's not just the threat of infection that recommends this shift – remote work can often mean reduced costs and improved productivity. Flexible hours have significant benefits too, like improved talent-attraction and employee health. Despite the promised benefits, businesses offering remote work and flexible hours may still see 'presenteeism' – a greater emphasis on being 'at work' than being effective. Qatalog and Gitlab's Killing Time At Work report found workers spend an extra 67 minutes online every day just to show their colleagues and managers they're 'working'. Why does presenteeism happen? Tony Jamous, founder and chief executive officer of Oyster HR, says, "For many years, [we sat] at a screen for eight hours a day with few breaks. Now, because of increased remote work flexibility, employees are adopting 'non-linear' workdays. These empower employees to do the school run, take a gym break or adjust their schedules to find their optimal focus time." Back when manufacturing drove many economies, workers had to be on site to create output. As office-based work grew, output was less tangible, so we started to equate longer hours with productivity. What makes us productive and effective at work? Tariq Rauf, founder and chief executive officer of Qatalog says, "Someone could be visible and present online for 60 hours a week and achieve little. Whereas, the next person might work for half that time, at different times of the day, and be phenomenally productive." Contrary to popular belief, people who work most effectively are not necessarily those most disciplined, but those who speak to themselves with kindness and self-compassion. Georgetown University professor Cal Newport links peak productivity with deep work, meaning "working for extended periods with full concentration on a single task free from distraction." When it comes to distraction, constant app notifications are a big culprit – knowledge workers receive notifications from an average of 6.2 different apps or tools. Productivity's enemies include stress, anxiety and mental and physical fatigue. Psychotherapist Roxy Rhodes told me, "Mental and physical tiredness compound mistakes, which could negatively impact your career progression. Working through illness also means you may need longer to recover, increasing burnout risk." Dr. Wladislaw Rivkin, associate professor in organizational behavior at Trinity College Dublin agrees that working through illness – even digitally – is a bad idea. H     is research found working when unwell "has a knock-on effect for remote workers' performance on the next day as [it] drains employees' psychological energy, which cannot be fully recovered after work." Business impact of presenteeism Presenteeism can be more detrimental than absenteeism. An "always-on" communication expectation can hamper productivity and cause anxiety. Remote work was meant to level the playing field for employees with disabilities, but if workers feel forced to show up for the sake of it, that benefit is lost. Employee digital surveillance further corrodes trust, and brings challenges of its own making by reducing contextual performance and morale and increasing stress. Workers feel drained, fear their employer is 'out to get them' or retaliate using the likes of mouse jigglers – software or devices that simulate      mouse movements to prevent computer sleep mode from activating, giving the impression the employee is working. "Having to prove you're working by using mouse jigglers or clicking the screen every few minutes indicates a toxic culture. When we hire people, we look for candidates who will take ownership of their work. How long it takes them to accomplish a project is up to them, as long as the output is delivered. We don't need employee tracking software to see output," says Bhavya Arora, talent management and culture partner for sales engagement platform Outplay. Young workers and juniors in a team are more susceptible to practicing presenteeism. Some organizations position choosing your own working hours as a privilege earned by those higher up the career ladder, and junior workers worry their work ethic may be seen as lacking even if they're absent even for a few minutes. How to switch off "always on" culture 1.    Measure performance by output not hours "We don't believe someone's commitment to work or their performance should be measured by how many hours they've worked," says Outplay's Arora. Qatalog founder Rauf agrees, "Organizations should implement an output-driven culture that focuses on the work people do, rather than worrying about when they do it and how long they're at their desk." 2.    Use tools that suit asynchronous work Communication tools that send notifications can reinforce an "always on" culture and mean workers find it hard to switch off. Encouraging 'asynchronous' instead means finding ways for colleagues to work together even when not logged in at the same time. Tariq Rauf, founder and chief executive officer of Qatalog says, "Asynchronous work lets people with caregiving responsibilities fit work around their life." Qatalog tries to enable asynchronous working with their platform, which centralizes knowledge, processes and resources in their platform. Asynchronous communication tools, like Loom for video messaging, CloudApp for screen recording, Yac, which claims voice messaging can eliminate meetings, and Hypercontext for meeting management, aim to provide for effective, high-fidelity communication      for asynchronous work. "With the right technology, you can break down silos and provide visibility across an entire organization," says Rauf. "Once you can see what everyone is working on, with decisions made transparently, trust is much easier to build. It's not a silver bullet, but it's a strong foundation." 3.    Build trust and lead by example Asynchronous communication tools must feed into a culture of trust and empathy. Leaders should hire employees they trust to get the work done, so there's no need to be logged in at the same time. Psychotherapist Rhodes says, "You're setting a precedent for what's expected of your employees – if a staff member sees their boss showing up to work sick, they'll likely feel pressure to do the same." Small but thoughtful changes in how you communicate can also build trust: Don't send employees texts or emails outside work hours. Let team members control their availability, honoring 'do not disturb' statuses. Segment communication channels, for example, using Slack for regular communication but mobile messaging apps only for emergencies. Rhodes also recommends, "Having a non-contact way for employees to announce sickness is effective in some companies. Staff feel anxious about "phoning in sick" and having to have a conversation where they feel they have to justify how ill they are." Management consultancy McKinsey's 2022 report found 40 percent of workers value flexibility so much, it drives their decision to stay in a job or look for a new one. If workers can't do their best work, employers will lose them. Productivity is in work delivered, not hours worked or how fast employees respond to messages. No workplace benefits from performed productivity, and presenteeism can strip remote work of its benefits. Businesses must make sure they give employees the tools and freedom to work in the way that best suits them.
hybrid work changes

Hybrid workplaces need a business culture change to match

  • min read
    • Companies are struggling with how to move to let employees have the choice to work at the office, from home or somewhere else – known as hybrid work. A 2022 study by career consultants Zippia found that 84 percent of companies have implemented or plan to implement remote work. Employees are more than ready for it, with 83 percent saying they prefer hybrid work in Accenture's 2021 Future of Work study. Yet, as the economic outlook worsens, it's possible that employee urgency about hybrid work could wane in favor of job security, benefits and company culture. A 2022 Expectations at Work study by BCW (part of WPP) indicates that a certain "confidence across the different employee groups has been eroding, triggering a change in the core expectations and priorities employees now seek from their employers." In any event, implementing hybrid work well is harder than most leaders think. On top of general post-pandemic fatigue, there are hard questions. How much can you require workers to come into the office or stay home? When and why should we be in either space? Should we change contracts and compensation? Which IT systems will we need? The answers are complex, and there's no one-size-fits-all. Three things to think about Outside in-person roles and sectors like manufacturing, hospitality and medical procedures, many have now experienced remote work. In the US, thirty-five percent worked from home during the pandemic. In the UK, it was as much as thirty-eight percent, and in France, nearly thirty percent. Businesses must decide the future of their work conditions. Allowing office and remote work means adapting your reality, being more flexible and changing how you communicate. When considering hybrid work, leadership should assess three things: How to create a company culture that fosters optimal employee engagement, best serve existing and future clients, and give teams the right oversight and tech. Charting a post-pandemic path Effective change requires knowing where you come from. When a legacy company – one that's existed for decades – wants to make a significant change in how they work, it must understand its existing corporate culture. After years of working one way, principles and work styles become ingrained, including relationships with customers and suppliers. The pandemic created an exceptional moment when companies brushed existing culture aside. There will have been changes, many of which will be invisible. Still, there are also dark clouds on the horizon: Economic uncertainty, consumption habits and expectations changes, and social and political unease. Using empathic leadership to engage Research from the University of California, Berkeley Haas and Stanford University found the pandemic provoked many favorable changes in beliefs, behavior and relationships. They reported, "Organizational cultures in the pandemic era have generally shifted away from a high-performance orientation to one that prizes empathy, understanding and mutual support." Empathy – especially from leaders – has a direct, positive impact in the workplace, according to Catalyst research. With more empathic leaders, 61 percent of employees report being able to be innovative, compared with 13 percent of those with less empathic leaders. Increased uncertainty and the need for dramatic change will make leaders with empathy even more valuable to their companies. Leaders should especially watch employee engagement. In light of high resignation rates post-pandemic and recruitment challenges, HR departments should pay extra attention to onboarding in a hybrid environment. With recruitment and initial training done remotely, new employees struggle to understand the culture and establish trusting relationships with others. When you show up as your whole self, vulnerable and imperfect, it will help you to build trust and foster sincerity. Of course, that doesn't mean you shouldn't strive to be the best version of yourself. Being open, genuine and humble makes your colleagues and employees more likely to speak up and feel engaged. Two-way communication will be your bread and butter to survive the transformation to hybrid work. Focus on customers Since it's harder to manage communication in a hybrid environment, it's tempting to use data, financials and automation to manage customers. But the human element, in all its messiness, is more important. Employees' roles and engagement are critical to good customer experience. The pandemic, social movements (like Black Lives Matter) and global political turmoil have changed how customers feel, interact and buy. As expectations change, staying keenly attuned and finding ways to understand better your past, current and future customers will be essential. You'll also need to work to break down company silos and product-centric orientations, which put the focus a few steps away from the customer. Bill Kanarick of EY explains in MIT Technology Review, "Customer-centricity forces you to take a horizontal view where you're trying to orchestrate across the organization to the benefit of the consumer." In other words, customer experience relies on people in different departments across the company, often without a common line of command. While it may be challenging, winners know how to take risks, move fast and focus on a few key levers and performance indicators rather than trying to meet all needs and clunky dashboards. Support systems that facilitate your goals Systems support internal operations, so how you facilitate communications aligned with your business goals and leadership style should be a top priority. There are many communication tools, like Slack, Adobe Cloud and Microsoft Outlook, and great add-ons for hybrid work like Mural and Miro for brainstorming and workshops, Rally and Doodle for meeting management and Monday.com and Trello for project management. Another important aspect is configuring cybersecurity, especially for sensitive data. Your systems will need security tailored to changing locations, moving pieces and the varied tech found in homes and remote offices. Security responsibility in hybrid work falls more on employees, says Leonid Grustniy: "Transporting your work – laptop, files, flash drives – between the office and home can place corporate data in danger from carelessness or even theft." Regardless of tools, leadership must focus on human matters: Empathy, doing what you say and saying what you do, being fair and firm in how you treat employees, and most importantly, modeling the behavior you wish to see. The move to hybrid work will take much trial and error, and flexibility. Larger tech companies like Amazon, Apple and Google will likely pave the way in how we manage hybrid and remote conditions, but applying other organizations' ideas isn't enough. Every sector and different company culture will need its own solutions. Good luck on your journey.
going remote

Going fully remote? Here’s why trust will matter to your success.

  • min read
    • After many learned fast to work from home during the pandemic, organizations now face a more deliberate choice on how to conduct business. How much do we really need to be in the office – if at all? The quest has provoked high-profile battles between employees and management. Apple employees petitioned to keep their flexible work arrangements. It may be complex to offer employees the choice to come into the office or work remotely – often called 'hybrid work' – tempting businesses to impose a set schedule for all. Big tech companies such as Google and Tesla are driving hard to get their employees in the office more often. Twitter offers full-time remote work if employees want it, but such arrangements are usually limited to techy start-ups. Why and how might other kinds of businesses go fully remote? At the heart of this question is trust between employees and management. I wrote in my book, You lead: How being yourself makes you a better leader, "Building trust is the critical glue to keep workflow and outputs effective." The intention to go fully remote must address three elements – in order of importance: Employee engagement, customer benefit and business results. Remote work upsides and downsides A Capgemini Research Institute study in 2020 showed remote work may reduce overheads by up to 48 percent. The remote option may be obvious for tech companies like pure ecommerce businesses or software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers, especially if they're already interacting with all clients digitally. But there will always be industries where fully remote just doesn't work – even desk-based businesses like legal may need central secure storage for documents. Even for a techy workforce, fully remote isn't easy and needs careful consideration. For example, work from anywhere (WFA) is different than work from home (WFH) or work from a specific geographic region. A Flexjobs study showed 95 percent of remote jobs still require a location. It's also easy to get lured into remote work because of the savings or because employees want it. Some companies, including Google, Twitter and Facebook, want to pay remote workers less, and some employees are willing to accept lower pay for remote work's convenience and flexibility. But different pay for remote and in-office workers will introduce a challenging variable in optimizing performance and recognizing contributions. Office-based workers already get greater recognition and credit than those who work from home. Productivity impacts A two-year Stanford study on remote work released in 2017 showed a 13 percent productivity gain and reduced turnover in employees working remotely, compared with their in-office counterparts. But the study didn't consider customer success or long-term employee satisfaction, and over half the remote workers felt isolated and wanted to return to the office at least sometimes. Productivity gains can also be elusive, depending on existing culture, sector and processes. The report Killing Time at Work '22 testifies to many companies' poor practice in trying to make working remotely function well. Study author Tariq Rauf, CEO of team software provider Qatalog, wrote, "Digital presenteeism is pervasive, with employees working an extra hour each day to show they're still online and contributing, due to fear colleagues and bosses will think they aren't working hard enough." Who's going fully remote? Few well-known companies have opted for fully remote. In Flexjobs' top 30 companies with the most work-from-anywhere job postings, recognizable names include Wikimedia and Airbnb. Then there are less well-known tech brands like open-source research and development provider Protocol Labs, services like content moderators ModSquad and naturally remote companies like Study.com for online learning. None are traditional businesses, suggesting legacy companies are staunchly anchored to their offices. So, leaders considering moving their whole organization or a team to fully remote work should consider these elements. 1.  Build trust and improve communication First, above all else, answer honestly: How much do you trust your team or workforce, and how much do they trust you and other leaders? Establishing trust and rapport is always important in business, but in remote conditions, you must be more attentive and intentional in fostering and retaining trust. Communications are particularly important, especially informal exchanges and channels. For example, when will you have a casual check-in to talk about more personal affairs and less official work? Tyree D. Mitchell, author of Searching for trust in the global economy with Jeanne M. Brett, says, "To unite a team, create a team charter representing how the team works as partners. Explain your objective, role and how people should communicate and be accountable." He also suggests taking into account cultural norms and differences around building trust when dealing with an international team. 2.  Make your intentions clear If going 100 percent remote is a radical departure from the past, be honest about the company's intention. Will it help achieve strategic goals? How does it relate to the company's overall purpose? Does it help your environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals? If your motivation is largely cutting cost through less or no office space, or improving efficiencies and productivity (for example, by eliminating commuting,) double-down on employee engagement and customer satisfaction. There are many reasons offices appeal to some people, like teamwork, socializing and status. Being transparent and including your team in your decision-making process will help the transformation succeed. Your action plan In constructing your action plan to go fully remote, there are five key considerations. First, take an honest look at your existing culture – how you communicate and behave, workflows and levels of trust. What should you keep and what needs changing? Second, involve your team in your decision-making around the transition. Third, consider carefully how to best serve your customers, including how to gain and onboard new ones. Fourth, embrace the messiness! Ensure constant feedback and stay flexible to work through challenges. Finally, ensure you have the right technologies to facilitate workflows and teamwork needed for customer success. Prioritise cybersecurity when choosing your tech and give your staff regular training in how to keep your business cyber safe.
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Secure Futures magazine is your go-to business guide for opinions, trends and insight into the world of technology and cybersecurity. We help your business to bring on the future. Brought to you by Kaspersky, the global cybersecurity experts.

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