How Virtual Reality is Shaping the Future of Recruitment and Candidate Experience

Virtual reality (VR) was once primarily associated with gaming and visual effects (VFX). Those days are officially gone. Now virtual reality is incorporated into many other industries and domains. Its rapid evolution has made it a go-to resource for businesses worldwide during recruitment and training processes. Furthermore, it has revolutionized the candidate experience.

Here are five ways virtual reality has impacted recruitment today and how companies can optimize it in the future.

VR for Interviewing and Selecting Candidates

Recruiting teams worldwide leverage many tools to advance their recruitment methods. VR is now one of those tools. VR played an integral role, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, in helping organizations evaluate candidates. An example is testing a software engineer’s coding skills by creating a virtual set up to resolve a bug or test a code. This can help vet candidates during the hiring process and is especially useful in remote situations.

VR can also take the interview and selection process to new heights. Body language can reveal a lot about a candidate and sends subtle cues during in-person interviews. But traditional 2D conferencing cannot offer such a benefit.

However, VR enables a more 3D interaction and can be leveraged to get a 360-degree experience. Recruitment teams can also organize VR candidate evaluations to amplify their recruitment procedure. These can include immersive on-the-job assessments to vet a candidate’s skill set. The VR-based platform allows employers to monitor their actions in real-time to eliminate the chance of cheating, helping them effectively evaluate and hire the most fitting talent. 

Exhibiting Brand Value and Work Culture

Many candidates place work culture as one of their top criteria when evaluating potential jobs. Therefore, they spend a lot of time researching the company culture and reputation before an interview. In fact, 68% of millennials and 54% of the Gen-Xers visit employers’ social media profiles to know more about the company culture, among other things, according to Glassdoor. This further heightens the importance of businesses effectively communicating their brand through interviews. 

Virtual reality can help significantly in this area. Companies can show versus tell through a virtual office tour, video testimonials of employees, videos of outdoor trips, or celebrations at the office to offer candidates a preview of the company’s authentic culture. Virtual office tours can showcase office amenities, conference rooms, plant site (if any), and more, giving the candidate a natural feel of what it would be like to work in the office. With VR, candidates can make a more informed decision and minimize the backout rate. 

VR Hands-on Training While Assessing the Candidates

Virtual reality can help enhance candidates’ experience outside selection and interviews. VR technology enables recruiters to see how candidates might perform specific job functions.

This can be a helpful evaluation tool in organizations where more manpower is needed, such as industries where employees will have to deal with physical tools and equipment. According to Deloitte Insights, a VR-enabled training program results in faster and better learning.

Not only this, but the digital world also powered by virtual reality provides a new perspective and allows users, which in this case will be potential candidates, to look in every possible direction. Hence many organizations are implementing these next-gen training programs into their hiring processes. 

Empowering Candidates to Prepare Through VR Training Applications

Virtual reality has emerged not just as a boon for employers but also for job seekers. Candidates who are seriously looking for new jobs can use VR-enabled applications to prepare for interviews.

These applications present various industry-specific questions that allow candidates to respond and glean immediate feedback. Candidates can test their competency and build confidence in advance of the actual interview by preparing in a real-time environment. There are no limitations to how much they can practice or the number of interviews they can give in a day. 

Helping Recruiters Attract Tech-Savvy Candidates

Organizations need to appeal to and attract tech-savvy candidates and the next generation of employees. Virtual reality can be highly beneficial in bringing in the right mix of talent, tech-savvy candidates, and experienced professionals. This further helps organizations in maintaining age diversity. Leveraging the cutting-edge technology of VR in the recruitment process can play an integral role in appealing to a broader audience and encouraging neurodiversity. 

Some organizations have not yet deployed virtual reality despite its promising recruitment practices potential. Common hurdles include the cost or lack of experts onsite to implement the technology. However, the benefits of VR in recruitment are only going to continue to increase as it becomes an industry norm.  

Virtual reality has already demonstrated recruitment and hiring space value, and we anticipate seeing more VR-enabled technologies and tools that you can leverage in this space in the future. Now is the time to start exploring how to implement VR in your organization.

Ajay Kaul is the managing partner at AgreeYa Solutions. 

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