5 HR tech tools to make hybrid work easier

5 HR tech tools that will make work easier — whether we return to the office or not

August 11, 2021 12:37 PM

The Meeting Owl by Owl Labs serves as a camera, speaker and mic to make conference calls more seamless.

With the delta variant and middling vaccination rates driving a fresh COVID surge across the country, the so-called “return to work” is less clear than ever. One thing is certain: remote work will continue, and businesses will need to adopt policies and tools to permanently support a hybrid workforce for years to come.

Lessons from the past 18 months of disruption have already fueled the creation of new and updated devices, tools, and technologies that will shape the future of work. From relying on virtual reality to boost DEI initiatives and get employees to engage with corporate trainings, to turning to TikTok to find fresh talent, here are five smart tech tools to help refresh HR operations and team collaboration.

Meeting Owl Pro

This tiny (and cute!) device from Owl Labs is a 360-degree camera, mic, and speaker that works with existing conference platforms to create a more equitable experience for all participants, whether they’re in the office’s conference room or joining remotely from home.

“It features a panoramic view up top, and then can actually focus on the individuals that are speaking, splitting the screen,” says CEO Frank Weishaupt. “It sits in the center of the table, acting like the director of the meeting, serving as the eyes and ears for those remote people to really be a part of the room.”

TikTok Resumes

The popular social media platform known for viral dance videos and quirky content is now

being used as a recruitment channel

that showcases youthful creativity. TikTok Resumes officially launched in July as a new channel and pilot program to help entry-level applicants show off their creativity in pursuit of gigs with such employers as Chipotle, Target, and Shopify.

“It gives power to the job seeker,” says Jerry Lee, co-founder and COO of Wonsulting, a career-resource company that helped TikTok introduce the launch of its resume channel. “It removes the barrier to entry into these top companies. Traditionally, these companies might send recruiters to five top schools a year. But this is an opportunity for people to see the value of a candidate, removing the biases you might have when you see Harvard or MIT on a resume.”

Read more:

Is TikTok the trick to recruiting Gen Z talent?

Moth + Flame VR

DEI initiatives continue to be prioritized at companies large and small, but even the best intentions don’t always translate to real impact or change. Moth + Flame, an award-winning virtual and augmented reality developer, is betting that its technology can help move the needle.

“Teaching DEI trainings on PowerPoint is just not going to create engagement or valuable learnings,” says Kevin Cornish, co-founder and CEO. “Virtual reality is a medium that allows somebody to go into a space, practice and learn at their own speed, and get comfortable with difficult conversations.”

And while investing in this technology (and hardware) may seem like an unnecessary expense, Cornish says it’s often a much more affordable option than brick-and-mortar training sessions that can require travel — and that the results of the immersive, one-on-one experience speak for themselves. After a recent customer program, 97% of its participants would recommend the experience; for more traditional presentations, like PowerPoint, recommendations tend to max out at 20-30% of participants.

Mmhmm

Standard screensharing isn’t exactly the most engaging way to present information to colleagues or clients. That’s why Phil Libin, former CEO of Evernote, worked with his team at AI product studio All Turtles to make something better. The result was Mmhmm, a virtual camera app that connects with users’ existing video-call services to enable

more dynamic presentations and collaboration

.

With the help of Mmhmm, a presenter can virtually appear in front of their presentation, engaging with it in a way that makes viewers feel like they’re all standing in the same conference room. “The one-second pitch is: It’s instant Weekend Update,” Libin says of allowing a presenter to interact with their presentation on-screen. “It makes it easy for people to be engaging on video in a style that’s cognitively familiar.”

Read more:

This video platform will make your meetings shorter and more productive

Zoom Smart Gallery

There’s no doubt that we’re all Zoom experts these days. But the company recently introduced a new feature, Smart Gallery, that can display multiple video feeds from a single conference room. This is especially valuable for remote attendees, who will be able to see every member of the conference room in their own gallery window, rather than squinting to identify faces in a crowded conference room.