Walmart Goes All-In on VR Training

In the past, Walmart expressed interest in modernizing its training using cutting-edge technology and dipping its toes into the world of augmented and virtual reality. Now it seems the retail giant is jumping in with both feet. The company recently announced it is expanding its VR training and development program to all of its U.S. associates (more than 1 million employees). Starting in October, four Oculus VR headsets will be sent to every Walmart Supercenter, and two to each neighborhood market and discount store. Now, every associate will have access to the same training that higher-level employees have access to at the company's training academies. “The great thing about VR is its ability to make learning experiential,” Andy Trainor, Walmart’s senior director of the academies, said in a blog post. “When you watch a module through the headset, your brain feels like you actually experienced a situation. We’ve also seen that VR training boosts confidence and retention while improving test scores 10 to 15 percent—even those associates who simply watched others experience the training saw the same retention boosts.”