First Abu Dhabi Bank

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) in collaboration with Genieology recently embarked on a project to explore the potential of virtual environments to enhance employee engagement. The project involved the creation of both a metaverse and a virtual reality (VR) environment, which could be used for a range of activities such as meetings, training sessions, and social events.

The project began with ideation workshops, where the Genieology team together with the FAB key stakeholders, brainstormed ideas for the metaverse and VR environment. During the ideation workshops, the team came up with the idea to construct a three-level FAB building in Decentraland and VR which could contain a variety of activities and interactions.

Once the concepts were finalized, the team moved on to sketching and 3D modeling, creating detailed designs of the Decentraland space. The first floor was created as a learning space aimed at new joiners, complete with interactive avatars, training materials and onboarding resources. The second floor auditorium was designed to function as a versatile meeting space where employees could conduct meetings, training sessions, and host events. The third floor was created to be a social space for employees to interact in a relaxed environment, complete with an animated DJ, dance floor and musical activities.

To make the experience even more immersive, a replica of the Decentraland building was designed in a VR environment. Employees could use VR headsets to navigate the three floors and engage with their colleagues in a highly realistic and interactive way.

The development team used the Unity platform to build the metaverse and VR environment, which were tested extensively to ensure a seamless experience across the products.

The showcase event was the highlight of the project. Employees from across the bank were invited to experience the virtual environments at the MetaTech Day event which was hosted by FAB and supported by Genieology. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with employees particularly impressed by the immersive experiences and flexibility offered by the virtual environments.

By conducting meetings and events in a virtual environment, FAB can potentially eliminate the costs associated with travel, accommodation, and venue hire, resulting in significant cost savings for the bank. Employees can participate in events or meetings from anywhere in the world, leading to more efficient collaboration, improved communication, and faster decision-making processes.

Moreover, virtual environments offer more engaging learning experiences and social interactions by allowing users to interact with each other and their surroundings in a more immersive and interactive way. This can make learning more engaging and memorable, leading to better retention of information. Additionally, virtual environments can create a relaxed and social atmosphere that helps foster stronger relationships between employees, leading to better teamwork and collaboration.

In conclusion, First Abu Dhabi Bank’s exploration of virtual environments through the creation of a metaverse and virtual reality (VR) environments have proven to be a resounding success. FAB has been able to demonstrate how virtual environments can help businesses operate more efficiently, save costs, and foster engaging learning experiences and social interactions for their employees. The success of the project has encouraged FAB to now explore virtual environments for other departments within the bank.