Games to business software helps directors say goodbye to the office environment

An initiative begins this month that will see executives from several large organisations, including Microsoft and RBS, using Sony PlayStation 3's virtual world Home (similar to the Second Life platform) to hold meetings, collaborate on projects and discuss ideas.

Social entrepreneur Andrew Mawson, whose consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates commissioned the pilot, says the idea is to help companies, especially those with high volumes of real estate and employees, make the big shift from the nine-to-five office environment where everyone owns a desk to one that is more malleable. "The technology now prevails in virtual environments that means people can work together without physically being together," he says.

According to the latest figures by trade body ELSPA, the UK games market is worth £4.03bn. And as project leader, University of Portsmouth academic Dr Nipan Maniar points out that the next generation of 15 to 25-year olds are entirely comfortable with gaming technology. "It's inbuilt," he explains.

Some directors are less technologically savvy. But, as Maniar suggests, if they want to advance beyond face-to-face meetings or even audio and video conferencing, saving their business time and money, they're going to have to learn to get to grips with the latest developments. "When these kids come to businesses, they'll be familiar with this technology.

But this is new for most of these [pilot] users. We're giving them a games console and telling them to do business; to use an avatar to interact with colleagues as if it were real life. If I were to coin a term it would be G2B, or games to business. As far as gaming is concerned, I think it is one of a kind."

Mawson believes there are likely to be several benefits to business if directors make use of virtual space innovatively. "If organisations are not needing as many offices, there's a significant cost element," he says. "If we're getting people to travel [into work] less, there's a productivity dimension. Add to that the sustainability aspect and we think it's going to be the next evolution."