What has been your business/work highlight of 2024 so far?

Starting SimAcademy alongside Susana (our Senior 3D & Technical Artist) and Mariya (our Senior Product Designer). While we worked together in some capacity at OssoVR, we’ve quickly learned to lean on each other’s strengths at SimAcademy and are continuously motivating each other with our individual responsibilities. It’s been really inspiring to see what everyone is making, and it only drives me to ensure that SimAcademy comes out as a success.

Who is your business hero and why?

I don’t look up to any heroes in particular, but I do have a lot of respect for my previous bosses Michael Haynie and Lauren Rakes. They were great examples of leaders who listen to and work with their team to the best of their ability, and in my 15 years of employment they have set the bar for what great management looks like.

What’s the biggest business mistake you’ve made and what did you learn from it?

I’d say my biggest business mistake so far has been limiting myself when it comes to tasks that I’ve been intimidated by. At first, I thought I was prepared for taking on government contracts once I had all the registration paperwork sorted out, but the expectations that federal and state agencies have regarding compliance and risk management is a whole new ball game that I was intimidated by, to the point where I considered focusing more on enterprise and commercial work. Forcing myself to not postpone those responsibilities and tackle them sooner rather than later has been rather eye-opening for me, but a confidence booster for myself and my team as well.

What’s the most inspirational book you’ve ever read and why?

“The Book: The Ultimate Guide to Rebuilding a Civilization.” It’s a beautiful and massive guide about how to survive both as an individual and as a community. There’s just something really cool about having so much informative guidance about things we now take for granted every day. I’m still chewing through it, but I’ve been loving the content so far.

What’s the biggest challenge you face in your role in 2024?

Raising the bar for XR as a credible academic platform alongside computer-based and in-person performance assessment. XR technology has fundamentally changed how we learn skills that require hands-on experience. And yet, despite the method’s numerous benefits and positive outcomes, there is still not a way to prove your expertise after excelling in XR-based training software. We in the industry have ways to measure and assess performance, but there is no proof, such as a certification, that you can share with peers and decision-makers. We want to change that.

What technology will have the greatest impact on your business this year and why?

Other than the Meta Horizon OS? We’re currently building an open-source learning management SDK for Unity (i.e. an LMS system for training simulations and learning modules) that we believe will change how small- and medium-sized development studios create training simulations in a way that can not only compete with larger and more established competitors but also make it easier to develop in-house intellectual property that can be commercialised on various app stores. Most XR development is enterprise-level and not for your average XR headset user, so we’re curious to see whether this tool will shift that dynamic.