What is virtualisation

It’s been hard to find a word to describe and pinpoint where this world is going. But, what we see that has been hugely accelerated this year is the switch to doing a lot more with a lot less. We are looking at a final countdown for the industrial way of life, where every specialist works in their own role and waits for their tasks to come down a chute, much like the workers on an assembly line. Empowered by digitalization, the world is transforming from a giant assembly line with roles, tasks, and opening hours to an open space of innovation and productivity. 

So why is it called virtualization? In a virtual space, you can just indicate to the program that you want to have an item, and there it is. Say you want to be somewhere, boom, you’re there. Of course, in the real world, we are still limited by the logistics of anything physical. But for the majority of business people, it’s information, knowledge, and connections that we’re handling. And all that can and should work much like you’d see in a VR game.

It’s not about virtual reality, it’s about a reality that acts virtually

By virtualisation, we don’t mean that people will go about their business wearing VR helmets, but the effects of virtualisation on our behaviour are the same. Many services have already been virtualized: you can listen to music you like anytime, anywhere, and pull up an article on virtually anything from your pocket. 

The same applies for the production of many services - it isn’t an organisation of learned experts that write for Wikipedia, and anyone of us can become a published author or singer just by uploading our stuff to a service. Taking it further, you can acquire, rent, or lend anything available to your means in an instant (plus the time it takes for logistics). 

Why you really go anywhere?

For white-collar workers, we believe virtualization is the next big change. If you can see and know anything in seconds, with very basic tools and infrastructure, shouldn’t that change the way you go about doing your business? The fundamental reason we go to an office, visit a fair, or attend a seminar has been diminished. We end up with “networking,” “putting a face to the name,” and other secondary reasons. I’m not saying they’re less important, but do we really, honestly make our decisions based on them?

For instance, when you last justified why you went to that seminar, did you list learning from the speakers (you could pull up on YouTube anytime) or meeting potential clients (whom you could just contact online at any second)? Is any one of us honest when we say we’re fans of the speaker, and it’ll make our day when meeting them? Or has someone ever said they don’t think a potential client would get to know their product unless they’ve seen them at a seminar?

Again, there’s still plenty of reasons to go places for business, but the reasons are not the same as they were five years ago.

The future is virtual

This year has seen a giant leap in technology that has been around for years: meetings are online, big investment decisions are made over the internet, families celebrate Christmas over a video call, and suddenly “necessary travel” is somehow not necessary anymore.

Virtualisation has an effect on business, on life, and on the world. As it is a practise of making things simplified, it carries with it a lot of saving potential, but also creates unforeseen opportunities to businesses as well as people who cherish it. Putting the world in a person’s pocket saves time to spend with friends and family, and think of how much more value any business can provide when they serve clients regardless of physical location.

But most importantly, for all of humanity, adopting virtualisation saves the earth’s resources. Aiming for a world where practically anything can be handled from one hand-held device to another, transportation would become the luxury it should be. Heating and cooling resources? Think of all those cubic meters we keep warm in the cold and cool in the heat just so that people can commute for an hour to forward their emails, or all rush in at opening time to get a pair of jeans on sale. It does not make sense in a virtual world.

Be an activist, demand change

So join us, and become a virtual activist in your own life. Demand services where you don’t need to move to another space or stick to a timetable to get them. Start asking yourself why you’re commuting, and how to minimise it. Give up your personal desk in the office, and build one in your bedroom or kitchen. 

For all the little things individuals can do to help virtualization, companies can do a hundred of them. Start with your people. Once they are open to it, have them teach you how your services should change. 

The world will become a better place through virtualisation, and all of us can help everyone get there.