Second life mentioned as a Corp. meeting place

I had no idea where else to post this...
Linden Lab

Meeting Technique: Meet coworkers in a virtual environment Pros: Allows for gestures and modes of communication that are not possible in a conference call Cons: Requires familiarity with virtual environments and a fast Internet connection Not surprisingly, some meetings at software-development firm Linden Lab are held within the company's 3-D online world, Second Life. Jeska Dzwigalski, a community developer at Linden Lab, holds many of her meetings with the online community in-game, which allows her to interact with coworkers and "residents" alike. Whereas long-distance coworkers are invisible on a typical conference call, Linden Lab employees can use their on-screen "avatars" to gesture and express themselves across time zones. "Having that physicality adds to the conversation," Dzwigalski says.

While some managers complain that employees on a conference call are distracted by email and instant messages, Second Life capitalizes on different types of communication and encourages multiple conversations at the same time. For instance, Dzwigalski says that instead of turning to a coworker for a side conversation, in Second Life, she can simply send a private message that doesn't interrupt the rest of the meeting.


There were other companies mentioned in the article, but I thought this was interesting. It went out in a business email on ways to make meetings more productive and interesting.

Hey Liz! GREAT information there!
I just wanted to say that I agree wholeheartedly. I work for GAN Conferencing which has a unique conferencing bridge that allows for conference calls (and web conferencing) to be streamed over a parcel within second life. This is GREAT for things like press conferences and corporate meetings where some won't be able to be in second life but want to participate.
Personally, I think Second Life offers the best of both worlds. A physical representation of myself to meet and discuss with others around the world without the frustration and cost of airlines, hotels, and getting everyone in the same physical location at the same time. Conference Calls and Second Life meetings can be recorded for others to view as well. There is so much functionality that has virtually been untapped for the corporate user.
Second Life allows us to reach both the visual employee and the auditory employee. It also works great for the student/teacher situation.
Once Corporations start using Second Life along with the addition of voice conferencing and web conferencing, they will wonder how they ever existed without it.
Anyone who happens to be reading this and is interested in more information may contact me (Mariana Stallion) or our sales manager (Pierce Benelli). You may also visit our corporate office at: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Commerce%20City%20South/151/147/35
Mariana Stallion
Instant Message: Mariana Stallion in game
Email: [email]marianastallion@slganconference.com[/email]
Skype ID: Mariana.Stallion