Alexander Mann Solutions

2007 has seen a number of memes in Second Life - I've certainly blogged a few - but perhaps the most pervasive from a business perspective has been the use of SL as a recruitment office. One company I've not seen here before is Alexander Mann Solutions - an expert in "RPO", which I find stands for Recruitment Process Outsourcing. Google tells me that they may have started their Second Life presence at the Depo Consulting Business Park, but it looks like at some point over the Summer/Autumn they decided to move on to their own premises in Second Life.

According to their website, AMS was first to market in Europe with RPO in 1996, working with clients to consolidate and transform their recruitment processes, delivering an increased level of service, whilst creating significant cost savings. They have offices around the globe and an impressive list of clients across a range of professions, including IT and Finance. I couldn't help but notice that my own company is a client of theirs, too.

The sim is a nice, rather abstract construction, resembling a fractured chessboard. Most of the island is open to the (distinctly clement) elements - with what I will characterise as a boardroom, a common room and a reception area. Down a gangway a splinter of the chessboard holds a small arboretum and some information panels. In fact, you will find information panels dotted around the place.

The textures and construction here are nicely done, and pleasing to the eye. They've made use of some of the best furniture-makers in SL, and in putting the place together they have avoided clutter, giving it a simple, minimalist look. So far, so good. On the downside, it is not abundantly clear how the island is supposed to function, or what its overall aim is. Is it intended as a walk-in advertisement? A place to meet clients? A place to meet prospective candidates? I'm not sure. The amount of information on the sim is somewhat slim, and I did not notice weblinks that might lead me to more information. And what about that islet at the end of the gangway? As it only holds relatively static information, it seems somewhat redundant. However, I've been pondering this a bit... and maybe the intention is to use the islet at some future point for interviews or private meetings, given that it would be possible to wrap a 20-metre exclusion zone around it.

So, in conclusion - nice place, but I'm not sure what it's for.