AMAZON IS A REAL WORLD COMPANY WORKING IN SECOND LIFE

You would have to have been there to have believed it. The Amazon Job Fair was in full flood when I arrived. There were up to 60 avatars there at any one time, sometimes peaking at over 70, and not one sign of lag. Everyone was rushing hither, thither.

Scattered amongst a throng of jobseekers, shouting “Where do I put my resume?”, “I'm interested in project and program management opportunities”, interspersed with “You can also email your resumes” was a group of Amazon employees fielding these question with patience and aplomb.

“I have been here since 5:15 AM.” said one. What?

I am standing in the empty arena where all this took place only 24 hours ago. It is silent and empty. I have time to collect my thoughts and think about what had just happened. Several hundred applicants had bombarded the Amazon staff for possibly 12 hours.

The area was laid out with a central meeting area surrounded by tents dedicated to particular skills and vacancies. Around this central areas, like 21st century Stonehenge, there was a ring of panels explaining what the event was all about, giving instructions to the very excited and determined applicants that flew, jumped and teleported in and out, doing a good impression of a swarm of giant mayflies. There were mailboxes strategically placed for those who had read the panels and were ready with their resumes. Others, not so well organised, rushed around bumping into each other trying to get the attention of the Amazon staff who were not already surrounded.

Suddenly in the middle of this milling crowd Philip Linden appeared, taking photographs. The senior representatives of Amazon greeted him and they all started to discuss the success of the day, so far. But even the presence of the avatar of the creator of Second Life did not stop the masses from harassing the Amazon staff.

Resume Mailbox whispers: “My inventory has changed and there are now 115 notecards inside.” Amazing! Despite the chaos, things were happening just as Amazon had planned. I was just a bystander, a witness, and I spent my time there in shock! I was being buffeted by 2 day old residents, still unable fly and walk properly, seeking high-level positions with Amazon, belying their stumbling steps in Second Life with a Real Life of years work experience at a very high level of expertise.

Like two sides of a football game, Amazon staff and the hundreds of applicants were battling it out for what was a truly common goal, the filling of vacancies in a shared and flexible and workable environment.

This was a powerful and active interface between the two worlds. Nobody here called Second Life a game.

By Kim Trefusis