Makers of The Metaverse: Aaron Franko Of Saritasa On The Future Of The VR, AR & Mixed Reality Industries
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Five things that are incredibly important for success in this industry are creativity, technical capability, hands-on experience, storytelling ability and empathy. As you notice technology is only a small part of what makes a great career in this industry. As with everything, hands-on experience is incredibly important in order to really understand how to make the most of this new technology. Creativity, storytelling and empathy are the three skills that really will differentiate good production from great production and are the bedrock of this technology becoming ubiquitous.
The Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality & Mixed Reality Industries are so exciting. What is coming around the corner? How will these improve our lives? What are the concerns we should keep an eye out for? Aside from entertainment, how can VR or AR help work or other parts of life? To address this, we had the pleasure of interviewing Aaron Franko.
Aaron Franko has spent over 20 years working in different areas of technology and has achieved numerous technical certifications as well as an MBA from the New York Institute of Technology. He currently leads Saritasa’s Immersive Technology Business Unit focusing on Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality for business.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about your backstory and how you grew up?
I grew up in a small town in Wisconsin’s farm country and my parents were both teachers. After high school I joined the Army National Guard and went to UW Stout for Marketing Education. My interest in tech began in the mid 80’s and has been part of my entire career. I started out in PC/Server sales and after a few years I transitioned into IT management for about a decade. After getting my MBA I moved into the technology consulting and services world for about a decade which led me to my current role as VP of Immersive Technology at Saritasa, a custom software development company.
Is there a particular book, film, or podcast that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
If I had to pick one author who really made a significant impact, I would have to choose Brené Brown. I was first introduced to her book “The Power of Vulnerability” in 2015 and it really changed my outlook significantly. As a guy, we grow up believing that being vulnerable is a weakness rather than a strength. Her books have helped me open myself up to the world and allowed me to achieve both personal and professional success that I don’t think would have occurred otherwise.
Is there a particular story that inspired you to pursue a career in the X Reality industry? We’d love to hear it.
I’d say it’s less of a story and more about luck. As Seneca said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” I’ve been lucky to work in a number of roles across many industries which have given me a background that has allowed me to thrive in this very creative and highly technical industry. I’ve always been drawn to the place where technology meets creativity so when given the opportunity to build a business around immersive technology, I was completely ready for the challenge.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began this fascinating career?
Working for a custom software developer, I get to hear a lot of really incredible ideas from passionate and creative people. But I think the thing that has been the most interesting is hearing people talk about their first experience with immersive technology. Young, old, techies and newbies — every person I speak with finds this technology and industry to be mind blowing and I never get tired of hearing their stories which completely energize me.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I will admit that I probably don’t laugh at myself enough so I can’t think of any mistakes that I’ve made that I found funny. However, I’ve definitely had my share of learning experiences. These are new technologies that are constantly evolving so I think making mistakes is a constant but the ability to recover quickly with little impact is the key to success.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
There are truly so many people in my life who have helped me get where I am today and it’s difficult to choose just one. I’ve been given so many chances to succeed and have learned from so many different people but I would say one of my previous bosses, Paula Winkler, definitely stands out. Paula has a super power when it comes to connecting with and coaching people and really was able to push me into difficult situations that she knew I could handle even when I didn’t. My time working for her definitely set me up to move to the next level in my career and I couldn’t be more grateful.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
I truly enjoy all of the projects I am working on but, currently, one stands out in particular. We have a client who is a service-disabled veteran who runs a very successful dog training business that he’s expanding into VR. He wants to help anyone, with any ability to have the opportunity to learn how to better train and connect with their pet or service dog. I’m in awe of his commitment to his mission and am grateful we get to be a part of bringing Top Tier K9 Dog Training into the virtual world.
Ok super. Thank you for all that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview. The VR, AR and MR industries seem so exciting right now. What are the 3 things in particular that most excite you about the industry? Can you explain or give an example?
The three things that I find particularly exciting about this industry right now are VR collaboration tools, AR headset development and overall adoption. As remote work and business travel have changed dramatically in the past 2 years, I find VR collaboration tools to be an excellent option to allow people to have a sense of presence and “togetherness” that so many are missing. In addition, many of these tools provide us with a more robust collaborative experience than even sitting together in a traditional meeting room.
As far as new technology goes, I couldn’t be more excited about the developments in Augmented and Mixed Reality headsets that will eventually allow us to have a seamless transition between the real and virtual worlds without limits. I believe we’re finally starting to see the type of advancements required to develop a lightweight and powerful headset that will drive mass adoption and utility.
Finally, overall adoption is critical for this industry to succeed and with the incredible improvements in hardware along with businesses finally beginning to incorporate VR into their training and operations, we are reaching an important point where immersive technology is close to becoming mainstream.
What are the 3 things that concern you about the VR, AR and MR industries? Can you explain? What can be done to address those concerns?
Some things the industry and government really need to pay more attention to are privacy, security, and accessibility. When you consider privacy, it’s not just about data but also about how we protect individuals in public. For example, if I’m walking down the street and someone has AR glasses that can scan my face and provide personal information to that person who may then be able to target me for ads, or more sinister reasons, how can we ensure that I’m required to opt in to allow this? Or what if someone can decide they’re going to begin placing virtual advertisements on the side of my business for a competitor?
Additionally, there is so much data that can be collected from a viewing experience yet there is currently very little discussion about how to secure that data. Also, much like when mobile phones became popular, many people are introducing headsets into a corporate network with little understanding of how or what they can access.
Finally, as much as I’m inspired by the way that immersive technology can assist people of all abilities, accessibility requirements for VR and AR apps has really not been addressed as it has across other technologies. I think it’s an important design element for both the software developer as well as the hardware provider to consider so that all people can participate in this amazing experience.
I think the entertainment aspects of VR, AR and MR are apparent. Can you share with our readers how these industries can help us at work?
The bottom line is that most people enjoy being entertained. And if we’re enjoying ourselves, we will be more productive. “Gamifying” learning is a relatively new, but incredibly effective concept. Beyond leveraging the techniques of game development, the entertainment industry is driving much of the technology that is used in immersive technology. So it really feeds our industries at many levels.
Are there other ways that VR, AR and MR can improve our lives? Can you explain?
Immersive technology is truly a transformative industry. It allows people to learn new skills, experience things that they otherwise couldn’t and meet with new people to expand their horizons. Most of us spend our lives in a fairly small “bubble”. Immersive technology allows us to experience things and engage with people in ways that were previously impractical or impossible for very little cost or effort.
What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about working in your industry? Can you explain what you mean?
There are a couple things I hear often about this industry that I don’t think are true. The first is that this is just for gamers and kids. Although I think that’s a great introduction for a lot of people and will expand the industry greatly, there are a large number of people using this technology for very productive purposes including the military. Second, is the idea that it’s all about the tech. I think you need brilliant technical people to build this technology but it’s most important that the creatives are involved to both build stunning visuals as well as compelling stories.
What are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Career In The VR, AR or MR Industries?”
Five things that are incredibly important for success in this industry are creativity, technical capability, hands-on experience, storytelling ability and empathy. As you notice technology is only a small part of what makes a great career in this industry. As with everything, hands-on experience is incredibly important in order to really understand how to make the most of this new technology. Creativity, storytelling and empathy are the three skills that really will differentiate good production from great production and are the bedrock of this technology becoming ubiquitous.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
After traveling to many parts of the world and spending a substantial amount of time in Mexico, I’m struck by the infrastructure challenges that many people face when compared with the US. I’m also inspired by the way mobile phone technology has allowed the farthest reaches of the planet to join the social and economic aspects of the rest of the world. For this reason, I’ve always been fascinated by the development of wireless electricity technology. Whether it’s phones, networking or electricity, wires have held us back for decades. Creating a safe way for those who have no other option to wirelessly charge devices, or cars without massive infrastructure investments or upheaval could bring an entirely new opportunity to help those around the world as well as drive mass adoption of electric cars if they could be charged as one drives, for example.
We are very blessed that very prominent leaders read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂
There are a lot of people who inspire me for different reasons. Growing up as a skateboarder in the 80’s, I always admired the passion and dedication of all the skaters I would read about in Thrasher. One person who has found incredible success due to his dedication to and passion for his sport is Tony Hawk. Even recently, he suffered a broken femur and has clearly shown incredible dedication to rehab that is allowing him to recover at a super human pace. For that reason, I can’t think of anyone who I’ve admired for more of my life who is still an inspiration and would love to meet.
Thank you so much for these excellent stories and insights. We wish you continued success on your great work!
Makers of The Metaverse: Aaron Franko Of Saritasa On The Future Of The VR, AR & Mixed Reality… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
