Changing people’s attitudes and behaviours is the greatest challenge in implementing new software systems, and one that can be easily overlooked.
Not following through on the human component of software implementation can result in increased costs and reduced productivity through sub-optimal performance, more errors and longer implementation times. The greatest cost however can be the failure of the organisation to implement the technology at all.
What is the Challenge?
Although new technology may offer a clear return on investment, employees can resist adapting to the changes the technology requires. If the software interface is not intuitive, or insufficient time was spent on communicating the new processes and software functions to employees, the implementation and adoption of the new technology is in jeopardy. To ensure that change is accepted, people’s attitudes and behaviours need to be influenced. One way to ensure the actual use of an application is to ensure everyone has the necessary skills. Having the needed skills directly influences the successful adoption of the application.
So what can be done to increase the success of an implementation as well as the adoption of the application?
It is highly unlikely, that the implementation will occur without obstacles. Remember that changing the way people work and behave can be challenging. There can be resistance for a variety of reasons.
Training is a key component in accelerating performance. The aim is to develop software application skills in a shorter period and reduce errors when using the software. Once the critical areas requiring skill development are identified, training is used where it works best – to develop skills and abilities through practise and feedback.
To achieve competence in a skill, an individual must practise it and then receive feedback on the performance. This helps improve both skills and abilities. In the case of a software-related procedure, a list of the steps can be presented on the screen, with a printer friendly version for reference. Then the procedure can be demonstrated in an animated fashion, highlighting decision points and challenges. The critical step is next – the individual must perform the procedure. This can be achieved using various simulation tools that allow for feedback based on user actions. These simulations provide the necessary feedback to learn how to perform the procedure. Without the “practise-feedback loop”, all of the information presented in a learning program will not produce a measurable skill. Information sharing does not equal skill acquisition.
The Return on Investment
How the return on investment is measured depends on what is deemed important to the company. It may be increased sales, increased productivity, decreased error rates or other tangible measures. On the other hand, the performance intervention can be used to gain something intangible like promoting change, creating a community of practice or building teams.
Given the right focus, on the right tasks, and using the right tools, people can perform better, which will have a direct result on the bottom line.