So, your team is contemplating buying that tech tool for your operations. Of course, there are a lot of things to consider when investing. One of the things to think about is the time it would take for the company to implement the tech tool in full-scale operation. Indeed, time is of the essence. It is only sensible that your team wants to get the new technology up and running in the shortest time possible. Well, the secret to preparing your employees in the shortest time possible is to be intentional in your transition period.
In this blog article, we share our best tips on how your team can better prepare for your new technology’s implementation. You will surely boost your productivity and get that ROI in no time!
Ensure Stakeholder Buy-In📌
At the core of effective training is the buy-in from trainees. A good training aid and manual are only half as good without the employees’ willingness. In fact, a 2022 study by McKinsey showed that employees’ emotional investment in an organizational change drives successful outcomes. Therefore, the buy-in ensures that the time and money you spend on educating the team aren’t wasted.
One of the ways that you can seal the buy-in of your employees is to show them how the new technology will make their workload lighter. Illustrate how the tool handles some of their tasks, giving them more time at their disposal. Then, let them know that the training sessions will teach them how to use the tool properly. Spotlight the connection of attending the training with having a lighter workload in your messaging.
Dedicate a Transition Period 📌
Provide employees enough time to focus on learning and navigating the new tool. Do not rush your team. More often than not, impatience can lead to half-baked results. And you don’t want your team to know only half of the tech tool. Take it from the studies cited by the University of Southern California. These researches showed multitasking’s counteractive consequences. People doing multiple activities simultaneously end up only retaining less information. Hence, providing employees the time to focus on navigating the new tool goes a long way.
To avoid being unproductive, dedicate a learning session where employees are only expected to discover the tool, without being disturbed by tasks at work. Lessening the workload during the training sessions supports your goal of equipping the employees with the skill of using the tool.
Plot Concise Training Sessions📌
According to research, human attention continuously shows a pattern of decrement. With the strong connection of our daily grind with mobile phones and devices, distraction conveniently gets to us. Focusing on something has become a chore, and our attention can only handle too much information.
Nonetheless, we can use this fact to our advantage. If you want your training to be effective, break the sessions into pocket sessions. Identify and gather the points to be taught to your employees. Then, schedule topics into separate, mini-sessions. Aim to cover at most three topics in a session.
Moreover, an hour or two is a good time for a session. This way, you avoid information overload. The last thing you want your team to feel is being overwhelmed.
Implement New Technology in Phase📌
Speaking of conducting manageable sessions, your implementation of the new tool should be in phases. Doing so will make the team’s digital transition bearable and smooth. Phased implementation will help you avoid total paralysis of the operations. The last thing you want is everyone slowing down because they are not totally familiar with how the technology works.
Break down your team into groups. Identify which of these groups will experience more inconvenience when there are errors in the new technology and which will experience less hassle. Then, roll out the technology to the low-risk group first. When everything goes well, you can carry on with the next groups. This way, your team will catch issues before the full-scale implementation.
Establish Feedback and Support Channels📌
In a study published in the International Journal of Social Sciences and Conflict Management, feedback on employee performance correlated positively with training effectiveness. This means that when there is quality feedback, the training is highly effective. It follows that when there is no feedback on how the trainees are doing, the training is not successful. Thus, timely feedback must be incorporated if you want your training to produce desirable results.
In your team’s transition period towards the new technology, be sure to communicate how they are doing. Let them know whether they are navigating the tool correctly or need to recheck how the technology works. Additionally, designate tool champions. They are employees who are knowledgeable about the tool and are assigned to help their peers outside of the training sessions. Giving employees feedback will give them a preview of their progress. And the help of tool champions will make your team’s adjustment faster.
👩🏻💻Conclusion
When introducing a new technology in your operations, a transition period from the old to the new workflow is expected. For your team to fully understand and efficiently use the tool, they should be given the training and time to learn it. However, you can make the transition smooth and faster. By securing stakeholder buy-in, dedicating a transition period, making training concise, doing phase implementation, and establishing a feedback system, you can set up the technology for your operation in no time.
And if you’re looking for solutions that enable your team to adapt quickly to new technology, Raykan Technologies is here to assist you. We specialize in customizing solutions to meet your unique business needs. By providing you with a tool that fits your workflow, you minimize operation downtime and maximize productivity.
From websites to apps and systems, Raykan Technologies got you covered. Talk to us today to kickstart your team’s digital transformation. 💬
