By Richard Coates
How companies integrate tech and how successful they are at doing it can depend on many factors, not least how much of a role technology already plays in the organisation and, importantly, how employees view tech adoption and change. This is no different for L&D.
In an environment where company culture includes embracing change and fostering a workplace that welcomes new ways of working with technology, then this is a more conducive situation.
That said, we have worked with traditional organisations that have (usually due to some external catalyst like the threat of emerging competition, for example) been exceptionally keen to move forward and fast-track their operations through both the implementation of new tech for operational purposes and by using tech as part of a delivery suite for training.
In both situations, the challenges can often be the same, though they may vary in degree. Common challenges and requirements include:
Resistance to change usually stemming from a fear of the unknown and perhaps concerns concerning the individual’s ability to use the new technology.
Real and perceived costs of switching moving to a new system is generally more costly in the initial implementation period, though costsaving thereafter as employees get to grips with it and the new tech efficiencies take hold. The uncertainty and perceived risk of switching can result in perceived costs that may not be entirely accurate.
Sufficient implementation planning so often are timescales underestimated. New tech and new processes need time. There inevitably will be some teething problems and inefficiencies until fully embedded. All stakeholders need to be considered and consulted.
Make time for training no matter how intuitive the new tech and system is, employees need to be fully supported and provided with the right tools and training to help them learn to work in a new way. This may involve professional consultation, to begin with, moving to a selfinitiated learning process whereby employees can learn via peers and online resources made available.
Ensure a good user experience if the software is a good fit for the organisation and employees, is well designed and boasts new-age technology and content that is more engaging and immersive, chances are that your employees are going to get more out of it and will want to use it.
Integrating the tech with incumbent systems – It is vital that the new tech integrates well with existing software and processes. It needs to become part of the suite, not a bolt-on that sits separate to all systems to be both efficient and effective.
Start small, learn, then scale – Introduce the new tech as a pilot to begin with, drawing leanings from user experience and software analytics before rolling out and do so systematically rather than in a blanket fashion.
Let your employees be your ambassadors – if all of the above points have been addressed, then there is a better chance the pilot will run well. Select a ‘trial team’ made up of individuals that help to positively promote the system internally.
Sell your successes up the chain management at all levels need to be kept informed on progress. Regular reporting, progress tracking, and sharing insights along the way will help promote buy-in, as well as showing employee and business benefits.
Finally, as an L&D tool, the learning progress of an individual, team, function, and organisation needs to be demonstrable and communicated. And where training transcends to skill acquisition and knowledge retention resulting in improvements in internal capabilities, productivity, and performance then this too needs to be communicated in terms of what this means for the business.
Of course, the importance of choosing the right L&D software cannot be overstated. Simply put; good tech can make an organisation improve competitiveness in the market over time. Poor tech can slow an organisation down.
If a new-age L&D system is adopted, one of the key benefits it delivers is the ability to provide real-time feedback and reporting, automating previous manual processes and providing a world of insight to a company. The spin-off benefits of this type of market intelligence are both significant value-adds.
Lumanorth is part of the BentoBot team, which has extensive experience across both technology and L&D. Together we have created a new-age learning technology platform that combines the very best in tech and L&D practice to deliver a powerful resource that benefits the individual learner, the team and the organisation.
If you would like to know how BentoBot can benefit your organisation, visit www.bentobot.com