As we look ahead to 2025 and an improving housing market you may be entertaining the idea of adding new capabilities to your tech stack to improve productivity and streamline your processes.
As you are contemplating the addition of a new application, consider the impact the integration of new technology is going to have on the staff and address these issues up front to ensure everyone has a clear understanding of the who, what, where, when, why and how of the process.
Why
Start with the “why.” Every company has its share of employees who are early adopters and ready to jump in with both feet when innovative solutions are introduced. But an equal number may be technophobic and resistant from the moment you bring it up in a staff meeting.
A powerful way of explaining the “why” of introducing a new application is to map out how this particular investment clearly aligns with company goals and objectives. Explaining the reasoning behind the adoption and empathically listening to concerns can build trust and a greater openness to and interest in how the application is going to help – not hinder – the work at hand.
Benefits
Which leads us to the importance of explaining the benefits of the application. Often managers who have been gazing too long at spreadsheets think it’s sufficient to tell the staff it will save time and money. While those are great reasons for innovation in general, it doesn’t do much to inspire the masses.
Here is where you can answer the question, “What’s in it for me?,” which of course is often what employees are thinking. They are also thinking, “Uh oh! What does this mean for my workflow?” Transparency is the key, and helping staff understand the value while honestly addressing any concerns can help alleviate any anxiety about the impending implementation.
Planning for disruption
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail,” said Benjamin Franklin and he most have had some intuition about the coming technological age when he said that.
Collaborating with staff to create a well-thought-out plan for launching the new application is absolutely fundamental to the success of the implementation.
Training
It can’t be said often enough that training is never a one-and-done operation. Although many applications today are plug and play, there still may be a lot of nuances and collaborative features that will help your staff maximize the use of the new system
It is helpful to have a super user who is given the opportunity to gain experience with the application in depth before it is brought into use in the company so that you have someone your employees can approach on site if there are questions or problems in the initial days.
Circling back
And finally, always make sure you circle back with your employees to gather feedback on their experience. Remember, you are going to have to train new hires how to use the technology in the future and if you understand the obstacles employees had at the beginning of the process, you can enhance your training program to address those issues with future staff.
At Alanna, we are here to help get your staff up and running in a way that maximizes the use of the full scope and capability of our software solutions. Call us today to learn more about how Alanna can help you prepare for a growing real estate market by improving communications with your clients, agents, and lenders.