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With sensitivity to success: effectively supporting customers in change processes
Technical innovations offer great benefits – for your customers, but also for your company if it wants to stay at the forefront of progress. And yet it is not easy to implement innovation projects. Sometimes the concerns of the customers are too great. Your consultants can help customers overcome resistance – if they know how.
The greater the extent of change and standardization, the more carefully and clearly consultants should act during the introduction phase.
Your consultants should consider these 10 tips:
Ask Presales and Sales about the Project creation, the strategic importance for the company and the expectations of the Management.
Reflect your own attitude regarding your role in the project. Do you see yourself more as an expert who explains to the customer how they should work in the future? Or as a consultant who sees himself as an intermediary between technology and people? As a consultant, you should show empathy for customer concerns and convey that you want to use your expertise and experience to support the customer as best as possible through the upcoming changes. Clearly communicate your own limits and always act within your possibilities.
Ask which Aspects of cooperation are important to the various stakeholders and what they want to avoid when implementing software.
In your argument, take into account that innovations may not be beneficial for every individual. Search for solutions and compensation options to offset disadvantages. Don't forget that change alone is difficult for many people.
Design meetings as Workshops instead of presentations and involve users in the decision-making process and planning to strengthen their sense of participation and minimize resistance.
Take concerns seriously and create an open space for discussion. Try to understand the concerns and question them in more detail.
Avoid fixating on individual functionalities. Instead, try to Business processes to understandthat are behind the functionalities to facilitate the transition to new processes.
Honor the old system! Find out what went well with the old system and what users appreciated about it. But also ask what didn't go so well. This will help you understand the users' perspective and later address the new system in a targeted manner.
Offer interactive training! Develop customized training tailored to user needs and provide as much hands-on practice with direct feedback as possible.
Set clear Channels for user feedback , take this into account in further implementation and adapt training courses accordingly. Ensure transparency regarding the feedback and how you deal with it.
By paying attention to these points, your IT consultants can effectively support the innovation process while ensuring user acceptance and satisfaction.
