5 steps to getting new technology buy-in from your team

It’s a frustrating scenario.

You’ve spent hours researching the perfect solution to address your challenges. You’ve sat on demos. Reviewed sales documentation. Scoured reviews.

You have finally made your decision. And you’re feeling confident about it.

Your team? Not so much.

They’re worried about implementation timelines. Learning new technology. Budgets being eaten into. Workloads increasing. Maybe even their role becoming redundant.

It’s a common challenge that many businesses face. But it’s also one we can help solve.

So read on to hear our top 5 steps to getting new technology buy-in from your team.

1.

Get your team involved from the start

When you’re excited about new technology, it’s tempting to kickstart the process on your own.

But if you need buy-in from your wider team, it’s essential to get them involved from the very start. Otherwise, you could face a negative backlash later down the line.

This means engaging your entire team in initial discussions, research, demos, and pricing.

It will give them a chance to feel they are also owners of the project, and have their concerns or questions addressed – and resolved – early on.

At this stage, you should also involve any other senior management or key decision-makers in the project. Senior leaders can act as drivers in key business decisions, and are a great asset when it comes to getting a project done.

2.

Address your team’s goals and challenges

Obviously, your team is busy trying to achieve their own goals, and overcome their own challenges. Making them reluctant to introduce anything new that could affect that.

This is heightened when team budget is being used, or even taken away from others, to fund the new solution.

It means that any new technology needs justification.

So address your team’s concerns, dig into their goals and challenges, and showcase how your new technology can resolve these.

Offer statistics and metrics, real-life examples, case studies, and references to reassure your team that this technology will support their day-to-day activities.

Then once you have built enthusiasm with members of your team. You can move onto the next step…

3.

Enlist a project advocate

Negativity is one of the biggest challenges in getting technology buy-in. And it can spread quickly.

That’s why it’s important to enlist a project advocate who can help influence the wider team (and business) over the benefits of your new solution.

If you are the original project lead, others may find it difficult to discuss their concerns with you. They may not want to be challenging, or risk confrontation. However, if you can offer an objective project advocate for people to honestly voice their thoughts and opinions to, you will open up communications far more easily.

Senior management also make great project advocates. They have respect and clout in the business. Can help eliminate blockers.  And often can have final say on the finer details.

4.

Keep checking in

When trying to push through new technology, you cannot take your foot off the gas for one moment.

You need to keep the momentum going. And keep your team engaged.

That’s where regular check-ins can come in really handy. They help keep communication channels open. And keep you aware of any potential blockers before it’s too late.

They also offer you the opportunity to share exciting updates, milestones, and successes to keep the positivity around your project.

And these check-ins don’t have to just be internal. Keep in touch with your technology supplier or customer success team. Learn from them as much as possible. And keep up to date with the latest releases and news to share with your wider team.

5. 

Provide a variety of training

When teams don’t understand how to use new technology they quickly become disengaged and complacent.

So, ensure they are getting the most out of the technology by offering them a variety of regular, ongoing training options.

You could go all out and offer one-on-one training, drop-in sessions, or even walk-throughs in a company meeting. Alternatively, you could film a demonstration and send it out to all users to access as and when they need it.

But this training doesn’t have to fall on you. Keep in touch with your technology supplier over their training options, webinars, events, and content that they offer to support you and your team.

Thinking about implementing Pure360?

If you’re thinking of implementing Pure360, but are worried about getting team buy-in. We’ve got you covered.

Our friendly team are experienced in supporting marketers to demonstrate the benefits of Pure360. And offer ongoing training, support, events, and content – to ensure you get better results. Get in touch if you’d like to have a chat.