Featured Article: Implementing New Software and Managing Change, Midwest Society of Association Executives’ 2008 Technology Resource Guide

Alliance Technologies’ marketing director, Jason Lamping, contributed to the 2008 MSAE Technology Resource Guide with an article about implementing new software and managing change within an association (full article below).

Alliance Technologies serves the association market with its Association Management Software product Computility, and has been a member of MSAE since February 2008.

About MSAE
The Midwest Society of Association Executives (MSAE) is a professional society of more than 1,000 individuals whose goal is to promote association effectiveness through education and leadership development.
www.msae.com


Implementing New Software and Managing Change
Jason Lamping, Alliance Technologies

Implementing new software also means implementing and managing change. Are you prepared? Research studies show that one of the biggest obstacles to overcome when implementing new software is resistance to change, however, this is something often over-looked in the process. Many implementation projects fail because people don’t use the new system correctly, or even worse, they don’t use it at all. Effectively managing people, processes and change will be critical in determining the future success of the new product.

Successfully managing change actually begins before the product is selected, not after. Key people need to be involved during the product evaluation and selection process. While including some of your more technically advanced staff is good, it’s equally important to include the actual end-users of the product (who may be more technically challenged). Without their buy-in, input and commitment, it will be much more difficult to get them to adopt the new technology. And in the end, your new system will only be as good as the people using it!

Here are some additional tips to help ensure a smooth transition:

Management Commitment: Everyone in the organization should be fully aware of the support, commitment and dedication that management has for the project. It is ill-advised for an executive director to be involved in the product selection process, but then completely bow out during implementation. Sounds simple, however, it is easy to take the ‘I’m just too busy’ approach after the product has been selected. This can send out the wrong message right off the bat and may leave others thinking ‘if management isn’t committed to this, why should I be’?

Identify Goals and Objectives: Goals and objectives should not only be defined for the implementation project, but also for the expected results of the entire solution. Questions to consider include: What are some measurable results we hope to achieve? What expectations do we have of our staff? How will the product positively impact our staff and our members? Are there any future activities or events that will impact when we need to be ‘live’ with the new system? What milestones can be set to make sure we’re on track with the project? What is our target date to be fully up and running? What’s our long-term strategy.

Effective Communication: It’s not only important to set goals and objectives, but also to make sure everyone involved knows them and understands the expectations. All goals should be written down and communicated to the entire staff and vendor. Your staff should be encouraged to participate in this process and ask questions. Everyone should understand their role and how they contribute to the overall success of the project. It’s easy for people to take a ‘what’s in it for me?’ approach, that’s why it’s important to make sure everyone knows their role, why it’s important and how it contributes to their success and the organization’s success. Encourage and reward participation, consider offering an incentive plan tied to achieving your goals. Effective communication needs to be present every step of the way.

Appoint an Internal Champion: It’s a good idea to assign an internal team leader for the implementation project. The leader will become an expert with the product and be relied upon as a valuable resource for the entire team. Choose this person wisely and make sure everyone understands their role. Having an internal champion will help eliminate future dependency on the vendor and creates accountability for the success of the project.

Identify Personality Traits: Some people will be quicker to embrace new technology than others. People have different attitudes, experiences and personalities. It’s important to identify those that are comfortable with change and those that may resist it. For those that are likely to resist change get them on board and committed early. Don’t let one person sabotage the project and ruin the investment and hard work of the entire organization.

Cleanse Your Data: A database is only as good as the data within. Many databases are plagued with errors, typos and duplicate information. What history of information are you going to want brought into the new system? Who is going to cleanse and migrate your data? What services does the vendor provide? What data can you live without? Remember to keep a copy of your old data for future reference. Getting a new system offers the opportunity to get a fresh start with clean data and for establishing a procedure to ensure it stays properly updated and maintained going forward.

Take Baby Steps, Transition in Phases. Think about this process as a marathon, rather than a sprint. Rolling out a new system can be overwhelming if done all at once. Don’t rely on the vendor to outline a road map for implementation (although they should!). Spell out key dates and milestones and track them throughout the process – communicate them with the vendor and staff. Identifying areas where small victories can be achieved will help keep everyone happy and keep things moving in the right direction.

Train Early, Train Often: In order to get through the dreaded learning curve inherent with implementing new software, it’s critical to hold multiple training sessions. Early training should involve mastering the basics of the new system. Beginning with simpler tasks will help create a positive experience for end-users right away. It may also be helpful to have training sessions coincide with the various phases of implementation, that way as new components are being introduced, training follows right along. Consider scheduling refresher training sessions throughout the entire first year of the transition.

Remain Committed: In the early stages of transition your staff will actually be less efficient and less productive as they adjust to the new system. The time period right after launch is critical as this is where it’s tempting for people to abandon the system and resort back to old ways. Now is not the time to jump ship. As with any major project, there’s a good chance you will encounter challenging times and unforeseen obstacles. Be aware in advance of any potential road blocks that may occur, but also know that things may happen that you didn’t plan for. Remaining focused and committed even through hard times will ensure you make it successfully to the finish line!


About the author:
Jason Lamping is the marketing director for Alliance Technologies. Jason has been involved in numerous association and small business information technology projects and implementations. His experience includes both hardware and software related products and services, including Computility association management software encompassing database and website technologies. Jason graduated from the University of Iowa in 1999 and received an MBA from Drake University in 2003.