Strong companies with forward-thinking corporate cultures properly utilize technology to create advantage. As a Communications expert with a background in Information Technology, I’ve viewed with interest the try/fail/try/fail/try/succeed efforts to introduce new technology in business environments.

Today, at least by my observation, the average office worker is more embracing of technological advancements at the office than was the case ten years ago. However, resistance to the introduction of new systems can still be a struggle. This is often due to a general disconnect between IT staff, executive leadership, and the end-users.

A Case In Point: Office 2007

I saw this disconnect present itself very glaringly with the introduction of Microsoft Office 2007, which was the first version of Office to sport the new “ribbon” interface as opposed to the traditional menu bar. This transition was not difficult to those who are early and eager adopters of technology and like to play around with a lot of different systems (with different user interfaces). Nor was it a problem for such individuals as user interface developers who, while debating the pros/cons of the approach, were able to figure the system out pretty quickly. But the change was creating a good deal of consternation for the majority of end-users. The updgrade caused efficiency loss at many companies. Resulting concerns regarding the supposed inevitable havok caused some companies to postpone the upgrade.

IT offices were concerned about user adoption of 2007, but often failed to implement a reasonable transition plan before rolling out the upgrade. Those who think from a Communications mindset, and hence who are concerned about how new ideas will be received, would have (and did) think of a solution.

The Solution

When providing Communications insight to one IT team, my primary concern about receptivity to the Office 2007 upgrade centered around Microsoft Word as the most frequently used application in the suite (in the environment under consideration). Outlook, though a source of concern, did not change to the ribbon for its main interface.

The first thing we talked about was the communication schedule. We wanted to be very out-in-front in defining the upgrade schedule, and we wanted all users in the organization to be aware of precisely when the upgrade was going to take place. However, we knew that this would lead to an “anxiety period” both before and after the upgrade if we did not take additional steps.

We needed to avoid any anxiety for two reasons. First, anxiety leads to anger, leads to resentment. Second, this process wasn’t just about this particular upgrade—it was about building a trust relationship between IT and the users. How this effort was handled would affect the success of future efforts.

We knew that IT could talk about benefit in the upgrade all day and not have the necessary effect—some user groups (this one included) have an inherent distrust of IT’s optimism regarding how easy to use new systems will be.

So to counter the anticipated anxiety, we targeted early adopters in the company and worked to upgrade their systems before the general upgrade schedule was released. Early adopters in the user interface learned to enjoy the advantages of the upgrade and then bragged about those advantages to other users. This introduced jealousy. Jealousy is a powerful motivator in getting people to want something that they previously disdained.

We did a bit of research and found an Office 2007 add-in that would reintroduce the traditional menu system alongside the ribbon interface. When the Office 2007 upgrade was performed, the add-in was installed as well. This allowed users to explore the new system while being able to reference the old system when the frustration level got too high. The supposed benefit of the task-oriented ribbon system was to make tools easier to find and use. Making the old menu system available allowed users to see whether or not that was actually true over time, without anxiety about whether or not they would be able to perform critical, time sensitive tasks.

The rest of our communications process revolved around good messaging, positive reinforcement, and support availability. The early adopters, who had been using Office 2007 more than a month before the rest of the staff, eagerly answered the questions of their coworkers and mitigated support requests that would have otherwise been directed to IT technical support.

The Result

The combined efforts of IT and Communications created a very smooth transition process in adopting a significant product upgrade. So, how did this help to build a strong corporate culture?

The joint effort helped to prepare a process for introducing new technology in a productive manner. The users developed a more trusting attitude towards how the IT team would perform in future situations. Executives developed a more open attitude to proposals regarding the introduction of new technology; concern about user confusion and possible backlash (resulting in productivity loss) was reduced.

Additional Tidbit

Once, a number of years ago, I couldn’t get a company executive (who held the IT purse strings) to realize the efficiency increase in putting two flat-screen monitors on every desk—something that my office had long-since introduced for efficiency in research/writing, graphic design, user interface development, etc. The executive wouldn’t even try it out himself for two weeks.

So I instructed that two beautiful flat-screen monitors be given, free of charge, to his executive assistant. Shortly thereafter the green-eyed monster took charge. It was only a matter of time before two displays became commonplace in the corporate office.

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