How to Deal with Opposition to New Tech

by Stephanie Faris on Monday, November 14 6:00

Change can be difficult, even stressful. In fact, change is one of the top stressors human beings deal with on a daily basis, whether it s divorce, death, a career change, or a move. For many businesses, however, change is an essential part of growing. In order to compete in an always-evolving market, companies must always remain fully aware of the best technologies available to help accomplish their goals.

Unfortunately, despite their efforts, many tech teams find that the employees they support resist any change. This is especially true of the employees responsible for handling administrative processes each day. Even when automation can make their lives easier, they can resist, stating that they aren t comfortable with the shift. Here are a few things information technology teams can do to keep moving forward in the face of reluctance to change.

Demonstrate the Benefits

In a data-driven corporate world, facts are everything. The best bet professionals have anytime they re trying to make a case is to gather as much information as possible. If you believe a particular application or infrastructure change can help the people you support each day, gather as much information as possible before mentioning it. Show a clear correlation between the current environment and the environment as it s likely to exist after changes are made. If the leadership team can see cost savings or increased income from the new technology, they ll be more likely to take action.

Involve Stakeholders

The people who have the most to lose will likely be the most vocal about the change. From the start, make it clear that you ll involve each of those employees in the process of planning, testing, and implementing the new technology. Once they realize they ll have a voice in the new project, people tend to be more enthusiastic about change.

Offer Training

Training is essential in helping employees grow more comfortable with the rapid pace of tech change in your organization. When workers see their leaders are willing to invest in their professional development, they ll feel a boost in morale, but they ll also see change as an opportunity to grow. If you make it clear that employees will have access to training until they re comfortable with the new technology, they ll be less likely to resist

Bring on the Competition

The biggest motivator for businesses is beating the competition. Gather information on similar technologies being used by competitors within the same industry and use that to form the basis of your pitch. When your leadership team sees that others might win over customers using more efficient support systems, they ll probably be all too willing to listen to what you have to say. This is especially true if the competition is already beating your organization and that success can be directly linked to the technology they re using.

Convincing professionals to move from old processes to new ones can be challenging, but with careful research and a convincing sales pitch, tech teams can make it work. The key is to spend as much time as possible researching before approaching leaders to ensure you have the facts in place to state your case.