Communication’s Growing Role in

Successful Software Implementation

Alan Woodland

Business Development, Marketing,

Sales

alan.woodland@invers.com

Our dilemma is that we hate change

and love it at the same time; what

we really want is for things to

remain the same but get better

- Sydney J.

Harris

Photo by Dave Meier

“

”

What is

Communication?

Photo by Viktor Hanacek

COMMON

BARRIERS

• Breaking familiar and comfortable

habits

• Assumptions made based on lack of

understanding

• Unclear transition plan

• Minimal consultation with end-user

• Fear of change

Education

Campaign

Ambassador

Buy-in

Empower

EmployeesPhased

Transition

Best Practices for

Successful

Implementation

Photo by Financial Times | https://www.flickr.com/photos/financialtimes/

Education Campaign

What this involves:

• Breaking down the walls of knowledge

• Sharing high-level details to illustrate

the bigger picture

Why does this matter:

• People need to understand the changes to

avoid making incorrect assumptions

• Remove the barriers to acceptance and

notion that the change is just an

inconvenience

Ambassador Buy-in

What this involves:

• Identifying individuals with klout who will

be the ambassadors of change

• Creating buy-in from the ambassador so

he/she can lead by example among the group

Why does this matter:

• Word-of-mouth is a proven concept to share

messages

• Build company-wide buy-in of the change

before and after it occurs

Empower Employees

What this involves:

• Bringing select individuals into the

decision-making process

• Facilitating a collaborative approach in

implementing new software

Why does this matter:

• Listen to the feedback of team

representatives who will be impacted by the

planned changes

• Give employees the opportunity to voice

their opinion and work towards a change

process that works for everyone

Photo by Viktor Hanacek

Phased Transition

What this involves:

• Outlining a staged implementation process

• Developing communication material that sets

the expectation regarding the change

Why does this matter:

• Facilitating a seamless transition will

reduce the resistance felt by those

impacted

• Clear steps and documentation will keep the

implementation plan on track and within

scope

Communication to Stakeholders

Identify

ROI

Create

mutual

relationshi

ps

Reference

success

stories

www.invers.com

Thank you