Any system is only as good as how well it is used.
If it’s a CRM, ERP, or any other system, when users don’t know how to use the system effectively the benefits of the new system for your organization will be small, or even negative.
This means user enablement is critical to the success of a project.
It is not enough to simply have your new system in place two weeks before your go-live date.
Your users need to know:
1) Why you’re implementing the new system. When it comes to organizational changes and operational logistics, many employees will be instrumental in the change you’re promoting. It’s important to tend to their needs throughout the change journey.
2) How existing processes will change and which new processes will be introduced with the new system.
3) How to use the system. Your user base can range from people who have spent their entire careers on the “green screen” (yet still don’t know how to use a mouse to copy and paste content) to millennials, who are so accustomed to touchscreens that they don’t know that it’s possible to strike the arrow icon on the keyboard to move an object.
4) Who to contact in case they require support with any problems or questions. If you’re working with an internal service desk, make sure that they’re equipped with standardized scripts. Alternatively, if you’re working with an external service provider, make sure you’ve selected a partner who can provide the highest level of support required for the new system.
5) Whether they can offer feedback and make suggestions to improve the system. One of the best ways to build support organization-wide is to give everyone a voice and a platform to share their views throughout the transition.
Of course, transitions and change management require not only time, but also a stable and working system that can be used to create training, user guides, videos, and user acceptance tests.
So if you are still building and testing your system shortly before going live your user enablement will suffer greatly.
You will have neither the necessary time, nor the necessary trust in the system, you need to achieve user enablement and acceptance.
And with that your benefits will be limited.
In a nutshell: when users don’t know how to use your new system effectively the benefits of the new system for your organization will be limited.
