- So the next step on our list is to apply pressure
and apply Pressure is about making sure
that the team are actually
given the resources that they need to complete things.
But then also
that you're checking in and making sure
that they're actually doing it.
Now what does that look like in a technology implementation?
Well, it might be a training guide,
training resources, video library.
When we implement G suite,
we have a online video library
called Genius Academy.
And each one of our customers goes through that
and puts their staff through that,
so they can learn how to use the new tools,
but there's also other ways of doing that.
There's help guides, there's automated systems,
which allow you to work through that with someone.
But apply pressure is really about making sure
your team actually use the new tool
that you've implemented.
One of the things that we do
when we are switching someone
from Microsoft over to the Google world
is we have a go-live date.
And that go-live date is a hard deadline.
What that means is at some point,
we're gonna be taking our customers
and we're gonna be saying to them,
"Hey, in this time, at this point,
"we're gonna actually be forcing you
"to switch over to Google.
"You're gonna stop using your Outlook
"and you're gonna start using Google."
And one of the things that I really like about that
is with that hard deadline,
we actually have, email stops going to their Outlook.
Like so, you can't use your old email anymore.
So your old Outlook becomes useless
on the day that you switch over to Gmail.
And so think about
if you're implementing a new tool
or a new piece of software,
how could you have a hard deadline?
Can you lock someone out of their old account?
Can you switch something off,
which forces someone to use the new tool?
There other ways of making sure
that things are actually adopted
so that you can apply pressure
to adopt a new way of doing things.
If someone is on the go-live day
and they open up a new tool,
but they don't really feel confident using it
or they haven't had the pressure applied.
You may find that they quickly
switch back to the last tool, right?
And that's where we can end up with,
let's go back to apply pressure.
If we don't apply pressure,
it can take too long
for people to actually adapt to the tool.
Okay, so let's move on to the next one.
The next one is called provide capacity.
Now, providing capacity is about
making sure that your team have support.
Do they have the time to implement this change?
Do they have the ability to get help when they need it?
So they, do they have a help desk available?
Is there someone that they can go to for help?
Or is there someone on your team
who is a champion of the new product
that is designated as the place to go to
when someone needs help?
Now, when we implement G suite
and I'm using this as a great example,
we have our help desk available.
So someone goes to sign into Gmail for the first time,
they can't work out how to set up the signature.
Well, they can go to a help desk,
either they pick up the phone
or send us a message
and they'll get help actually setting that up
by someone on the help desk team.
Now, what you might want to do inside your team is
set up a Guru.
We also sometimes use Google Gurus
and Google Gurus are someone who,
as you're going through a change in a larger organization,
you'll have someone who knows the product
and that person who knows the product,
they will be the one responsible for teaching others.
Now that might be someone who's like a Gen Y
and they're super comfortable with the tool.
It might be someone
who's been a part of your implementation project.
And so not only are they a stakeholder
and making sure that it's successful
but also that person will be responsible
for having the knowledge of how this new tool works.
And then making sure
that the team has someone to go to, who can ask questions.
So, those are gonna be the people
who are gonna be your Gurus
and we gonna provide capacity
for your team to actually get help when they need help.
Now, so we talking about implementing tools right now
but you could also apply this
to fixing the tools that you've maybe implemented right now.
If you've not yet implemented something
or you've put something in place
and it's not really working,
then maybe it goes through this checklist
and see what steps have I missed.
Have you recently implemented something
or maybe you set something up a long time ago
and it's just not being used
the way that you want it to be used.
So the next one we're going to talk about
is called baby first steps.
And this is really about allowing your team
to gradually take on a new product
without completely firehosing them on the first day.
And so implementing baby first steps
might look like implementing a new piece of software
or the new tool in multiple stages.
You might start with something basic
and then bit by bit
work up to the more advanced things.
For example, when we implement G suite,
we'll often start just with Gmail contacts and calendar
and then over time,
introduce Google Drive.
Over time, we will switch documents
from Microsoft format to Google format.
Over time, we will implement Google Sheets.
Over time, we will implement Google Sites
for an internet.
Not all of these happen on the same day.
And when a customer comes to us and says,
"Hey, I've got a deadline.
"I wanna switch over to Google
"and I want it done in 30 days."
Well, that can be a little bit of a challenge
because we know
that it takes teams time to adapt to change.
We know that your team are gonna have to get used to
working from a local machine
or working from your Dropbox
and then working inside Google Drive,
inside of File Stream
or working in a Google Document online.
We know that when someone is switching
from a Microsoft document over to a Google document,
they gonna take time to find the buttons
and learn some new keyboard short cuts
and learn some slightly different ways
of doing things in some cases.
Now, that's not to say that
anyone can't get there
or it's not gonna work over time.
And you may even find that right now,
if you've not implemented change well inside your business,
that you've got team members
who are actually half implemented
and halfway across two different systems,
baby first steps is about helping someone
get a taste for the new way of working
and then allowing them to build up their confidence.
When you give someone a basic first step
and they build up a bit of confidence,
then they're more excited to take the next step
and the next step and the next step and the next step.
So that's what baby's first steps is about.
Now important is knowing
who's responsible
to make sure this baby first steps happen, right?
Good project design is very important,
making sure that you a good project plan is important.
And look, I'm not a fetishist for things like
Gantt charts and over-complicating
project planning and project strategy.
But I do really believe in making sure that
things are well thought out for the human experience
of the tool that you're going to implement.
If you are implementing something
that's gonna radically change,
not only the way that someone does their work
and the knowledge that they have to retain
on how to use that tool
but it also may be changing processes in the business
as you're implementing it.
Just keep in mind that your team up
gonna be going through a bit of a topsy-turvy time.
There's gonna be a lot of rapid change for them.
And if you are an entrepreneur or a business owner,
you are likely
very used to dealing with change.
You're likely to be used to an even striving
in uncertain environments
in taking on new challenges, new opportunities,
or new strategies
or dealing with the challenges
that are thrown at you like COVID.
We used to this,
but our team are not used to this.
Teams desire, certainty over for variety.
Now, it's not to say that
nobody likes challenge
and nobody likes having some healthy level of variety
in their role
but when you're implementing a new tool,
keep in mind that
you're probably more excited about it
than your team.
And so, it's up to you to make sure
that your team has chaperoned
in a way that's actually comfortable for them
in their experience.
Now, final one for success is report back.
And this is really about
checking in with how things are going.
If you don't report back,
you may find that something is implemented
and then it tends to drop off on the usage over time.
Or maybe you implement something
but you don't quite get the result that you're after.
And so reporting back
is about checking with your team
and making sure that they're actually
using the tool that you want them to use
but also that you're getting the results
and the organizational change
and the systems improvement
and the productivity increase
that you actually wanted in the first place
when you were implementing that tool.
So, how can we do a report?
Well, you might use something like a Google Form
and check in with the team.
How has this process for you?
How did the change go?
Are you liking the new tool?
Is this helpful for you?
Is this working for you?
You might check in on KPIs.
You might have some one-on-ones.
You might ask managers
to check in with their team members
and get a bit of a feel for how things are going.
But also the thing that you can do
as a business owner or as an executive
is to actually check in.
And what that means is
you literally open up the app
and you see if it's being used
or maybe you managed by walking around.
You check in and you ask a couple of people one-on-one,
and you ask, "Hey, we've implemented this new tool recently,
"how's it going for you?
"Is it working?
"Is it doing what you need it to do?"
And that's gonna be your way
of making sure that you're checking in
whether or not this tool is actually being used
and therefore is successful in the change.
So, let's go back to our diagnostic
and let's just kind of like finish this one off guys.
So, we've gone through each one of the steps
and you now have an idea about
which one, each of these,
what each of these means.
I think I got that right.
You now have a good idea
of what each of these means
and how you can utilize these inside the business
when you're going through change.
So, I'm gonna do a quick summary
and let's just see
what can happen
when we don't implement one of these steps.
So if you see here,
if you're frustrated by people's reactions,
then perhaps you haven't painted a clear vision.
People didn't know why we were doing this
and so they weren't on board with it
from the very start.
Okay, so number two,
if your desired outcome was not achieved,
well, maybe you didn't have the leadership on board
and making sure that they were actually leading
and getting things going.
But also modeling the way
is about showing how things are done.
If you're not training someone properly,
if you're not actually providing
those resources to show them how it's done
and having your team members
in the roles and responsibility
of actually implementing this change,
showing the way,
then it's less likely it's going to work for you.
Alright, number three,
took too long for people to adapt.
So that one's about pressure.
That's about actually making sure
that you're pushing through with your plan.
You're making sure
that people have the right resources
that they need to actually
make sure that they can actually learn
what they need to learn
but that you're actually ensuring
that people are using the tool.
And as I suggested that may be
switching off the old tool,
so they no longer have access to the old tool
and making sure yes, we're going live from a certain date.
Remember if you're only half committed to something,
then the team are gonna be less than half committed.
And so, it's really important for you
to make sure that you are eating the dog food,
as they say at Google
and applying and implementing the new tool
and actually then using it yourself.
(upbeat music)