6 Powerful Tips to Keep Technology Changes Positive

Making the decision to add or change technology in your district is a big deal, and likely means big changes to your employees’ day to day. In our 25 years of helping School District HR, we’ve overseen a lot of technology changes – here are our favorite strategies to manage big changes and keep things moving forward in a positive way!

1. Build a Team to Create Buy-In. In many cases, the people who sign off on technological upgrades or changes are not necessarily the same people that will be using the technology every day. Create a small team of key people who will be using the technology and/or impacted by it. Let them have a voice and a seat at the table as you define goals and must-have features. Include people who are eager or volunteer to participate; ideally those who can provide insight into what isn’t working today and what is needed to maximize the usefulness of new technology. Transition these folks into an implementation team once you’ve chosen a winner and let them see their own vision come to life!
2. Create Excitement Around the Change. Keep the benefits of making the change front and center! If your team has truly bought in to the project, they can help spread the word about the positive changes new technology will bring. Celebrate milestones during the process and share those accomplishments with your whole department. Make team brainstorming sessions fun and collaborative.
3. Be Transparent. Schedule regular check-ins and updates to share progress with everyone – whether you’re goal-setting, sitting through demos to determine finalists, or in the middle of implementation. This will ensure you keep things on track and can adjust deadlines if needed. Large-scale projects can be overwhelming; checking in regularly will help people feel comfortable and supported during implementation and beyond. This includes sharing set-backs! No technology implementation goes exactly to plan, and that’s ok.
4. Leave Room for Feedback. Make sure your end-users feel comfortable sharing any feedback they have along the way. Involve them in testing the new technology and keep them engaged by hosting roundtables where they can share their perspective.
5. Have a Kick-Off Celebration. Just prior to launch, host a special celebration to show your appreciation for everyone that helped make the new process a reality. Launching on a high makes the team feel excited to move forward and will build some confidence in case there are unexpected bumps in the road. Consider hosting a Lunch and Learn to acknowledge the team’s hard work and your enthusiasm for the upcoming launch.
6. Keep Supporting the Team as They Learn and Grow. Learning to use new technology takes time! Keep reminding everyone of the stated goals and host work groups or coaching sessions to help people feel more confident. Frame hiccups as areas of opportunity and encourage the team to keep evaluating what will make things better. If and when you discover that any technology is no longer serving you, it is okay to explore a better option!

Having a proven track record of successfully managing technology changes is a major win. When you celebrate and publicize these changes with your whole department, you create an expectation for what change will look like in the future. Leadership will be expected and trusted to respect opinions, involve a team, and competently research and choose technology that will best meet the stated goals. Expectations will be high, but there will be an eagerness to match!