Getting the Return On Your Technology Investment

Three trends dominate the agency agenda today: customers, competition and change. In customer service, these trends have translated themselves into three key areas. To be competitive agencies must provide:

• One-stop and one-call access for every customer, whether they are using the telephone, a personal computer or the Internet.

• Faster and faster response times—customer patience is at an all time low.

• Clear and understandable answers to complex questions, from both novice and experienced customers. This situation has created a tremendous need for technology-based tools to support customer service organizations in providing service that “delights” customers.

The ‘soft stuff’ is really the hard stuff. Many still believe that, in organizational change, issues such as dealing with the ‘human side’ are fluffy and insubstantial, and should be an afterthought. The only things that really matter are technology and hard design. But we are all beginning to learn is that what we once considered hard or difficult is, in fact, the ‘easy stuff.’ The technology issues are the easiest to deal with and don’t usually make the most difference.

All too often, however, simply installing these technology-based tools doesn’t produce either the promised payback or the desired results. Instead of delighted customers you get frustrated customers. And, instead of high performing employees you get frustrated and low performing ones.

Introducing technology means introducing change. Change is about people. And, the data is overwhelming that the No. 1 obstacle to successful change is people issues. Dealing with resistance, fear and anxiety is typically cited as the most difficult aspect of ensuring successful change.

While there is no guaranteed solution on how to ensure the return on your technology investment, paying attention to the following critical factors will increase the likelihood of your success.

Everything is connected
Typically, technology represents just one part of a total solution to achieve the true business result of improved customer loyalty. These tools can’t correct inadequate agency processes, ineffective management structures and systems, inappropriate jobs and roles, or out of sync values and beliefs. It’s critical to understand and address the whole agency system—the agency’s processes, technologies, management structures and systems, jobs and roles, and values and beliefs. Oftentimes, it’s the intangibles that offer the greatest leverage.

Any change
Introducing new technology, even if you don’t intend to change your basic processes, is still introducing change in your organization. Change creates fear and resistance as well as opportunity and challenge. People respond to change in a predictable pattern often referred to as the Change Journey. This journey moves from anticipation through pessimism to optimism, acknowledging that people respond to change based on 30 percent logic and 70 percent emotion.

Ensure sponsorship and alignment
Sponsorship is critical to success. Someone must articulate a compelling vision for the change, link it clearly to agency objectives and ensure it is focused on solving a real problem. You must nurture executive commitment and sponsorship because this is often one of the hot seats in a project. Success requires active support from all levels within the organization, including senior management, middle management and all front-line people. In order for technology-based tools to produce significant business results the entire organization must truly “walk-the-talk.”

Let go and move on
Management guru, Peter Drucker, said, “In the knowledge society, managers must prepare to abandon everything they know.” What you “know” may well be limiting your ability to create new and powerful solutions. The introduction of new technology-based tools is more than simply the automation of a customer service process. It’s the opportunity to define a new one based on new paradigms. And, successful implementations may be more a function of effective change management and communications than planning and training.

Plan from right to left
Technology-based tools are a means to an end. In order to meet the organization’s true goals; keep focused on the agency’s results to be produced, not on the activities to be accomplished. Start your implementation planning as soon as you start your technology planning. Work back from specific agency targets and deadlines rather than towards them. And, prepare to scale up rapidly from the initial implementation because once management sees what’s really possible they’ll want it fully implemented as soon as possible.

Think globally and act locally
Think big and set demanding targets so they’ll become key drivers for action. But, start small and move quickly so you can get early successes, maintain momentum and apply what you learn as you go.

Really understand the technology
In order to be successful with technology you must learn the language of the technologists. It’s necessary to be able to speak to and understand them in their own language. Resolve any technical issues as soon as possible for today and keep the future in mind so you are well prepared for subsequent releases. Most importantly, focus on the interface design because “what you see is what you get” when it comes to technology and this truly is the key to performance.

Pull, don’t push
Communicate, communicate and communicate. Develop compelling messages that appeal to the emotions of the people impacted. Start early, say them often and then keep repeating them. You can’t over communicate.

Remember, it’s not all in the technology
Although the technology is necessary to ensure business results, it does not guarantee you’ll achieve them. As you increase the use of technology-based tools—you also must provide easy access to people—the high touch. Human-to-human contact through hot lines, voicemail, and electronic mail systems is often the critical element to overcoming resistance and gaining acceptance. In addition, make full use of all the learning and support resources available. Print (i.e., job aids), multimedia (i.e., audio and video) and people (i.e., coaches) can still play a critical role in the success of any solution. The key is to integrate each of these resources into a system that supports on-time performance and continuous learning.
Get ready, get crazy, get real and have fun

What good is a wonderful technology-based tool if it isn’t used properly or at all? Effective implementation is therefore one of the keys to success. An effective implementation approach must ensure your organization, and the target audience, is truly ready, willing and able—having the right processes and structures, the right culture, and the right capabilities. Implementation is full of surprises and challenges. Rarely does it go as planned, no matter how derailed that plan may be. It’s important, therefore, to understand the “game,” appreciate the complexities, manage the conflicts, and keep your eye on the results.

A successful implementation strategy follows some basic principles:
• It gets off of paper and into action quickly; don’t spend too much time and effort working the plan and managing the plan.
• It anticipates resistance and is not surprised by it.
• It provides for learning along the way rather than assumes to have everything taken care of in the beginning.
• It sustains focus on the agency’s results rather than activities.
• It focuses on people as well as things, since all technology projects are in effect people projects.
• It aligns the project with the organization’s strategic goals and objectives and accelerates the achievement of agency results.
• And, finally, it produces lasting infrastructure redesign so there is ongoing support for future releases and changes.

By applying the 10 critical factors of success described above you will be able to avoid many pitfalls and ensure your technology-based tools are used effectively, workers and executives are committed and enthusiastic, and significant agency results are produced. In the final analysis, remember it all comes down to people. People perform, people provide service, people solve problems, and people deliver results … not technology. To quote a manager of a large technology project upon its completion, “I finally get it. This is not about technology, this is about people.”

Jack Fries is recognized as one of the nation’s top agency operations experts. He can be reached by e-mail at: jfries@jackfries.com or by phone at:(859) 694-1580. You can also find additional articles and services at: www.jackfries.com.