User Adoption Strategies (2nd Edition) - · PDF fileUser Adoption Strategies (2nd Edition) Shifting Second Wave People to New Collaboration Technology Michael Sampson

User Adoption Strategies (2nd Edition)Shifting Second Wave People to New Collaboration Technology

Michael Sampson

UserAdoptionStrategies �2

“Michael’sideasonuseradoptionareaction-oriented:learnbydoing,learnnowandfast.Thereisverylittleabstract‘consultantspeak’abouttheimportanceofcollaboration.AnideaofhisIlikealotis‘FacilitatedGroupRe-Imagining.’It’seasierthanitsounds!Itmeansgettinggroupsorteamstogethertodiscoverhowtheyworktoday,thendefine—withthem—howtheycanworkinthenewcollaborationcontext.Thisletsteamsdefinetheirwayofworkingtogether.Gettinganintactgrouptoagreeonworkinginadifferentwayiscriticaltosuccess.”

JaneMcConnellIntranetandPortalStrategist,NetJMCFrancewww.netjmc.com

“Michaelhasbeena‘collaborationstrategist’for15years—wellbefore‘workplacecollaboration’enteredmainstreambusinessvernacular.Allhisthoroughlyresearched,expertlywritten,andaccessiblebooksandarticlesattesttohisdeepexperienceandabidinginterestineffectiveteamworkandthevarioustechnologiesproducedoverthelastdecadeorsotosupportcollaboration.Inthislatestpublication,Michaelfocusesontheuser—thekeytoachievingsuccessfromcollaborationtechnologies,regardlessoftheproduct.Providingawealthofinsightandguidance,UserAdoptionStrategiesisamust-readforanyoneplanningatechnologyimplementationorseekingpracticalmeansofhelpingusersmakeeffectiveuseoftoday'stechnologiestoimprovetheirworkplacecollaboration.”

LynnWarnekeInformationManagement&SharePointConsultantMelbourne,Australiaau.linkedin.com/in/lwarneke

“Michael’sbookprovidesacomprehensivetoolkitwhichyoucanputtogoodusewhenyouneedtogetpeopletousethenewstuffyouhavedeveloped.Obviouslythebookiscentredaroundonlinetools,butmostoftheapproachesworkequallywellwithmanyotherkindsofprojects—andnotonlythingsonline.Michaelhaswrittenabookforeveryonewhoisworkingwithchangemanagementandadoption.Whetheryou’reanexperiencedchangeagentoryou’recomingtotermswithyourfirstproject,I’msurethatyouwillfindmanyusefultipsandstrategicapproaches,andthatyou’llfindyourselfreachingforthebookagainandagain.”

MartinRisgaardRasmussenApplicationConsultant,GrundfosHoldingA/SDenmarkwww.linkedin.com/in/martinrisgaard

http://www.netjmc.net

http://au.linkedin.com/in/lwarneke



“MichaelSampson’sbookUserAdoptionStrategiesisamust-read.Init,hecompellinglyoutlinestheneedforbehaviouralchangeifcollaborationtoolsaregoingtosucceedwithinorganisations,andprovidesasimplefour-stagemodelforplanningthistransformation.Mostimportantly,heoutlines20differentchangestrategiesthatcanbeappliedtogainadoptionofcollaborationtools.Theserangefromquick-and-easyactivitiestomajorenterpriseinitiatives;allareworthconsidering.Thisisamasterwork,andithighlightswhatorganisationsmustdotomakecollaborationtoolswork.”

JamesRobertsonManagingDirector,StepTwoDesignswww.steptwo.com.au

“WhatIenjoyedmostfromthebookisthewayMichaelexplainsthesestrategies.Notonlydoyougettoknowhowtheywork,butalsowhentoapplythem(inwhichsituation),andwhytheyactuallyhelpyou.Allthisiswritteninveryunderstandablelanguagefilledwithlotsofexamples,makingiteasyforyoutograsptheconceptsimmediately.Whilereading,afewtimesIthought‘whydidn'tIthinkaboutthisbefore?’Thesearen’tcomplexframeworksforwhichyouneedtoreadandthinkalotbeforehandtounderstandthem,andneitherdoesittakealotoftimetoapplythem.”

ReneModeryWebProgramManagerAuthor,“Chapter6.ExploringDifferentOptionsforImplementingSharePointSolutions”inTheSharePoint2010Handbook(2011)www.modery.net

“Althoughmostofusworkonthetechnologyendofcollaborativesoftware,wealmostalwaysgetinvolvedinthediscussionssurroundingtheage-oldquestion...‘Whyaren’tpeopleusing<insert-vendor-software-name-here>?’Theeasyknee-jerkanswer(andoneI’veusedanumberoftimesmyself)isthatit’snotthetechnology,it’stheculture.Whiletrueatacertainlevel,there’ssomuchmorebehindgettingpeopletoadoptcollaborativesoftwaresothatitdeliversonthepromisesthatweremade.MichaelSampson,awell-knownexpertonthetopicofcollaboration,divesdeeplyintowhatmakesforsuccessfuluseradoptioninhisbookUserAdoptionStrategies:ShiftingSecondWave

PeopletoNewCollaborationTechnology.ThisshouldbeoneofthefirstbooksthatisreadandstudiedbeforelaunchingyourSharePoint/Connections/etc.rollout.Andsincethebookisvendor-agnostic,itreallydoesn’tmatterwhatplatformyou’rerollingout.Theseproblemsarecommontoallofthem."

ThomasDuffDeveloper,RegenceAuthor,IBMLotusSametime8Essentials:AUser’sGuide,withMarieScottwww.dujert.com



http://www.duffbert.com


UserAdoptionStrategies (2ndEdition)

ShiftingSecondWavePeopletoNewCollaborationTechnology

MichaelSampson


Foreword—byNancyWhite,FullCircleAssociates

Collaborationshouldn’tbeanelusivepractice.Werecognisewecanandmustworktogether.Werecognisethattechnologyhaschangedwhatitmeanstoworktogether,bothwhenweareinthesameplaceorscatteredacrosstheglobe.Wehavethebusinessimperatives.Wehavethetechnology.Yetwhydoesitremainsohard?

Letmetellyouastory.

Aresearchorganisationhadasupportteamwhorecognisedearlyonthepossibilitiesoftheuseofsocialmediafortheirscientists.Sotheyinstalledblogandwikisoftware,createdtrainingsessionsandthoughtthatitwouldbeaquickandobviousadoption.ItwasSOcleartothesesmartindividuals.Theirscientistswereclever.Easy.

Notso.Aftersomemissteps,theteamchangedtheirstrategy.Theywerenotscientists.Theyneededthescientiststodefinetherulesofthegame.Insteadoftrainingsessions,theyconvenedconversationsaboutresearch,notaboutsocialmedia.Asrealcollaborationneedssurfaced,theyofferedsuggestionsandexperimentsbetweenthem.Thetechnologyfolkscreatedprototypesforexperimentation,takingapagefromtheverypracticesthescientistsusedonadailybasis.Prototypesweresetup,feedbackofferedandappliedandtoolsandpracticessubsequentlyadjusted.

Whathappened?Practicestoenhancecollaborativeresearchemerged.Theyjusthappenedtousetechnologyaspartoftheprocess.Thescientistsdidscience,not“blogandwiki”classesthattheyfeltwereawasteoftime.

Tofollowup,thetechnologyteamreadjustedtheirrolestostewardingthetechnology—keepinganeyeonhowthescientistswereusingthetools,makingadjustmentsandlookingoutfornewoptions.Theywerecarefulnottodefinetheconversation,insteadlisteningandcontributing.TheylivedthewordsMichaelshareswithusonpage249,"Go!Learn!Adjust!Andthengosomemore!"

Throughtheprocessthese"technologystewards"redefinedtheirroles.Whataboutthescientists?Thinkaboutit.Arescientists“secondwaveadopters?”Inreality,thescientistsarefirstwaveadoptersintheirfieldsofresearch,butsecondwavetechnologyadopters.Ittook

Insteadoftrainingsessions,theyconvenedconversationsaboutresearch,notaboutsocialmedia. Asrealcollaborationneedssurfaced,theyofferedsuggestionsandexperimentsbetweenthem.Thetechnologyfolkscreatedprototypesforexperimentation,takingapagefromtheverypracticesthescientistsusedonadailybasis.


seeingthecollaborationfromtheircontexttobringthemonboard,butwithoutmakingthemfeellikesecond-classcitizensandbyrespectingtheirwayofworking.

I'mattractedtotheideaofsecondwaveadopters—thatlargegroupofpeopleEverettRogerswritesaboutinDiffusionofInnovations.Theyarethepeoplewhoareouttheregettingworkdone.Ifweasleadersareaboutcreatingtheconditionsforthatworktohappen,thenthisshouldbeagroupwepayattentiontoandsupport.WhenwedidourresearchabouttechnologyforcommunitiesofpracticeforourbookDigitalHabitats:StewardingTechnologyforCommunities,werecognisedthatpeopleusetechnologycreatively,ofteninwaysthedesignersorITneverexpected.WerealisedthereisarolethatisdifferentfromIT,arolethatrequiresbothknowledgeoftechnologyandknowledgeofthepeople.Inthisdynamicinterplay,wehavetheissueoftechnologyadoption.

Wavesarefunnythings.Thinkofoceanwaves.Theygoupanddown,theycanbegentleorpoundusintothesand.Justwhenwethinkwehavetheirrhythm,thenextwavechangesandsurprisesus.Thekeyisstayingalert,knowinghowtoswim,andbeingreadyfortheunexpected.

MichaelSampsonisabouttotakeyousurfingontheoceanofcollaborationtechnologyadoption.Inclear,practicallanguage,heoffersusinsightsthatcanreducethepainandincreasethebenefitsofcollaborationsoftwareadoption.Comeon,catchthewave!

NancyWhiteFullCircleAssociates,www.fullcirc.comAuthor,DigitalHabitats:StewardingTechnologyforCommunities,withEtienneWengerandJohnD.Smith

Thekeyisstayingalert,knowinghowtoswim,andbeingreadyfortheunexpected.

http://www.fullcirc.com

Chapter1 FocusingonUserAdoptionisCritical �18

Chapter1. FocusingonUserAdoptionisCritical

Adoptioncanbehard...particularlywithbroad-brushedtoolsthatcandosomuch. 1

ScottJamison,Jornada

Theworldisfilledwithgroovytechnologytosupportpeopleworkingtogether.There’snoshortageofit.DuringthedecadethatItrackedallnewproductandserviceannouncementsinthe“collaboration”space,hardlyadaywentbywithoutatleastoneexistingvendorreleasingnewfeatures,ifnotanewentrantvendormakingasplashontheglobalstage.Mycontentionisthatthetechnologytosupportcollaborationisnolongerthelimitingfactor.Useradoptionis.

Inthischapter,wewill:

1. Considertheevidenceontheimportanceofuseradoption

2. Contemplatethecostandriskofnotdevelopingauseradoptionapproachforyourorganisation.

3. Definetheterm“useradoptionstrategies”anditsderivatives,asusedinthisbook.

4. Learnthedifferencebetweenfirstandsecondwavepeople.

Thetechnologytosupportcollaborationisnolongerthelimitingfactor.Useradoptionis.


The“Why”ofUserAdoptionStrategies

Theuseradoption“problem”isarefrainIhearallovertheworldwhenI’mworkingwithorganisationsoncollaborationstrategy—inSingapore,inAustralia,intheUnitedStates,inEurope,andyes,eveninmyhomecountryofNewZealand.Butit’snotjustwhatI’mhearing.Thereisgrowingagreementamongmultiplegroupsofpeopleinvolvedwithcollaborationtechnology—thevendors,theconsultants,theinternalevangelists,theend-userorganisations—thatanintentionalfocusonuseradoptionisessential.I’dgoasfarassayingthatmanyarecomingtotheviewthatthisisthemaingame.

Thebasicthinkinggoeslikethis:

Itisimportanttochoosetherightcollaborationtechnologyforyourgroup,organisationorcommunity—nottoomuchtoconfusethem,andnottoolittletoannoythem.Forthisyouneedtoknowcertainthings(e.g.howthepeoplewithinthetargetgroupwork),youneedtogetvariousthingsright(e.g.vendorselection,riskmitigation,andtechnologyintegration),andyouneedtohavetherightpeopleinplacetomakeitworkwell(e.g.business-focusedITadministrators).ItalkaboutthisindepthinCollaborationRoadmap.

Therewillbeagroupofpeopleinanyorganisationwhoquicklyandactivelyembracethenewcollaborationtechnology.Thesearepeoplewehavetraditionallycalled“earlyadopters,”butinthisbookarecalled“firstwavers.”Theyarethepeopleforwhomgettingtousethenewtechnologyissufficientrewardtoexperimentandtrythingsout.Theydon’tneedsomeoneelsetoactivelyadvocatehownewtechnologywillhelpthem,maketheirlivesbetter,orbebetterthanthecurrenttechnologiestheyareusingtoday—they’reabletointuititforthemselves.

Thereareonlyafewfirstwaveadopterswithinanygroup,organisationorcommunity.Gettingbeyondthemtothesecondwaveadoptersisessentialtodrivingbetterbusinessperformance.Thisisbecausesecondwavepeoplearecarryingoutvitalbusinessactivities,therearemanymoreofthemnumericallywithinanygroup,organisationorcommunity,andasaconsequencetheyhaveamuchgreaterimpactonbusinessperformance.

Secondwavepeople,however,aredifferentfromfirstwavepeople.Theydon’teasilymaketheintuitiveleapfromwhatthetechnologydoestohowtheycoulduseittodotheirworkbetter;theyneedhelpfromotherstoadoptnewwaysofworking.

Thereisgrowingagreementamongmultiplegroupsofpeopleinvolvedwithcollaborationtechnologythatanintentionalfocusonuseradoptionisessential.


Thisbookisabouthowtohelpsecondwavepeopledothis.

UserAdoptionProblemsinSharePointLand

IhavedonealotofworkwithSharePointduringthepastsixyears,resultingintwoSharePoint-focusedbooks.OneoftheproblemsIhavefrequentlyobservedinvolvesthe“IT-department-led”implementationofSharePoint.Thisisn’taproblemwiththetechnologyofSharePointassuch,butratheraproblemofhowspecificorganisationsapproachtheuseandadoptionofSharePoint.

BythetimeITprofessionalshaveSharePointreadytogoforeveryoneelse,theyhaveforgottenthepainandfrustrationtheyexperiencedwhenlearningSharePoint.Inaddition,whileSharePointis“thejob”forITprofessionals,it’sdefinitelynotthejobforbusinessendusers.Businessendusershaveajobtoaccomplish,andSharePointismerelyameanstoanend.ThesefactorscreatetwoproblemsforITprofessionalswhenworkingwithbusinessusersonSharePointadoption:

1. Theythinkallbusinessusersknowwhattheyknow—SharePointhasbecomesecondnaturetothem,andtheycan’tunderstandthe“bigdeal”usersaremakingaboutchangingtheirworkandembracingSharePoint.

2. Theydon’tshareacommonmotivationorlanguagewiththebusinessusers,andsotalkatcross-purposes.BothsetsofpeoplemaybespeakingEnglish(orFrench,orGerman,orDanish),butforallintentsandpurposes,thereisnocommongroundonwhichaconversationcanbeheld.

Again,thisisn’tatechnologyproblem—itcanhappenregardlessofthespecificcollaborationtechnologyyourorganisationembraces.Theproblemistheapproachtakenbytheorganisation(orpartofit),anditseffectscanbeverydamaging.

OtherpeoplewhoworkwithorganisationsonSharePointhavecommentedonthesamephenomena.Forexample:

LeeReedfrequentlypresentsontheuseradoptionchallengewithSharePointatconferencesandeventsintheUnitedStates. Lee2

says,Oftentimes,SharePointisrolledoutwithgreatfanfareandislaudedasafantasticsolutiontoahugenumberofbusiness

challenges.“We'retransformingourorganisationthroughcollaboration,”themasse-mailnotificationmightsay.Well,yourusershave

An“IT-department-led”implementationofSharePointcreatesproblemswhenworkingwithbusinessusersonadoption.


heardthatbefore,haven'tthey?Usershaveahardtimebelievingsuchpontifications,andtheirskepticismcanquicklyundermineanyeffortstorolloutSharePoint.

KimLundfromMindsharpwroteablogpostinlate2009entitledHowtoIncreaseSharePointEndUserAdoption. Kimwrites,Ifyou3

findthatuseradoptionofSharePointisavoidedorslowerthananticipatedinyourworkingenvironment,youarenotalone.Many

studentsthatIhavetrained,consulted[with],andlistenedtohaveexpressedtheirpainpointsforSharePointadoption.

ClareStonefromPentalogicTechnologywroteawhitepaperonbarrierstoenduseradoptiononSharePointinOctober2009. 4

Clarestartsthewhitepaperwiththisstatement:It’seasytodeployanapplicationlikeSharePointwithinanorganisation;thehard

partisgettingpeopletouseitinawaywhichmakesthemmoreproductive.ManypeopleItalkwithdisagreethatdeployingSharePointis“easy,”butfullyagreethatuseradoptionisthe“hardpart.”

VariousresearchreportsonSharePointduring2011alsohighlightedthesameissue—adoptionisamajorchallenge. 5

UserAdop*onProblemswithCollabora*onTechnology

Iwroteabovethatmanypeoplearecomingtoseethatanintentionalfocusonuseradoptionisessential.Whileit’sdefinitelyaproblemfororganisationswithSharePoint,it’snotexclusivelyaSharePointproblem.Forexample:

Socialtext(www.socialtext.com),anenterprisecollaborationsoftwareandprofessionalservicescompany,releasedawhitepaperonuseradoptionin2009. Intheopeningsection,thewhitepaperstates:Thesuccessorfailureofanysocialsoftwaresolution…[is]

6

adirectresultofitsadoptionrate….Thereareplentyofexamplesoffailedsocial

softwareprojects.Whydidtheyfail?Becausetheywerenotembracedbyusers.

NewsGator(www.newsgator.com),asoftwarecompanyfocusedonenterprisesocialcomputingextensionsforSharePoint,alsoreleasedawhitepaperonuseradoptionin2009. Intheopeningremarks,NewsGatorsays:Thispaperpresents7

amodelforproactiveanalysisthatshouldbeundertakenpriortoorduringthe

earlyphasesofdeployinganenterprisesocialcomputinginitiative.Investingthe

timeandefforttocompletetheanalysisshouldgreatlyincreasetheopportunityforsuccessfuladoptionandactiveongoing

participation.Inotherwords,howyouapproachsocialsoftwareintheenterprisehasabigimpactonadoption.

NewsGator:howyouapproachsocialsoftwareintheenterprisehasabigimpactonadoption.

http://www.socialtext.com

http://www.newsgator.com


TheUCViewpublishedanarticleIwroteonuseradoptionandLotusConnectionsinApril2009.Istartedwith,IncreasinguseradoptionisacommonchallengefororganisationsthatintroducecollaborationandsocialsoftwaretoolssuchasIBMLotus

Connections.Administratorsoftenfinditdifficulttoteachbusinessusershownewtoolscanhelpthemintheirwork.Peoplearebusy,

andintoday’seconomicmaelstrom,peoplearescared.Insuchtimes,thesafeapproachistostaywithwhatyouknowgiventhe

inherentproductivityandefficiencyofthisoption.

UserAdop*onProblemswithOtherTechnologies

Vendorsoutsidethecollaborationcamparealsoadvocatingtheimportanceofuseradoption,therebyillustratingthatit’sabroadandgeneralissue.

InaMarch2005whitepaperfromBusinessIntelligence(BI)vendorBusinessObjects,theauthorwrites:AtypicalBIprojecthasareturnoninvestment(ROI)of430%—assumingproperimplementationandorganisation-wideuseradoption.Failuretoachieveuser

adoptionresultsinmisseddeadlinesandcompromisedbusinessperformance.Despitetoday’spressures,proactiveorganisationswith

aneyetobusinessadvantagecanenjoyunprecedentedbenefits.Newthinking

suggeststhatuseradoptionisakeydeterminantofsuccess. 8

Inlate2010,astudyfromIBMandMITcommentedonthedifficultieswithgainingacceptanceofbusinessanalyticsinsideorganisations,andpointedthefingeratuseradoptionissues.Businessanalyticsisatopmostcompanies'apps

wishlists.Thebusinessgoal,ofcourse,istomakesenseoftheenormousamount

ofdataandinformationhousedintheirservers—andstopmakingcritical

decisionsfromthegut.Theproblem,however,isthattheadoptionofanalyticsis

beinghinderednotbytechnologybutbyage-oldpeopleproblems:change

managementandculturalresistance. Theresearchcitedfourmainobstaclesto9

widespreadadoption:lackofunderstandingofhowtouseanalyticstoimprovethebusiness,lackofbandwidthduetocompetingpriorities,lackofskillsinternallyinthelineofbusiness,andanexistingculturethatdoesnotencouragethesharingofinformation.

Thisbookdoesnotcontextualiseuseradoptionwithintheseotherareas,buttheapproachandstrategiesoutlinedinthebookcanbeappliedtomitigatetheproblemsnotedabove.

Lackofunderstandingofhowtouseanalyticstoimprovethebusinessisthetopobstacletowidespreadadoptionofbusinessanalyticstechnology.


What’sGoingOn?

Whyallthisdiscussionandinterestinuseradoptionstrategies?Here’swhatIsee:

Thetechnologyiseasytobuyandinstall.It’seasytogetthelatestandgreatesttechnology;it’sfairlycheap,it’swidelyaccessible,andit’savailablefrommanydifferentvendors.WhenNicholasCarrsaidthatITdoesn’tmatter,partofhisargumentwasthatthewidespreadavailabilityofmaturetechnologytoanypurchasereliminatesopportunitiesforcompetitivedifferentiation.It’snottheITthatmatters—it’swhatyoudowithit.

“Justbecause”isn’tenough.Having“cool”stuffisdirectlyappealingtosomepeople,andunappealingtoothers.EventhelatestandgreatestSharePointorEnterprise2.0technologylacksthepunchrequiredtogeteveryonetoshift“justbecause.”Somethingmore—anintentionalapproachtoencouraginguseradoption—isrequired.

What’stheCostofNotDoingIt?

Haveyouheardthesaying,“Hopeisnotastrategy”?Unfortunately,hopeisthe“strategy”inwhichmanyorganisationsputtheirtrustwhenrollingoutnewcollaborationtechnology.TheITdepartmentbuildsit,makesitavailable,andthen“hopes”thatthetargetpeopleintheorganisationwillmakegooduseofit.Whilehopeisnotanupfrontstrategy,it’safrequentlyembracedsurrogate.

What’sthecostofembracingthissurrogateapproach?Considerthefollowingthreestages:

TheITdepartmentatyourorganisationdecidesanewpieceofcollaborationtechnologywouldbeagoodidea.

TheITdepartmentgoesoutandpurchaseswhattheythinkisneeded,andgetsitinstalled,configured,andreadytogo.

TheCIOsendsoutaone-timeemailtoeveryoneintheorganisation,saying“Thenewkitisavailable;goforit.”

What’sgoingtohappen?In99%ofinstances,abigfatnothing.Therehasbeennocommunicationorexpectationsettingaboutwherethenewtoolshouldbeused,norhowmuch,norwhatit’sdesignedtoreplace.Nostorieshavebeentoldaboutthebenefitspeopleandteamswillreceivebyusingthenewtool—neitherexemplarstoriesfromwithinyourorganisation,norreal-to-lifescenariosthathavebeen

EventhelatestandgreatestSharePointorEnterprise2.0technologylacksthepunchrequiredtogeteveryonetoshift“justbecause.”


developedtocommunicatecontextandprospect.Andthereisnocultivationofamovementamongthestafftoreinforcethevalidityandpotentialofthenewtool.TheCIO’semailisgoingtofallflat.Endofstory!

Whatarethecostsofthis?

1. Wasteofmoney,time,andeffortfromITindiscovering,learninganddeployingthenewtool.Inalargeorganisation,thiscouldrangefromhundredsofthousandstomillionsofdollarswasted.Inlightoftoday’seconomicrealities,feworganisationshavethefreedomtodothis.

2. FurthererosionofthetrustandpartnershipbetweentheITdepartmentandtherestofthebusiness.Intoomanyorganisations,ITisalreadyseenasthe“businesspreventiondepartment.”Failureincollaborationtechnologyinitiativesrepresentfurtherstrikesagainstthistrustandpartnership.

LowAdop*onisCostly

Onewaytounderstandthecostofnotdoinganyintentionalworkarounduseradoptionistoincludeitinyourfinancialmodels!Doasensitivityanalysisontheimpactoflessthanperfectuseradoption.Inarecentblogpost,JasonWhiteheadwrote:

…mostbusinesscasesassume100%useradoptionandignoretheimpactlowlevelsofadoption

haveonreturnoninvestment(ROI).Asyouknow,benefitsareonlyrealisedifyourpeople

actuallyusethesystemconsistentlyandeffectively.Unlessyoucurrentlyhavefullandeffective

adoptionofyourexistingsystems,itisnaïvetothinkthatyouwillachieve100%adoptionofyour

newsystems.

Toaccountforlessthanperfectuseradoption,youneedtoexaminehowdifferentadoptionlevelsaffectyourbusinesscase.Ifyoufind

thattheprojectedROInolongermakessenseyoucaneitherscraptheprojectordeterminewhatadditionalresourcesandeffortis

requiredtoincreaseadoptiontothepointthatitwilldeliveranacceptableROI. 10

What’sthebenefitofdoingthissensitivityanalysis?Youwillgainaveryclearpictureabouttheimportanceofuseradoptioninalanguagethatseniorexecutivescanunderstand.Thiswillbeofgreatbenefittoyouinadvocatingforthekindofintentionaluseradoptionworkproposedinthisbook. 11

Mostbusinesscasesassume100%useradoptionandignoretheimpactlowlevelsofadoptionhaveonreturnoninvestment.


Lookingatthecostoflowadoptionfromanotherangle,consideranorganisationof1,200employeesembarkingonthecollaborationjourney.Thetechnologycosts$200peremployee,andthedecisionistolicenseitforeveryoneimmediately,andthenrunapilotprogramfor6monthswith400staff.These400staffreceivetrainingandencouragementtousethenewapproach(at$300each).Twelvemonthslater,only200peopleareusingthetechnology,andthenonlyinahalf-heartedway.Ofthe$360,000out-of-pocketexpenditure,$260,000hasbeenwasted.

Figure1-1.PoorAdoptionEqualsWastedExpenditureandaLostOpportunity

�

Thefailuretoadoptnewcollaborationtechnologyandwaysofworkingresultsinwastedexpenditure,missedopportunities,andalowchanceofachievingtheinitialvisionthatdrovetheinvestmentinthefirstplace.Useradoptioniscriticaltosuccess.


Thereisathirdwaythatadoptioniscostlytoo:itcreatesalitteredlandscapeofpoorly-adoptedtools.OneteamusesYammer.AnotherteamusesSharePoint,plusabitofBasecampforworkingwithexternalparties.AthirdteamusesLotusLive.Afourthusesanothertool.Thissituationhasmanynegativeimplications,suchasconfusionamongstaffaboutwhattooltouse,highongoinglicensingfeespayabletovendors,highinternalsupportcostsduetotheburdenofsupportingsomanytools,difficultiesindeliveringtraining,andseverechallengeswhenon-boardinganewemployee.Thereisno“waywedothingsaroundhere,”butratheranincoherentcollectionoftoolsusedbyspecificteamsforspecificpurposes.Complexityreigns.

UserAdoptionStrategies—TheWhat

Inthefirsthalfofthischapter,Isetthebackgroundontheuseradoptionchallengeanditsimportance.Inordertobeclearonwhatwearetalkingaboutwithuseradoptionstrategies,thissectiondefinesthreewaysthisbookusesthephraseanditsderivatives.

Thecollectivephrase“UserAdoptionStrategies”referstoagroupingofindividualstrategiesthatanorganisationcanusetoencouragepeopletostartusinganewcollaborationtechnology.Inthissenseit’stheglobaltermtorefertoallavailablestrategiesforuseradoption.

A“UserAdoptionStrategy”isasingleself-containedwayofencouragingpeopletostartusinganewcollaborationtechnology—forexample,theReal-to-LifeScenariosstrategy,isa“useradoptionstrategy.”WhenIprofileaparticularuseradoptionstrategyinchapters6-9,thestrategyincludesaname,adescription,andinstructionsaboutwhenthestrategycanbestbeappliedwithintheprocessofuseradoptionwork.

A“UserAdoptionApproach”referstotheintentionalplandevelopedbyaspecificorganisationtoencouragetheprocessofuseradoptionbyaspecificgrouporsetofgroups.EitheroneuseradoptionstrategyormultipleuseradoptionstrategieswillbeembracedwithintheUserAdoptionApproach.Theapproachshouldbecontainedinadocumentofsomeform,althoughthedocumentisintendedtoconveyasharedagreementandcommitmentfromagroupofpeoplewithintheorganisationabouttheuseradoptionapproach.

SecondWavePeople

Theterm“secondwave”isusedthroughoutthisbook,and“secondwavepeople”aretheintendedaudienceforyouruseradoptionwork.Theyareyourtargetmarket.Let’sexaminewhatsecondwavepeoplearelike.

A“UserAdoptionStrategy”isasingleself-containedwayofencouragingpeopletostartusinganewcollaborationtechnology.


“Secondwavepeople”or“secondwavers”representthelargestbodyofpeopleinagroup,communityororganisation. Theyaregenerally12

theoneswhohavetousethenewcollaborationtechnologyasit’sgiven,ratherthanhavinganydirectinputintowhatitisandhowitcouldbeused.Theyareverydifferentfrom“firstwavepeople”—theearlyadoptersofanythingnew,theadvocates,thechampions,theenthusiasts.Firstwaversaremoreatpeacewithchange,permissiveofchaos,unfazedbyambiguity,andactuallyderiveenjoymentfromfiguringsomethingout.AsIsaid,theyareverydifferentfromsecondwavepeople!

Herearethedifferencesbetweenfirstandsecondwavepeople,differenceswhichformthefabricwithinwhichtheadviceinthisbookisgiven.Thinkofthesedifferencesas“ideal-typehallmarks.”Notallofthemwillapplytoeveryindividualinthetwowaves,butifyouseemorethantwoinagivenperson,thenit’slikelytheyareasecondwaver.

What-whyreversal.Afirstwavepersonisattractedtothe“what”ofthenewcollaborationtechnology,butmaystruggletoarticulatethe“why”—thefutureorientedpicture—tootherpeople.Theymay“getit”implicitly,butstruggletoputitintowords.Asecondwavepersongetsthe“why”(ifit’sconveyedintermsoftheirwork),butwillneedhelpwiththe“what.”

Differentreferencegroups.Afirstwavepersonseestheiruseofthetoolwithinaself-createdreferencegroup,usuallyoutsideoftheirorganisation.Asecondwavepersonseestheirownwork,andtheuseoftoolscontextualisedwithinaninternalreferencegroup.

Differentrewards.Gettingtousenewtoolsisrewardenoughforfirstwavers,butsecondwavershavetounderstandwhereandhowthenewtoolswillimprovetheircurrentwork.

Speedofadoption.Firstwaverswillquicklyembracenewtools,andwilllearnhowtodosothroughtrial-and-error.Secondwaversneedgreaterexternalhelpandhandholdingtosuccessfullymakethetransitionfromcurrenttoolsandapproachestowork.

Natureofinvolvement.Firstwavershaveahighdegreeofinvolvementindefiningwhatcouldbedone,whatshouldbedone,andhowtodoit.Secondwaversaregenerallyexpectedtofollowalonganddowhatthey’retold.

Dealingwiththeold.Firstwaverswillbequicktocalltheoldstuff"dead"andwillwanttomoveawayfromitasquicklyaspossible.Secondwaverswanttoembracenewthingswithinthecontextofwhattheyalreadyknowandhave.

Gettingtousenewtoolsisrewardenoughforfirstwavers,butsecondwavershavetounderstandwhereandhowthenewtoolswillimprovetheircurrentwork.


Itistheirjobvs.Itcouldbeusedfortheirjob.Firstwavepeopleoftenhaveanorganisationalresponsibilitytotryoutnewthings,andseewhatcouldbeusefultothewayworkgetsdone.It’spartoftheirjobtoexplorethenew.Forsecondwavers,theyactuallyhavea“realjob”todo—that’showtheydescribeit—andthespecifictechnologytoenableinteractionandcollaborationis,atbest,tolerated.

Notethatsecondwaverswon’twearabadgeproclaimingtheirmembershipintheSecondWaveAdopterClub.Recognisingthemrequirespayingattention—lookingoutforthetypesofindicatorsIhavelistedabove.Note,too,thatalthoughthebookisfocusedonpeopleinthesecondwave,theadvicewillalsohelppeopleinthethirdandsubsequentwaves.

Peoplesometimesaskhowfirstwavepeoplecaninfluenceor“preachto”thesecondwavers.Themosteffectivewayisto“livethemessage.”Onceyouhavepeopleinyourorganisationswhoareusingthenewtoolsaspartoftheirday-to-daywork,otherpeoplewillseethat.Ifthenewtoolsandapproachesarerelevanttotheirworkaswell,theywillbe“broughtintothefold.”Clearlythismeansthenewsystemhastowork,ithastoshowbenefitcomparedtocurrentwaysofworking,anditneedstobecomeabsorbedintotheworkingapproachoftheorganisation.Peoplewhoarenotintheearlywavesdon’twanttoinvesttimeandeffortlearninganewsystemthatlacksthecapabilitytodeliveronitspromises.

ThedifferencebetweenfirstandsecondwavepeopleisakeyreasonwhydeploymentsofcollaborationtechnologydrivenbytheITdepartmentusuallyfail.HavingpeopleintheITdepartmentactivelyusingthenewsystemdoesn’tsolvetheuseradoptionproblem.Infact,ifit’sjusttheITdepartmentthatisactivelyusingthenewsystem,itismorelikelytocausetheuseradoptionproblem.ITpeopleare“abnormallyprofiled”incomparisontotherestoftheorganisation,andtherecanbequitealevelofantagonismbetweenITandothergroups.Foruseradoptiontobecomelessofaproblem,youhavetogetbeyondtheITdepartmentthroughengagementwithbusinessteamsandgroups.Formoreonbusinessengagement,seeChapter6inmybookCollaborationRoadmap:You’veGottheTechnology—NowWhat?

“Users”or“StaffMembers”

Aquicknoteontheuseoftheword“user”inthisbook.It’sbeensaidthatdrugaddictsandpeoplewhousecomputersoftwarearetheonlytwogroupsinsocietywhogobythelabel“users.”WhileIdon’thaveaparticularlovefortheuseoftheword“user,”otheralternativessoundworse.Wecouldtalkabout“staffmembers.”Butthenwe’dhave“StaffMemberAdoptionStrategies”—quiteamouthful.Wecould

HavingpeopleintheITdepartmentactivelyusingthenewsystemdoesn’tsolvetheuseradoptionproblem—infact,itismorelikelytocausetheuseradoptionproblem.


talkmoregenerallyabout“people,”butthenwe’dhave“PeopleAdoptionStrategies.”Thatdoesn’tworkforthesamereason.Let’sbeclearthoughthatthefocusisonpeoplewhoworkinsidetheorganisation—theemployees,thestaffmembers,themanagers,andtheexecutives.Inshort,“useradoption”isthebestphrasewehave.

Summary

Thisintroductorychapterhaslaidthefoundationforthisbook.We’vetalkedthroughwhyanintentionalfocusonuseradoptionisimportant,andhaveconsideredtheevidencethatuseradoptionchallengesarenotlimitedtoanyoneparticulartechnology.It’sabroad-basedproblem.Useradoptiondoesn’thappenbydefault,regardlessofthetechnologyinvolved.

Thischapteralsolookedatthreeotherissues.First,itaddressedthecostofnottakingtheuseradoptionchallengeseriously,andproposedonewayofquantifyingthefinancialimpactoflessthanperfectuseradoption.Second,itdefinedkeytermsthatwillbeusedthroughoutthisbook,suchas“useradoptionstrategies,”“useradoptionstrategy,”and“useradoptionapproach.”Third,itprovidedinsightintothedifferencebetweenfirstwaveandsecondwavepeople,thelatterbeingthekeyfocusofthisbook.

InChapter2weturnourattentiontotheorganisationalcontextinwhichourworkwithuseradoptiontakesplace.

Useradoptiondoesn’thappenbydefault,regardlessofthetechnologyinvolved.

Chapter4 NewWaysofWorking �77

Chapter4. NewWaysofWorking

Businessdataandbusinessprocessesareunifyingforceswithintheenterprise.Byputtingyournewcollaborationtoolsinthecontextofa

businessprocessorobjectivebusinessmeasure,youcandriveadoptionacrosstheentirespectrumofemployees. 34

JoeSchueller,CiscoSystems

Therearehundredsofproductsthatfallunderthephraseof“collaborationtechnology.”Sincewearefocusingonuseradoptionofnewcollaborationtechnologyandapproachesforgreaterbusinessbenefit,itishelpfultohaveanunderstandingofthetypesoftechnologiesthatareavailable,andthatsetthecontextforourwork.Inthischapter,Iwilldiscusscommoncollaborativescenarios—thefundamentalbuildingblocksoftechnology-supportedcollaboration—andhighlightnewtechnologiesforapproachingeachscenario.

Inthischapter,wewill:

Learnaboutcollaborativescenariospeopledoregularly.

Considercurrentwaysofapproachingeachcollaborativescenario,andtheproblemsthatresult.

Lookintonewcollaborationtechnologythatcansupportexistingscenariosinnewways,andtheassociatedbenefits.

Byputtingyournewcollaborationtoolsinthecontextofabusinessprocessorobjectivebusinessmeasure,youcandriveadoptionacrosstheentirespectrumofemployees.


CollaborationScenarios

Variousapproachescanbetakenwhentalkingaboutthetechnologythatisusedtosupportcollaboration.Forexample:

Youcandifferentiatebyproductgroupings—suchreal-timeinteraction(presenceandavailability,instantmessaging,andwebconferencing),calendaring(enterprise,web-based,andmobile),teamworkspaces,andsocialcollaboration(activitystreams,rating,andcommenting).Suchalenscreatesadifferentiationbasedonacceptedindustryproductareas.

Youcandifferentiatebyintent—forteamsthatwouldbecreatingasharedplaceforjointaccess,locationindependence,andreal-timejointeditingandreview,amongothers. Thisapproachlooksacrossdifferentproductgroupstohighlightthespecific35

needsofateam,group,ororganisationfromthetechnology.

YoucandifferentiatebyCollaborationScenario—anapproachthatstartswiththedifferentcollaborativeactivitiespeoplecarryoutasaregularpartoftheirwork,andthenlinksthoseactivitieswithparticulartypesoftechnology.Thetechnologyisonlyconsideredinthecontextofthescenario. 36

Thischaptertakesthethirdapproach.

CommonCollaborationScenarios

AmongthemanyCollaborationScenarios,commononesinclude:

ManagingaTeamProject.Whenteamsworktogetheronaproject—aninitiativewithaparticularoutcome,setmembership,anddefiniteendsignal.

SharingTeamandOrganisationalUpdates.Howdifferentpartsoftheorganisationarekeptup-to-datewithcurrenthappeningsandfutureplans.

FindingExpertise.Whenpeopleneedtolocateotherswhohaveexpertiseorspecialknowledgeinaparticulartopicorfield.

CollaborationScenariosstartswithacollaborativeactivitypeoplecarryoutasaregularpartoftheirwork,notthetechnology.


CollaborativelyAuthoringDocuments.Whentwoormorepeopleworkonadocumenttogether—planning,drafting,writing,editing,andthefinalpolishing.

CollaborativeIdeaManagement.Whenmanypeoplehaveideasonwhatcouldorshouldhappen,andhowthoseideasarebroughttogetherforanalysis.

MakingGroupDecisions.Whenmanypeopleareinvolvedinformingdecisionoptions,evaluatingtheoptions,andmakingadecision.

ManagingMeetings.Whenpeoplemeettodiscussideas,makedecisions,explorepossibilities,andotherwisecommunicate“inthenow.”Thescenarioincludesthepre-meetingplanningactivities,aswellasthepost-meetingfollow-up.

SharingLearningandBestPractices.Whenmanypeoplearedoingsimilarwork,andinnovationsintheworkapproachmadebyonepersoncouldbenefitotherpeopledoingthesamework.

HoldingDiscussions.Whenteamsorgroupsdiscussideas,challenges,problems,andopportunities,withaviewtoexploringtheboundariesofwhat’sknown.

IndividualCoherence.AspecialCollaborationScenariothatconsiderstheimpactofintroducingnewcollaborationtechnologyonanindividual—howtheytrackandcoordinateeverythingtheyhavetodo.

ExaminingCollaborationScenarios

Inthischapter,wearegoingtofocusonsixofthesescenarios:

1. ManagingaTeamProject.

2. SharingTeamandOrganisationalUpdates.

3. FindingExpertise.

4. CollaborativelyAuthoringDocuments.

5. CollaborativeIdeaManagement.


6. MakingGroupDecisions.

Thechapterconcludeswithabrieflookatthreeotherscenarios:holdingmeetings,requestingfeedback,andsharingbestpractices.

ManagingaTeamProject

Emailisthemostcommonlyusedcollaborationtechnologytoday.It’sthemostcommontoolpeopleusetocollaborateonteamprojects—discussingissues,checkingupontimeframes,swappingdocuments.Butemailisnotideallysuitedtomanagingteamprojects,foravarietyofreasons:

DocumentChaos.Whenco-authoringadocument,nooneissureiftheyareworkingonthemostrecentedition,andsomeonehastobringtogetherallthesuggestedchangestocreateanewmastercopy.It’smessy,error-prone,andtakesfartoolong.

VersioningChaos.WhenJimislookingforaparticulardocumentorspreadsheet,howdoesheknowwhetherthecopyonhisdesktop,inthefilefolder,oroneofmultiplecopiesinhisemailinboxisthemostcurrentversion?Basicallyhedoesn’t.It’sawildguess.

CommunicationChaos.Usingemailforconversationsleadstochaos.Althoughmodernemailclientsoffertheabilitytoshowrelatedmessagesinathread,threadingisnotsufficienttogiveaproperandnaturalorderingofemailmessageswhenmanypeopleareconversingonanissueoveramulti-dayormulti-weektimeframe.Messageswillbesentandreceivedoutoforder.Someteammemberswillrespondtoearliermessagesinthethread,notthelatestone.They'renottryingtobemalicious(inmostcases)—they’retryingtocontribute—butsincetheircontributionsarehandledviaemailandnotamoreappropriatetool,theycontributetoconversationconfusion. 37

Whatcanbedone?Manyorganisationsareexperimentingwithcollaborationsitesforteamprojects—MicrosoftSharePoint,LotusQuickr,andCentralDesktop(seeFigure4-1),amongothers.Achangeofcollaborationtechnologyintroduceschangestothewayworkisdone:

• Peopleswitchtothecollaborationsite,andstopusingemailforthecommunication,collaborationandcoordinationworkoftheteamproject.Thebigideawithacollaborationsiteisthatallofthedocuments,conversations,meetings,andtasksrelatedtotheprojectarebroughttogetherinasingleapplication,insteadofbeingseparatedacrossseveraldifferentapplications.

Whileemailisthemostcommonlyusedcollaborationtechnologytoday,itisnotideallysuitedtomanagingteamprojects.


• Documentsarestoredintheteamsite,andnotemailedaround.Allworkonadocument,spreadsheetorpresentationisdoneoutofthecollaborationsite;peopledon’tworkanymorewithlocalcopies.Thatmeansadocumentisopeneddirectlyfromthecollaborationsite,andafterthechangeshavebeenmade,itissaveddirectlybackintothecollaborationsite.

• Communicationanddiscussionhappensinadiscussionareawithinthecollaborationsite,ratherthaninemail.Thiscanbequiteabigchangeforpeople,becausediscussionsnolongercomethroughtotheirBlackBerriesandiPhones.Althoughthediscussioncanbemucheasiertofollow,thereisasingleversionofthetruth,andnoonehastokeeptheirowncopyofthediscussion.

• Thecoordinationaroundtheteamprojecthappenswithinthecollaborationsite.Tasksarecreatedandassignedtopeople.Meetingsarescheduled,andheld.Projecttimelinesareshared,andupdated.

• Peoplecanbeeasilyaddedtoandremovedfromthecollaborationsite,toaccommodatechangingprojectmembership.Newprojectteammemberscanquicklyreviewwhat’sbeenhappeningintheproject,andexaminethecurrentstatusofitsdifferentaspects.

Documentsarestoredintheteamsite,andnotemailedaround.Allworkonadocument,spreadsheetorpresentationisdoneoutofthecollaborationsite;peopledon’tworkanymorewithlocalcopies.


Figure4-1.CentralDesktopforManagingTeamProjects

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CentralDesktop’scloud-basedcollaborationplatform,SocialBridge,connectspeopleandinformationinthecloud,makingitpossibletomanageprojects,sharefiles,combineknowledge,inspireideas,andmore.Seewww.centraldesktop.comformore.

http://www.centraldesktop.com


SharingTeamandOrganisationalUpdates

Keepingeveryoneonthesamepage,whetheritbeinateam,adepartmentoracrosstheentireorganisation,isamajorcommunicationsjob.Theactofgettingthemessageoutisjustonesmallpartoftheoverallprocess;ensuringthatpeopleunderstandthemessage,andcanthenchangetoworkinadifferentwayaremuchbiggeraspects.

Themostcommonapproachtosharingupdatesacrossagroupofpeopleisemailblasts.

Aprojectleadersendsoutaweeklyprojectstatusupdateemailtoallteammembers,withthemessageinthebodyoftheemailalongwithanattachmentforthemtoread(probablyanewversionofthedreadedprojectplan).Theprojectleaderknowsthatshe’llhavetodealwithatleastonepersoninthecomingdayswhoisworkingoffthewrongprojectplan.

Adepartmentalmanagerwritesafortnightlyemailtoeveryoneinhisdepartment,explainingseniormanagement’scurrenttoppriorities,andoutliningwherehe’llbeinthecomingweeks.Ininvitingcommentsandfeedback,heknowsthatafewpeoplewillaskthesamequestion,buthe’sbecomeusedtocopying-and-pastingfrompreviousemailssoastosavetime.

Inkeepingwithourfocusonchangingworkpractice,eachoftheseareascanberevampedgivennewcollaborationtechnologies.Forexample,ablogcouldbeusedinbothinstancestofacilitatethesameprocessofcommunicating,butinadifferentway:

• Theprojectleaderwouldpostherweeklyupdateontheteam’sblog,andeveryoneontheteamwouldknowwheretofindthecurrenteditionoftheprojectplan.Inthatrespect,theprojectplanchangesfrombeinga“file”thathastobedownloadedandreviewed,andbecomesawebpageintheteam’scollaborationsitethatisalwaysup-to-datewiththelatestinformation.Thereisnomoresearchingorcallingaroundtofindthecurrentplan.

• Thedepartmentalmanagerchangeshisworkpracticeandnowwritesaregularblogonhisdepartmentalintranetsite.Ratherthanmerelyrestatingwhatmanagementhavebeentalkingabout,heisabletolinktotheblogpostsfromhisseniors,inordertogivehispeopleaccesstothesourcemessage.Heisthenabletoaddhisinterpretationofthemessageforhispeople.Throughthecommentfunctionontheblog,peoplewithinthedepartmentareabletoaskquestionsandprovidetheirfeedbackdirectly,withouthavingtosendprivateemails.Everyoneinthedepartmentisabletoseethequestionsthathavealreadybeenasked,aswellastheresponsesthathavebeengiven.Theycanseekfurtherclarificationonparticulartopicsifsomethingremainsunclear,orputtheirenergyintoaskingadifferentquestion.


Figure4-2.SharingTeamandOrganisationalUpdatesviaaBlog

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Blogsprovideawayofsharingupdateswithinateamorgroup.Peoplecanrequestthatupdatesarepushedtothem(viaasubscription),andareabletoleavecommentsfortheoriginalauthorandotherblogreaderstosee.


Alawfirmusedablogtoreplaceitsmonthlyinsidenewsletter.Onebenefittheyquicklydiscoveredwasthefaster“time-to-market”fornewsletterarticles,whichnolongersataroundforweeksonendbeforebeingreleased.Asecondbenefitwasthatmanagementdevelopedamorenaturalandinformal“voice”forstaffcommunications.

FindingExpertise

Howdoyoufindexpertswithinyourorganisation?Formanyit’sahitandmissendeavor.Youknowsomeone,whoknowssomeone,whoknowssomeone,andeventuallyyougetlinkeduptoaskthequestion.Butsometimesittakestoolong,andthecustomerontheotherendofthephoneisn’tgettingtheanswertheywant.Oritdoessort-ofwork.Yougetthroughtosomeonewhoisapparentlytheexpert,buttheycan’tunderstandwhatyouaretryingtosay.Unfortunatelythisworkpracticeisalltoocommoninorganisationstoday,leadingtolostopportunities,disappointedcustomers,andmuchwastedtime.

Withnewcollaborationtechnologies,locatingexpertscanbedoneinadifferentway—throughadifferentworkpractice.

Peoplehaveaprofilewithinthecollaborationtechnology,wheretheydescribewhattheyseeastheirareasofexpertise—suchasstrategicanalysis,financialprojections,facilitatinggroupdiscussions,orautomotiveindustryanalysis.Otherpeopleareabletobrowsethroughtheprofilesandexpertiseareas,toseewhohasexpertiseandexperienceinaparticulararea.

Whenlookingataprofile,therearelinkstotheperson’scurrentworkprojects,somerecentblogposts,andsomeitemstheyhavepostedindiscussionforums.Beforeyoumakecontact,youareabletoreadthesourcematerialandevaluateforyourselftheirexpertise.

Onceyouhavefoundthepersonyouwanttospeakwith,embeddedpresenceinformationtellsyouiftheyarecurrentlyonlineandavailableforinteraction.Iftheyarenotavailable,throughalinktotheirelectroniccalendar,youcanseewheretheyareandwhentheyexpecttobeback.

Newerexpertiseprofilesystemsalsohighlightareasinwhichtheotherpersonhasacommoninteresttoyou,andlistspeoplethatbothofyouknow.Thepointofthisistoconveytheirtrustworthiness,putthepersoninawidersocialcontext,andtosuggestsometopicstotalkaboutwhenmakingcontactwiththeotherpersonforthefirsttime.

Withnewcollaborationtechnologies,locatingexpertscanbedoneinadifferentway—throughadifferentworkpractice.


Therehasbeenalotofrecentvendoractivityaroundexpertiseprofiles.Forexample,IBMincludesthesecapabilitiesinIBMConnections.

Figure4-3.DiscoveringandEvaluatingExpertsviaProfiles

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IBMConnectionsincludesapersonalprofilepageforeachperson,whichdisplayskeyinformationabouttheirworkandareasofcontribution.Contactinformationisalsodisplayed,tospeedtime-to-contact.Seewww.ibm.com/lotus/connections.

http://www.lotus.com/connections


TheprofilepartofIBMConnectionsstartedlifeasaninternalsystematIBMtohelppeoplefindexperts—itwascalledBluePages.Oneoftheenduringchallengeswithexpertiseprofilesisthataskingpeopletomanuallykeeptheirprofileup-to-datedoesn’twork,andsecondly,theexpertsintheorganisationmaynotwanttobefoundbecauseoftheextrarequestsforassistancethey’llreceive.IBMfoundthathavingwaysforexpertstosharetheirknowledgethroughnon-real-timemeansmadetheadoptionchallengemucheasier:

OncewegaveContributorsthechoiceabouthowtosharetheir

knowledgeandexperience,wefoundthattheyweremorelikelyto

contributeusingthesesocialoptions,sincetheyrealisedthattheresult

wouldbefeweremails,IMsandphonecallsaskingfortheirbasic

expertise.OnceSeekersfindanexpertviaProfiles,theyareableto

consumesomeoftheirknowledgeandexpertisewithoutdisruptingthem.

Thenatureoftheremainingemail/IM/phonerequestsfromSeekerswere

abouttheirdeeperexperience,theirknowledgethatwillalwaysremain

tacit.Ineffect,Contributorssharingtheirmore‘basic’expertiseonlineenabledSeekerstoacceleratewhatevercollaborationtheyfurther

requiredfromContributors. 38

OncewegaveContributorsthechoiceabouthowtosharetheirknowledgeandexperience,wefoundthattheyweremorelikelytocontributeusingthesesocialoptions,sincetheyrealisedthattheresultwouldbefeweremails,IMsandphonecallsaskingfortheirbasicexpertise.


CollaborativelyAuthoringDocuments

Preparingadocument—asnapshotintimeastothecurrentthinkingofateamorgroup—isafrequentprocessforinformationworkers.Thestandardworkpracticetodayrevolvesaroundaleadauthordraftingthedocumentontheircomputer,attachingittoanemailmessage,andsendingitouttootherpeopletoreview.Oncetheotherpeoplehavemarkedupthedocumentwiththeircomments,theleadauthorgetsnumerouscopiesbackwhichtheyhavetoreconcileandcollateintoanewauthoritative“master”copy.

Thankstonewcollaborationtechnologies,therearedifferentwaysofcollaborativelyauthoringdocuments.

UsingawikilikeSocialtextorAtlassianConfluence,theleadauthorcanstartwritingusinganonlineweb-baseddocument.Whentheyarereadyforotherstoaddtheirinputandfeedback,theysendalinktothewikipage.Theotherauthorshavetheabilitytochangethetextdirectly(withroll-backcapabilitiesinawiki,theleadauthorcanroll-backtoanearlierversionifrequired),orleavecommentsonthebottomofthepage.

WithatoollikePleaseReview,thedocumentcanbeuploadedtoacentralserverandallthereviewerscanbeinvitedtoseethedocument.AlleditsandchangesarecarefullymaintainedonthePleaseReviewserver,andreviewersareabletoseeeveryoneelse’schanges,thusleadingtoareductionintheduplicationofthesamecomment.Finally,becauseeveryoneisworkingdirectlywithinthemastercopy,albeitinacontrolledway,theintegrationofmultiplecopiesintoanewmastergoesawayforgood.SeeFigure4-4.

Atamorebasiclevel,ratherthanthedocumentbeingsentoutbyemail,theleadauthorcanstorethedocumentinaMicrosoftSharePointteamsite,andwhentheyarereadyforinputandreviewfromothers,canstarta“CollectFeedback”workflowprocess.Thispromptsreviewersforfeedback,andallin-lineeditsandout-of-linecommentsaresavedintoasinglecopystoredinSharePoint.Theleadauthornolongerhastocorrelatemultiplecopies,andreviewerscanseethecommentsandinputofothers.

Inessence,therearemanynewanddifferentwaysofcollaborativelyauthoringdocuments—andthethreeexamplesabovearebynomeansexhaustive. It’sadifferentworkpracticefromwhatmostpeopleareusedto.39

Theleadauthornolongerhastocorrelatemultiplecopies,andreviewerscanseethecommentsandinputofothers.


Changingthewayteamsworkondocumentscanhavesignificantadvantages.WhenIdiscussthecollaborativeauthoringscenarioinaworkshop,weinvariablygetasavingofatleast50%inprocesstimeacrossthetargetcollaborativeteam.Thisisaresultofeliminatingtheneedtomergecommentsintothemasterdocument,makecommentsthatotherpeoplehavealreadystated,andgivingquickeraccesstoeachteammembertoreviewandcommentonthedocument.PleaseTech,thevendorofPleaseReview,saythattheirclientsareseeingsavingsofupto65%.

Figure4-4.DocumentCo-AuthoringwithPleaseReview

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PleaseReviewfromPleaseTechisacollaborativedocumentauthoringandreviewingservice.Itenablesmanypeopletoworkonthesamedocumentsimultaneously.Seewww.pleasetech.com/pleasereview.aspx.

http://www.pleasetech.com/pleasereview.htm


CollaborativeIdeaManagement

Creating,collectingandrankingideasforprocessimprovements,newproductsandservices,andmanyotherareasofbusinessandorganisationallifearegreatwaystomakecontinualinnovationapartofthefabricofhowworkgetsdone. Todoso,youneedsomeway40

ofcollectingtheideasinthefirstplace.Thiscanbedonebyemail,wherepeoplesendtheirideastoaparticularaddress([email protected]),butthentheideasarehidden,notavailableforeveryonetosee,andgenerallygetforgotten.Thisleadstocynicismamongemployeesbecausetheyneverhearbackabouttheirideas,andtheorganisationmissesoutonapotentialtreasuretroveofinsightsandmotivationforimprovingoperations,technology,andcustomerservice.

Newcollaborationtechnologyprovidesamuchbetterapproachtoideamanagement.Ideasaresubmittedinanopenforum,allowingforeveryoneinsidetheorganisationtoseewhatisbeingproposed.Anyemployeecancontributetheirperspectiveonanidea,providingawayformanagerstogaugethemotivationandfeelingbehindspecificideas.

Here’showthisdifferentapproachworks:

Aspacefornewideasiscreated,mostlikelywithsub-spacesfordifferentgroupingsofideas(anideaspaceforaproduct,oneforaparticularclient,anotherforacertainprocess,andsoon).Thisneedstobesetupsopeoplecanseerelatedideastogether,withouthavingtowadethroughideasthatareirrelevanttothem.

Peopleareinvitedtovisittheideaspace,andtypeintheirideas.Theideaspacedisplaysanup-to-datelistofalltheideaswhichhavebeencontributed.

Otherpeopleareabletobrowsethroughtheideasintheideaspace,andreadwhatothershavewritten.Theyhavesomeoptionsforcontributing:theycanaddanewideathemselves,theycancommentonsomeoneelse’sidea(“Ithinkthisisgreat,andwouldreallyhelpSalesmovemoreofthese,”forexample),andtheycanvote.Ideaswithgreaternumbersofvotesmovetothetopofthelist,whilethoseideaswithfewervotesmovetothebottom.

Ideasaresubmittedinanopenforum,allowingforeveryoneinsidetheorganisationtoseewhatisbeingproposed.Anyemployeecancontributetheirperspectiveonanidea,providingawayformanagerstogaugethemotivationandfeelingbehindspecificideas.

mailto:[email protected]


Whenit’stimetomakedecisionsaboutwheretoinvestinnewproducts,howtoserveclientsbetter,andhowtoimproveprocesses,theunderlyingcontributionshavebeenmade,andthepersonresponsiblehasagoldmineofthinkingtohelpguidetheirdecisions.

Peoplecansearchforideasonparticulartopics,relatedtoparticularproductsandservices,orwithparticularkeywordsinthetitleordescription.Inveryactivecollaborativeideamanagementsystems,thishelpspeoplequicklyfindideasthatarerelevanttotheirwork.

CollaborativeideamanagementissupportedbycollaborationtechnologyfromElgujiSoftware(seeFigure4-5),NewsGatorinSocialSites,andKindling,amongothers. 41

Whenit’stimetomakedecisionsaboutwheretoinvestinnewproducts,howtoserveclientsbetter,andhowtoimproveprocesses,theunderlyingcontributionshavealreadybeenmade.


Figure4-5.IdeaManagementwithIdeaJam

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IdeaJamfromElgujiSoftwareenableseveryonewithinagroup,teamororganisationtoseewhatideashavebeenproposed,togivemoredetails(viacomments),andtovoteforideas.Seewww.elguji.com.

http://www.elguji.com


MakingGroupDecisions

Afinalexampleofchangingworkpracticeishowdecisionsaremadeinagroup.Todayacommonworkpracticeisthatthegroupmeetsonceamonthandreviewsthevariousideasandrequeststheyhavereceived.Somedecisionsaremade,andthemeetingdisbands.Thisapproachleadsto“decisioncrawl,”asittakestoolongfordecisionstobemade.

Thereisadifferentworkpracticeinhowgroupscanmakedecisions.Thisinvolvescreatingacollaborationsitewhereallinputsforthedecisioncanbelocated,combinedwithanewworkpracticewhichseesthedifferentmembersofthedecisiongroupvisitingthecollaborationsiteonaregularbasistoreadandreviewtherequestsorideas.Whensomeonehasapointofviewtoshare,theytypetheirreactiondirectlyintotheappropriateplaceinthecollaborationsite.Wheneveryonehashadsufficienttimetoreviewthematerials,everyoneisaskedtovotefortherequeststheythinkarebest.Mostdecisionsgetmadeoutsideofatraditionalmeetingassuch,leavinganyactualmeetingtimetodebatingparticularlydifficultissues.

Collaborativedecisionmakingcanbeundertakenusingarangeofcollaborationtechnology:

ASAPStreamWorksitecouldbesetupforaparticulardecision.Dependingonthenatureofthedecisionneeded,varioustools—anAgenda,aPro/Contable,aSWOTanalysis,aQuickPoll,andothers—canbeaddedtothesitetoprovidestructureandfocusfortheteammembers.SeeFigure4-6.

AMicrosoftSharePointsitecouldbesetupwithaCustomList,whereeachitemisadecisionrequest.Membersofthedecisiongroupcanrevieweachdecisionrequest,anddiscussandvoteonthevariousmatters.ThisapproachtodecisionmakingisquitepopularamongsomelargeorganisationsusingSharePoint.

GroupSystemsThinkTankisanothercollaborativedecision-makingtool.ThinkTankoffersavarietyofdecision-makingtools—forstructuringideas,forcommentingonideas,andforvotingonideas,amongothers.ThinkTankisalsoavailableasahostedservice,calledThinkSpace.

Thesetoolscanalsobeusedbypeopleduringface-to-faceorvirtualmeetings.Theyprovideawayofstructuringandvisualizingthedecisionbeingdiscussed.DirectReliefInternationalusesSAPStreamWorkinthisway: 42

“Wewerelookingforasolutionthatcouldhelpusdriveprojectsforward,”saidRossComstock,ITdirectoratDirectRelief.“Ithelpsus

quicklygetagroupofpeopletogetherandfocusedonworkingthroughaproblem,evenifthey'reindifferentcountries.Forthatpurpose,


SharePointwastoogeneral.SAPStreamWorkwasmuchsimpler,withalotoftoolsbuiltintoittodrivedecision-making.WhenIhavea

meetingwithstakeholders,IcanpopintoSAPStreamWorkandillustratewhereweareonaproject.Itoffersasimplewaytotellastory,

andithelpsourcommunicationwithstakeholders.”

Figure4-6.CollaborativeDecisionMakingwithSAPStreamWork

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StreamWorkisanonlinecollaborativedecision-makingservicefromSAP,whichenablespeoplefromoneormoreorganisationstoworktogetherondecisions.Seewww.sapstreamwork.com.

http://www.sapstreamwork.com


OtherCollaborationScenarios

Thereareothercollaborationscenariosnotcoveredabove,butthatdoesn’tmakethemanylessvalid.Forexample,changeofworkpracticecanbeexploredfor:

Holdingmeetings.Travelisfrequentlyusedasawayofbringingpeopletogetherformeetings,orthemeetingisheldbyphone(one-to-one,oraconferencecall).Newtechnologycanbeusedtoreplaceorenhancebothtypesofmeetings—videoconferencingandTelePresenceinsteadoftravel,andscreensharingasacomplementtophone-basedinteractionsandmeetings.

Requestingfeedback.Askingotherpeoplewhattheythinkaboutaparticularworkitem—areportforaclient,aquotationfromapotentialsupplier,ablogpostfortheoutsideblog—isacommoncollaborativescenario.Emailisfrequentlyusedtodayasthemeansofsharingtheworkitemandseekingfeedback.Inthefuture,thereisanopportunitytousenewtoolswhichofferbettersupportforthisscenario,suchasworkflowroutingsystems,screensharing,andquicksurveys.

Sharingbestpractices.Beingconsistentinservicedeliveryisessentialtowinningthereputationofbeinggreatatwhatyoudo.Itcanbehardenoughforonepersontodelivertothesameconsistentstandardday-after-day,butit’sevenharderwheremanypeopledosimilarjobsfordifferentclientsorsegmentsofthemarket.Howdogoodideasgetdebatedandbroughtintocommonpractice?Today’sapproachisusuallybasedonemaildistributionlistsandtheoddface-to-facemeeting.Newtechnologycansupportsharingbestpracticesusinggroup-editablewebpagesinawiki,withtiestothegroup’scoremethodology.

Summary

Technologyisimportantwhenitcomestosupportingcollaborationbetweenpeople.Thetechnologycreatesopportunitiesfornewwaysofworking,butdemandsanalignmentbetweenwhatthegroupneedstogetdone,andthenuancesoftheworkpractices.Wehavelookedatanumberofcommoncollaborationscenariosinthischapter,andexploredhowcurrentscenarioscanbecarriedoutinnewandbetterwayswithnewcollaborationtechnology.

Wehavecoveredalotofgrounduptothispoint,allaimedatsettingthecontextandgettingourthinkinginlinefortheuseradoptionchallengeahead.Chapter5marksasignificantshiftinfocus.TheFourStagesModelofUserAdoptionisintroduced,followedbyextendeddiscussiononeachstageinchapters6-9.

AbouttheAuthor �293

AbouttheAuthor

MichaelSampsonisaCollaborationStrategist.Headvisesend-userorganisationsaroundtheworldonstrategiesformakingcollaboration

work.HeisthePresidentofTheMichaelSampsonCompanyinNewZealand.

Beyondconsultingengagementswithclientsandin-houseworkshops,Michaelshareshisresearchonstrategiesformakingcollaboration

workthroughmultipleavenues:

• Michael’sblogoncurrenthappeningsinthecollaborationworld,coveringcollaborationthinking,philosophy,approaches,and

technology.Seemichaelsampson.net/currents/.

• Booksonstrategiesformakingcollaborationwork,withafocusonculture,governance,andadoption.CurrenttitlesareSeamlessTeamwork(2008),SharePointRoadmapforCollaboration(2009),andCollaborationRoadmap(2011).ThissecondeditionofUserAdoptionStrategiesisMichael’sfifthbook.Seewww.michaelsampson.net/books/.

• Presentationsatconferencesaroundtheworld,bothin-personandremotely.MichaelhaspresentedatconferencesintheUnited

States,theUnitedKingdom,Netherlands,Belgium,Denmark,Australia,andNewZealand.

MichaelholdsaMasterofCommencewithfirstclasshonoursintelecommunications-basedITfromtheUniversityofCanterburyinNew

Zealand.

Tostayfit,Michaelenjoyscycling,running,andswimming.

MichaellivesinNewZealandwithhiswifeKatrina,andtheirtenchildren—David,Matthew,Philip,Daniel,Timothy,Susanna,Jonathan,

Elizabeth,Joseph,andJoshua.MichaelandKatrinahomeschooltheirchildren.

http://michaelsampson.net/currents/

http://www.michaelsampson.net/books/