There is hardly any business in our world today that is not reliant on some kind of technology. Any search for software or hardware for most any use will produce a mountain of choices to sort through. You might be wondering why a work psychologist would highlight the importance of technology tools? It is a solid inquiry. There are two sides to industrial-organizational psychology. People and Process. The people component is the organizational side, and the industrial component is the process side. In this article we will discuss why both are extremely important and directly related to our methods of execution…getting things done…or what we call high performance, being competent at our tasks and with our people interactions.
A Symbiotic Relationship Both people and process must be integrated for high performance. We can be great ourselves and have great teams and miss being at our best with ineffective tools. The opposite is also our reality, if we have great processes and tools and unhappy demotivated people there isn’t a technological tool that will fix it. Prior to becoming a work psychologist, I spent 20+ years consulting and implementing in the technological world. Some things I observed are key to our discussion about people and process synergy. Popularity-novelty, change, and adoption.
Popularity-Novelty Some technology becomes widely known and utilized based on the number of needs it meets and the industries it caters to, specialized applications. More often, what occurs is an emotion-based acquisition of technology. New technology is a status symbol. Who has the latest iPhone, Android, Mac? No doubt purchasing a new hardware and software feels good. It gives us the buyers’ dopamine high. A deeper psychological effect is that we feel we will be left behind or not as effective and savvy as the Joneses. We buy because we are expecting new technology to change our behavior. Because of these aspects our technological tools frequently fail to meet our expectations and more importantly our true task-based needs. This results in frustration and weak ROIs (poor return on our investment). It might look good in that meeting when we slide that latest model phone or other gadget from our pocket, but all it is as one of my clients so keenly puts it, “is a shiny new object”. It’s new, it’s fun, it feels good and…is also useless. The rush fades and change will overtake it.
Change Technology is always changing and mostly improving (except when software and hardware developers are misaligned with their markets and remove often used features and designs). Technological change occurs iteratively (evolving over time), and at times, technological changes are rapid. We call these technological revolutions. AI is an example of technological revolution. Change is a constant, accepting change as an opportunity rather than a threat is core to remaining relevant in our work. We have to accept change. Even so, we can stare change right in the eyes but must adopt it to make it through key transitions in our work.
Adoption Recognizing change is only surface level, it’s a mental blip, where we acknowledge at a psychological distance that things in our environments are morphing into something else, into a different method of getting work done. Adopting change is the human integration that needs to take place to leverage change in a positive way. There were many new technology integrations I witnessed where people were resistant to the new technology for many reasons. It’s DIFFERENT, not knowing how to use it, or it was perceived as a threat to one’s value in the organization. Adoption of new technological tools is the psychological aspect of emotionally engaging with tools. Sounds odd I know. This involves developing our proficiency and awareness of the tools’ capabilities and features. Adoption is when we commit to the change and use that change in our daily work activities by becoming knowledgeable and confidently learning to trust it, feel good about using it. This involves learning to think in new ways and subsequently change our behaviors.
To be effective in integrating people and process pertaining to the use of technological tools we can follow an intentional framework when we need to integrate new technological tools for high ROIs.
How to rationally integrate technology and psychology effectively:
Abandon popularity and novelty. Be pragmatic. A pragmatist is someone who moves past the shiny object syndrome and focuses on the practicality of a tool, what will it do, what tangible results will it produce. So what if the Joneses of business have it! If the tool does not meet your needs it is not the right tool for your environment and your way of providing your product or service.
Embrace Change. To change is uncomfortable, it presents us with uncertainty resulting in anxious feelings concerning our well-being, our ability to make the leap, and touches on our survival needs. Will I make it, can I do it? Get used to being uncomfortable and enduring some friction as you navigate change. Remind yourself of all the changes in work and life you have already successfully navigated.
Shorten Adoption Time. Rather than focusing on change as loss and pain put that nervous energy into increasing your awareness and skillset with the new technology. It’s true that our imaginations are usually more intimidating than actual reality. The brain doesn’t know the difference between imagining and experiencing, levels of negative stress (distress) hormones are released when we ruminate on loss and pain (cortisol). Instead, activate positive stress (eustress) by moving toward mastery. Through learning the new technology, focus on what it can do for you (what you gain) and how it will feel to have increased prowess and efficiency.
Suggested framework for vetting and implementing Technological Tools:
1. Start with actual needs (inclusion criteria). With the processes we exercise today what are our core needs? Our must haves? Look at the flow of your business, department or role. What are the tasks that the tool must be able to allow you to do? Do this before shopping, it allows you to center on what really matters, the practical aspects needed.
2. Define what you cannot tolerate (exclusion criteria). These are the elements of a tool that cause frustration and increased labor. You can do this by identifying limitations with current tools, what are they missing? Do they operate in a way that inhibits performance? What current key tool(s) won’t they integrate with?
3. Define Spend. What are you willing to spend or can afford to spend? What is most expensive using existing tools? Is it too many steps in a process? Is it high subscription fees? Is it high rates of failure? Go to market with a spending range in mind whether it is a one-time purchase or subscription calculation. Then let the fair market value more rationally adjust your cost awareness. (Doing steps 1 – 3 will protect you from emotional influence and information overload which masks the real practical needs. It allows you to remain focused on tangible solutions.)
4. Pick Tools using Key Variables vs. Price alone. Some costs are unforeseen and hold high monetary value unrecognized until they are in use.
- What commitments are involved, contracts, minimum spend, etcetera?
- Is there technical support to solve problems and what are the support hours? How many people support the tool? What is typical response time? Is response time different for anything that halts the delivery of our services-products? How do we get help, is it asynchronous or synchronous (email and text OR telephone/video conferencing)? Can the technology be supported remotely? Is there a warranty, what does it cover for how long? What is expected of us in the support process?
- Will the tool integrate fully or mostly with our current tools, both hardware and software?
- Does the tool require maintenance? Who does that maintenance? What does it cost?
- Will this new tool require us to change our processes? Will it save us time or increase our workload?
- Are there any gotchas? Are there aspects that make the tool unsuitable for us? Aspects that stop the business from operating or providing a core component that has been vital to our success?
- What is the impact to our team? Will they require training? Is there training? If so, how is it delivered?
- What is the impact to our customers-clients? What will have to be communicated? How will we communicate that? What will we need to train our customers-clients to do?
- How will we transition to the new tool? Does it require a halt in business flow, for how long, can it be done off hours? Will we have to enter data manually or is there a streamlined conversion process?
5. Pick 3 – 5 Tools. Narrow your search to 3 – 5 tools that meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria in steps 1 – 4. With your criteria in hand, watch demo videos. Most tools have a full overview. It is helpful to create a spreadsheet to check off which tools meet your inclusion and exclusion criteria, spend range, and to take notes. As you watch overviews, make note of any additional features or capabilities that would increase efficiency, add value, or benefit your customers-clients, and set you apart from competition. Is there something that is revolutionary for your business, department, or role? Then, schedule a demo so you can see the tool work and get a feel for the vendor culture. You are also purchasing the people who make and support the tool. Most reputable organizations will allow for a trial period to test the tool. If there is a trial period, reach out for support with questions or challenges during that period, observe interaction and the time it takes to acknowledge and resolve your need.
6. Plan for the change. Communicate, communicate, communicate, and TRAIN. If you involved the team in gathering data about what is both great and bad about the existing tool they are already invested in the change. They know you care about their needs. Be transparent, share limitations of the new tool, share advantages, share what behavioral changes will have to be made (ways of doing things). Solicit help, allow team members to contribute and own what impacts them. Design a project flow so everyone is aware of what is happening when and how they are involved. When possible, it is ideal to provide training on the new tool prior to first use before it matters under pressure. Train together, it builds team cohesion and allows team members to process emotions and material more readily. They are more likely to be interdependent during the transition, which is good!
7. Be Dynamic. When implementing change there are always challenges of some kind, some larger than expected and some minor. Respond calmly and affectionately, if we did our work in the prior steps there should be a solution or something at least workable. Encourage yourself and others by coaching and affirming their efforts and struggles as they, like you, are adopting the new tool.
The integration of people and process is understanding both the task-based aspects of technology (features, limitations, implementation) and the people aspects for smooth and positive adoption. Done in synergy the outcome reduces stress, increases motivation (performance), and makes for strong ROIs.