Getting Your Team On Board with CRE Tech
Vince Lombardi once said, “Individual commitment to a group effort—that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work”. While this sentiment is valid in many situations, it certainly also rings true for CRE firms. Leveraging CRE technology, such as investor management software, can increase productivity by 544%, saving 85% of time that can be dedicated back to more value-add activities. Having a team committed to implementing and utilizing tech solutions will help to drive this success and growth.
In our webinar, Deanna Farnell of CGI Strategies joined RealPage IMS’ VP of Customer Success, Ron Rossi to discuss trends driving disruption in the CRE industry, strategies to address market changes, and how the 21st-century CRE leader should be leveraging technology.
Watch the free on-demand webinar: Transformation within CRE: CFO, Technology, and Leadership
Deanna’s insights centered around talent and how to leverage human capital. Hear what she had to say about getting your team to buy in to CRE technology solutions:
When proposing a new technology, getting key stakeholders on board is crucial to the success of both the implementation and adoption processes. Cultivating internal champions is considered an implementation best-practice, but there isn’t always a clear roadmap for identifying and leveraging these people . However, there are several key ways to ensure that your employees are as excited about leaving behind the status quo as you are.
Make it Personal
Help your staff make connections between the new technology and the immediate benefit to them on a personal level. Stressing pain point resolution and potential ROI will help your team understand why you’ve chosen a particular product, but this isn’t always enough. Connect with your staff as individuals and find out what’s important to them. They are likely not as concerned with reducing cost or improving ROI as they are about how the technology will impact their day-to-day activities.
Express Your Enthusiasm
If you’re not excited about technology solutions, why should anyone else at your firm be? It may be time to reassess your chosen vendor if you don’t feel confident that the product will drive efficiency and add value. If you are enthusiastic about the product, let your staff see that excitement exude from you. You set the tone and the attitude toward any operational changes. How you talk about strategic steps will influence how your team approaches them as well.
Get Their Feedback
If your staff feels like they are just along for the ride and have no say, they aren’t likely to embrace change with the same eagerness as the decision makers. You have likely gone through the process of evaluating your firm’s strategy, watching product demos, and selecting a technology vendor and are confident that you’ve found a best-fit solution. Your team, on the other hand, may not have had the opportunity to feel as involved. When determining how to incorporate new tech into existing workflows, be sure to include the individuals who will be working with the software itself and get their feedback. These insights will be valuable to you, and giving your staff the opportunity to have their voices heard will help them to feel like they chose the product with you.
Use these actionable steps to foster authentic connections with your staff and encourage them to fully buy in. If your team feels like they are heard and their needs are valued during the acquisition and implementation processes, they will be more motivated, and your adoption process will likely run more smoothly.
For more information on implementation best practices, download the free checklist: 8 Tips for Successfully Rolling Out Technology at Your CRE Firm!
