So you took the plunge and invested in new software. Whether you are introducing the new technology to every employee in your organization, or just a departmental team, it can often be an exciting but stressful time. If you want to ensure you maximize adoption to see a return on your investment, you need to onboard your technology effectively.

Software Insider recently published a report on the most important factors when purchasing software, and ease of use was ranked last in the priority of consideration factors. Organizations are choosing price, features, integrations and support over ease of use.  Which means, these same organizations need to make sure they are not overlooking the costs of training their employees.

New technology is no good on its own. You need the right people with the right skills and know how to utilize your new tool in order to create value for your business. Prevent your team from running the risk of not investing in employee training. Set your new technology onboarding up for success by following these 3 guidelines.

1. Set SMART onboarding goals:

You likely already have goals in mind regarding the return on your software investment. In order to meet those goals you need to create specific and measurable objectives for what each employee should be able to accomplish with the new technology. Ensure you get the most out of your technology by identifying SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, results-oriented and time bound) goals and then pair them with your business metrics.

At Learnkit we help our client’s achieve learning goals that align with key business drivers to ensure a positive impact on the business. Keep these goals in mind when building your onboarding and remember to set targets that are easily achievable for your team members. At first, your goal should just be to get people using the software, not to turn them off from using it by making it a make-work project. At the end of the day, if the technology you’re implementing solves the needs of your business and employees well, it should be a straight forward to keep them using it and proving the ROI.

At first, your goal should just be to get people using the software, not to turn them off from using it by making it a make-work project. At the end of the day, if the technology you’re implementing solves the needs of your business and employees well, it should be a straight forward to keep them using it and proving the ROI.

2. Make it accessible:

Everyone learns differently. Meaning different learning styles, at a different pace and with different needs. Make sure your training for the new software meets the variation in learning needs and is also accessible when your employees need it. Providing training with asynchronous elearning modules allows your employees to access the information how they need it and when they need it.

With real-time access, your employees can review the learning on their own and revisit concepts that they need to spend more time with. This allows learners to lean on elearning opposed to solely relying on memory or support materials from an in-person training session.

3. Blend your training:

For the best results from your onboarding, always blend your training. By providing a combination of in-person and online support for your employees you will be able to make the most of the time and dollars spent in-person with a trainer. Use learning to teach foundational concepts to allow your employees to have a solid baseline knowledge.

By bringing everyone to the same level, you can make better use of the time spent in a group setting learning about the technology. Elearning also helps to protect productivity by minimizing the time spent in group settings, by delivering learning through a cost-effective online medium.

Implementing a new technology often calls for changes in business processes and infrastructure, so it is critical to ensure you make a smooth transition. While it may require a significant additional amount of effort to invest in training your employees, if you do it right, it will be worth the effort in the end.

Following these 3 guidelines will help you to utilize the best practices for getting your team up to speed on your new technology in the least time possible, and therefore, providing a better and quicker return on your technology investment.

By Moira van den Akker, Marketing Specialist at Learnkit