The success of any software implementation lies in the hands of the people who are going to use the system. Ultimately, you can implement the best technology in the world, but if you can’t get people to adopt it and use it in the way it is intended, you will struggle to have the desired outcomes. However, people fundamentally do not like change; it can mean uncertainty, a loss of control, unwelcome surprises and the feeling that everything is unfamiliar. While it is unlikely to ever eliminate this discomfort entirely, communicating effectively throughout every stage of the project plays a vital role in mitigating this and ensuring the success of the project. This article provides tips and best practice on how to manage these communications effectively. 

Top tips for working with Beamery during implementation

1. Communicate the WHY
   Often companies focus on communicating what they are implementing and how they will do so, but critically neglect to talk about why the change is necessary. Educating people on why you are implementing Beamery, what you are hoping to achieve and tying these changes to the broader talent and business strategy is crucial.

2. Plan communications in advance and allow adequate time
   Recruiters are busy. If you are asking them to attend training, or workshops or to complete surveys with little or no notice, this can lead to feelings of resentment towards the process. Instead work with you Beamery Customer Success Lead to plan these communications in advance, so you can allow them adequate time to manage diaries and complete your requests.

3. Communicate consistently
   Often companies focus all their communication efforts on one part of the implementation journey. They announce the system is coming to great fanfare and then nothing, or they don’t announce it at all until it goes live. Creating true engagement and adoption requires consistent communications through every stage of onboarding and beyond.

4. Listen to feedback
   Make the communications process a genuine two way dialogue with key stakeholders and users. Not only does this help with securing buy-in and adoption of the CRM, but it offers you valuable different perspectives and flags issues that may otherwise have been overlooked. This enables you to implement the system in a way that will be embraced by a wider audience, and to mitigate any risks much earlier in the process.

5. Openly tackle questions and concerns
   At each stage of onboarding, users should know how to, and feel comfortable raising questions and concerns. Whilst these can be challenging and time-consuming to address, this is a critical step in allaying any fears and keeping users engaged with the process. Having a public forum for Frequently Asked Questions and Project Team responses is a great way of achieving this and disseminating information. 

6. Think beyond email 
   Whilst emails can be an effective and necessary tool to communicate at scale, messages can sometimes get lost in busy inboxes and they don’t easily encourage two way dialogue. The most effective communications will therefore involve a combination of email and face-to-face meetings, roadshows, surveys or intranet forums where people can come together to discuss the changes, and where they can digest information at their own pace.

7. Communicate the positive
   It is easy to slip into functional and corporate communication mode to share necessary information; but making communications fun and engaging, launching competitions, celebrating small successes, and sharing good news stories is often equally, if not more effective in driving adoption of new software.

8. Engage beyond the Talent Acquisition community
   Whilst the end-users of Beamery undoubtedly will, and indeed should be the main focus of your communications efforts, there will be other stakeholders who will have an interest in the project and who will need to be kept in the loop. Think about who will be impacted during each stage, (IT, Finance teams, other supplier partners, hiring managers, executive leadership etc.), what they need to know, and the best way of communicating that information.

9. Be mindful of other project risk factors
   Communication and user engagement is a critical component of effective change management, but it’s not the only component. You can have a perfectly executed communications plan, but if for example, your team does not have the adequate resources or structure to be successful, or if Recruiters are incentivized in way that isn’t conducive to driving the behaviors you would like them to exhibit, this will equally jeopardize the success of the project. Your Beamery Success contact will be on hand to support you in identifying any potential risk areas and designing solutions to manage these.