Change is hard! Regardless of how big or small the changes are or how they’ll benefit us, it’s difficult to adapt and thrive in times of flux. Obviously, this dictum holds true to change within the workplace. Large shifts in organization change can be jarring but hopefully they’re limited and for the better. Software, on the other hand, is ever-changing. Between regular updates, customizations and stack overhauls, end-users can easily become overwhelmed and frustrated. Thankfully, a solid Salesforce Change Management plan can help you leverage real-time guidance within the CRM specifically.
Here are 7 steps to humanize Salesforce Change Management:
First, get your end-users involved! No – we don’t want everyone dictating how we build the system or the business process, but we do want their buy-in. This will allow you to proactively anticipate what your users expect and want in their Salesforce experience. Use Salesforce’s ‘Ideas’ functionality to do this by enabling two-way communication between change leaders and end-users while also conducting regular improvement surveys. Your employees will find it easy to embrace changes if they match their "needs".
Listen and act accordingly! Create your vision for change based on user feedback and business requirements. Furthermore, white board or map out changes in the employee experience. Really seek to understand how your users will be impacted by each change.
Set clear timelines for rollout, training, and adoption tactics for every single change element. Place emphasis on outlining the change management roles and responsibilities of key teams or individuals - maybe this includes a Change Management Task Force to communicate inter-departmentally.
Always focus on building 100% organization-wide commitment with ROI-backed business cases. Moreover, power users should always be incentivized to act as agents of change in their attempts to promote the benefits of new Salesforce customizations or Salesforce migration amongst other users.
Yes, “One Team One Dream” – but really, everyone needs to know what’s in it for them specifically. Try to anticipate resistance and highlight benefits as opposed to features. Encourage users to discuss their concerns and understand the basic concepts and intricacies using targeting messaging over short emails, videos, and blogs. STEPS
Measuring and optimizing the experience are crucial since we want output to increase with our changes; however, it’s more important to understand the users and how this change impacts their function, purpose and what value they place on the work they’re doing. A workforce that feels appreciated and heard, will always outperform one that simply punches a clock to pay the bills.
Keep your communication close to the end-user. You’ll likely be pushing change from the top down, but your users may not have a relationship with the folks at the top. It’s easier to adapt to change if your peers and direct supervisor are working through the changes together and not necessarily being told to change. This is a great opportunity to let your Change Management Task Force shine!
So, ultimately, change can be good -- nay, great! If you need help with Salesforce Change Management or want to harness new Salesforce features and functionalities more productively, please feel free to connect with the Cloud Journey Consulting Group. Our group is focused on creating a Salesforce experience tailored to how your team operates specifically.