It is common knowledge that mobile time tracking software can improve the productivity and profitability of construction companies in many situations. The contractor must first compare the estimated savings of both time and money with the purchase and operating cost of the new software. Once a positive determination has been made, and the software has been purchased along with any associated hardware and periphery supplies and equipment, then the real work begins – installing the software and getting your employees to use it.
Resistance to change among us homo sapiens is apparently the way we come out of the box. Some of us may be more inherently flexible in our philosophical outlook than others, but we all have some basic level of desire to maintain the status quo, or in other words, to stay in our cozy little comfort zones. The more deeply entrenched we are, the more we resist.
What are the primary causes of employee resistance? There are many, some related to the individual and others more associated with the organization.
Individuals
- Control – people do not like to be controlled. They don’t like to be told what to do. We think we know how to do our jobs, and we really don’t want somebody telling us how to do it better.
- Motivation – what’s in it for me? Is the technology easy to learn and use? Will it make me better at my job, or at a minimum, make my job easier
Organizations
- Approach
- Have we included a wide enough representation of the organizational structure in the decision-making process to secure a company-wide “buy-in”?
- Have we kept the affected employees abreast of all the pending changes?
- Have we explained well enough, the benefits that will accrue to the affected employees?
- Training and Technical Support
- Have we made sure that an adequate amount of time has been allocated for training, and that the training will be done in an environment where the trainees will be relaxed and uninterrupted?
- Is there adequate support staff available to consult with the trainees as they practice with the system and once they begin to use it?
- Have we insured that all supervisory staff are well-trained and very knowledgeable of the system?
- Have we identified “product champions” who are likely to enthusiastically endorse the new software and promote it to others?
Most of the information system implementations that fail are not the victims of flawed technology, but rather of organizational and people-related issues. Communicating the company’s vision for the future is critical in enlisting support for the implementation of new technology. Company leadership should set a good example by becoming actively involved in every implementation. Making workers feel comfortable with their new tools will go a long way toward the successful adoption of new IT.
Have you done your homework? Learn more about how mJobTime can help transition your company to mobile time tracking.
