The Improv Blog

The Ultimate Guide to Creating User Adoption

Written by Jenna DeVries | Mar 05, 2015

Are your Kronos™ users just "standing there?" 


The world of technology is driven by innovation and continual change. It is easy to get overwhelmed by the amount of evolving technology we use everyday. The average adult spends 45% of the 15 hours and 45 min he/she is awake using some form of technology. However, our frequent personal use of technology does not necessarily transform into user adoption of workplace technology. Recent studies have shown that 70% of new IT projects within the workplace fail. The reason: a lack of user adoption. 

What exactly is user adoption? We define it as…

“Presenting information about a new technology in such a way that it becomes an accepted part of an employee’s work day regimen, ensuring they understand it and accept it as part of what they do.” 

In this blog post we will discuss some of the key practices used to ensure user adoption throughout your entire organization, specifically for the implementation of Kronos™ applications.

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate 

A well thought-out introduction coupled with clear communication can improve how employees think and feel about the change they will experience during an enterprise Kronos™ implementation. Create a communication plan to ensure you clearly articulate the decision making process and the implementation process. Make sure to manage the change, monitoring feedback from all parties involved. Unclear communication and misunderstandings are some of the biggest hindrances to user adoption.

Understand your Users

Learning a new system or software takes a significant amount of time and energy that your employees may not be willing to invest without good reason. Ensure you take the time to understand the daily responsibilities of the employees who will be using Kronos™. Understand the employees' complaints, pain-points, what they do well and what they don’t like doing. If you understand all of these specifics, you will be able to clearly explain how the application will make those daily responsibilities easier and more efficient, eradicating some complaints and pain-points. You may be introducing new workflows to your employees so plan to make their first impression a positive one. A new workforce management system can be intimidating to employees who have never encountered the system before. 

Develop a Customized Training Plan

Taking all of the user information you have gathered, develop a customized Kronos™ training plan. Your training will vary depending on many factors including education, background, and learning style. Address all learning styles and make sure to include real-world examples. Ensure your training is customized and scheduled at a convenient time for your employees. For example, if you schedule training on Friday near the end of the day, you will have a much harder time keeping everyone’s attention than if you schedule training at the start of their shift on Tuesday.

Conduct User Analysis

Thorough user analysis after the learning events are complete allows you to tailor future projects to be just as, or more, successful. Survey your employees after the learning events are complete. The information you receive allows you improve future training. It is a common mistake to assume the training has stopped after the rollout of the learning events. Users will change roles, new users will be hired and the applications will change. No training rollout achieves perfection. A topic may have been missed entirely or misrepresented as part of a user's work day. These knowledge gaps must be addressed. At day 30, 75, and 100, talk to both managers and employees about their experience working with the program. Update training materials according to their feedback to make sure everyone has what they need to be successful. Training is an essential part of every successful technology adoption. Consider hiring a Kronos training specialist to help you develop re-usable training plans to improve user adoption.

Ready to create your customized Kronos training plan?