Johnny from Airplane! Teaches us About Effective User Adoption Teams

Who do You Need on Your User Adoption Team?

We are often asked, "Who should I put on my User Adoption team"?  In the clip below, we see all the "contributions" that Johnny makes to the team.  Is he adding value along the way?  Does having Johnny on the team help or hurt you?  Does Johnny have the skills he needs to help, does he not care, or does he just not have a clue?

Apply What You Learned:  Building a Great User Adoption Team

Effective User Adoption teams require a range of personalities, skills, and expertise.  You will need subject matter experts and leaders ("Get me Rex Kramer"), people to do the hard work, and yes, people with personality to be the glue to hold them all together.  However, if people do not have the skills or are unable or unwilling to make any substantive contribution, you may need to make some changes.  

Pay careful attention to the people on your User Adoption team and make sure they are adding value.  Sometimes you need people who look at thinks differently (like Johnny - who else could make hat, a brooch, or a pterodactyl)?  These people can bring the ingenuity you need and provide laughs in the face of stress.  ...but make sure they are actually adding value and not just taking up space.

Best Practices & Key Questions

• Have a variety of personalities, perspectives and skills on your team       
  • Do you have people who can look at things differently and find creative solutions on your team  If not, how would your team be more effective if they had more diversity? 
  • Do you have a "Johnny" on your User Adoption team?  Do they help or hurt your team?  If they are not add value to your team, why not?  What action do you need to take to improve your team?

• Have clear leaders and experts in User Adoption on your team         
  • Do you have a "Rex Kramer" on your User Adoption team? Is this person an expert in User Adoption and have the leadership skills to guide you through a tough patch?   If you don't have a full-time Rex Kramer, do you have access to a Rex Kramer that you can call on in when needed?
  • If you don't have a Rex Kramer, how will you get one?  Will you hire one?  Is there someone in your organization that can learn to be User Adoption subject matter expert? 

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Is the Grapevine Killing Your  User Adoption Communications?

Ensure Your Communications Are Accurate and Effective 

In the clip below, Lil is trying to get a critical message to Johnny Dangerously, who is locked up in jail.  It is a matter of life or death - Johnny must get accurate information about the threat to his brother's life.  We see how easily the message gets mangled as it passes from person to person, until the final message that gets delivered is nothing like the original.  Have you had a similar experience with communications in your organization?  

Apply What You Learned:  Carefully Manage All Communications & Beware of the Grapevine!

Accurate, timely and effective communications are critical to successful User Adoption programs.  Make sure you have carefully develop appropriate communication channels and ensure that all stakeholders receive accurate information.  This involves a variety of steps including setting up communication teams, developing multiple communication channels (live events, email, web sites, blogs, forums, webinars, various social media, etc.), developing a communication strategy, developing communication collateral, and then actually communicating with end users.  It also involves carefully defining the roles and responsibilities for all parties involved in developing, approving, and delivering communications.

Best Practices & Key Questions

• Develop a comprehensive communication strategy for your user adoption program.  This includes:
  • Create a solid infrastructure for ensuring effective 2-way communications.
  • Define a communication strategy for each phase of your project.
  • Assign specific roles and responsibilities for all aspects of your communication program.
  • Provide for as much active engagement and participation of stakeholders in communication activities as possible.  

• Beware of the Grapevine!
  
  • Take steps to ensure that all stakeholders have easy access to accurate and timely communications.   Don't let rumors or inaccurate information sabotage your communication efforts.
  • Ensure communications continue over the life of your system.  Many organizations stop communications once the system goes live, at which point the grapevine takes over.  You need on-going communication efforts to make sure new stakeholders receive accurate information and to respond to evolving communication needs.
  • Proactively ask people what they are hearing on the grapevine and then respond as necessary to squash rumors and inaccurate information.

• What steps do you take to make sure that all of your communications are accurately conveyed to their intended audience?  How are grapevine communications impacting your User Adoption program?  What can you do to manage the grapevine in your organization?

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Dr. Evil teaches us about defining Success

How do you define Success?

Apply What You Learned:  Define Success in terms of User Adoption & Benefits Realization

Best Practices & Key Questions

• Set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-Bound) User Adoption goals for each stakeholder group.  Measure them over time to make sure you are hitting or missing them.  
  • Did Dr. Evil set SMART goals when he asked for sharks with frickin laser beams? 
  • Do you set SMART User Adoption goals for your IT systems?

• Acknowledge when you encounter an "It's a start" moment with user adoption, but still hold people accountable for achieving results.  
  • Did Dr. Evil hold people accountable when they only delivered sea bass when the requirement was sharks with laser beams?  What would  you do?  
  • Do you hold people accountable for hitting User Adoption goals, or are you OK with sea bass?

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