{"id":1326,"date":"2017-10-05T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-10-05T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/edvance360.com\/lms\/why-no-one-used-your-previous-software-systems\/"},"modified":"2017-10-05T09:00:00","modified_gmt":"2017-10-05T09:00:00","slug":"why-no-one-used-your-previous-software-systems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/edvance360.com\/lms\/why-no-one-used-your-previous-software-systems\/","title":{"rendered":"Why No One Used Your Previous Software Systems"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a recent Harvard Business Review article with an eye-catching title of \u201cWhy No One Uses the Corporate Social Network\u201d<\/u><\/em>,<\/u><\/a> Charlene Li says corporations must wake up to \u201ca landscape littered with failed technology deployments.\u201d She explains:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cAltimeter\u2019s research shows that less than half of the enterprise collaboration tools installed have many employees using them regularly (see figure below). I recently spoke with the leadership team of a top Silicon Valley technology firm that had installed an internal enterprise collaboration platform for its employee engagement and collaboration efforts. After an initial spike in adoption, usage slowly dwindled. It was a disappointing outcome and they wanted to know how to fix it, or if they should maybe just toss it out and invest in a new platform.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I stood in front of the executive team I posed an opening question: \u2018How many of you have been on the platform in the past week?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly a single hand went up \u2013 the administrator of the platform.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe problem was simple and obvious \u2013 because the top executives didn\u2019t see collaboration and engagement as a good use of their time, employees quickly learned that they shouldn\u2019t either.\u201d<\/p>\n

In my own experience, both before I came to Edvance360 and while training numerous corporations and organizations on Edvance360\u2019s learning management system and secure social network (LMS-SN) or Networked Learning Environment, I have found the same to be true in many cases. Leadership know there\u2019s a challenge to strengthen the corporate culture, train employees, coach and develop behaviors, build collaboration, streamline processes, remove silos, decrease \u201cbrain drain\u201d, enhance communication, and generate team spirit. So, they purchase a silver-bullet-software system (or several) to solve the problem. But time and time again the employees see that their leaders don\u2019t buy in, so they do not. The software fails to solve the problem and a new software is purchased.<\/p>\n

At Edvance360, our trainers and support staff (and even the sales people) are trained to sniff out the real issues of a corporation, hearing both the stated mission and the ethos (hidden mission).<\/p>\n

Often, at the very onset, we discover the leadership has simply handed down a decision on the software without getting the rest of the teams on board. This creates tension between those who have to \u201cimplement\u201d the \u201cstrategy\u201d and gain the actual buy-in. These team members look to our team members to help them 1) get to know their processes, 2) develop workflows in Edvance360 LMS-SN to enhance or manage those processes, and 3) to train people to use the software all while convincing them that they ought to use the tools to make their lives easier.<\/p>\n

While it is very much true that the tools, if used correctly, will indeed make employee\u2019s lives easier, eliminate redundant silos, and create a more efficient layer of communication, it can\u2019t reach down to the leadership problem.<\/p>\n

To better embed it within the culture of the corporation, we recommend making the corporate social network (and it\u2019s little-used cousin the intranet) a part of the learning management eco-system. Using a social-LMS or LMS-SN (such as Edvance360 LMS-SN) can create value by combining social networking, intranet functionality, SSO, collaborative tools, file sharing, wikis, CRM integration, HRIS integration, video-conferencing, etc. Making it the all-around-go-to-place for anything the employees need raises it\u2019s value immediately. Adding gamification functionality such as badges for completion of learning or tasks accomplished raises it even further. This is why Edvance360 is actually a further evolution of a learning management system \u2013 it\u2019s a Networked Learning Environment.<\/p>\n

Additionally, in the words of Peter Boag of Boagworld.com<\/u><\/a>, we recommend:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe [software] will only be adopted if it makes the lives of individual employees easier. The best way to discover how to do that is to spend time looking at how people organize themselves and look for improvements. Look for the paths they create rather than imposing your own pathways upon them.\u201d1<\/sup><\/p>\n

We track the usage rate and after an initial burst of usage, it can start to dwindle \u2013 if we let it (but that\u2019s for another day). The implementing employee \u201cturns over\u201d and a new administrator comes in, doesn\u2019t know what the system is capable of, convinces the leadership to purchase another silver-bullet and the ride begins again. Only to be repeated. Each time the employees buy in less and less. So what is the real problem?<\/p>\n

Charlene Li has more to say on this:<\/p>\n

\u201cOur research shows that leadership participation is crucial for collaboration. Leaders know they should engage with employees, especially via digital and social channels. But they don\u2019t, and they offer a string of common excuses such as \u201cI don\u2019t have enough time\u201d or \u201cNobody cares what I had for lunch.\u201d More than anything else, they fear that engaging will close the power distance between them and their employees, thereby lessening their ability to command and control.\u201d<\/p>\n

She has three suggestions for becoming an \u201cengaged leader \u2013 a person who is confident extending their leadership through and deeply into digital channels\u201d:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Listen at scale. <\/strong>The simple act of listening\u2014and letting colleagues know that they are being heard\u2014is the first crucial step to meaningful collaboration. Determine who you want to listen to based on where collaboration would be most useful to your organization: who are they, what are their biggest pain points, what information do you need to make key decisions? In this case, the collaboration tool could be any sort of feedback mechanism\u2014a bulletin board or even an email inbox is better than no feedback loop. The key is that you, as a leader, need to be on the other end, eager and open to learn and listen.<\/li>\n
  2. Share to shape. <\/strong> To get started with sharing, identify the platform your employees are already using. Then think of a story you can tell there that will inspire someone to take action toward achieving a key objective. You could share the highlights of a customer conversation or a news article that reinforces a strategic decision. As a leader, the key is to start collecting and sharing in order to shape specific outcomes. While it\u2019s true that no one really cares what you had for lunch, they are<\/em> keenly interested in what you discussed over lunch. Rather than expecting employees to guess what\u2019s important to you, now you can tell them, easily, with stories and pictures on the digital channels they already use.<\/li>\n
  3. Engage to transform. <\/strong> Employees are smart\u2014they won\u2019t waste their time on stunts that are purely for show. Think about the types of engagements you want to have in digital channels\u2014with whom, about what, and when. Engaging to transform is the capstone step in the journey to becoming an engaged leader. It involves listening and sharing (both are integral parts of engagement) and interacting with followers in a thoughtful way, either at scale or one-to-one. This is part of what makes engagement precious\u2014it has tremendous meaning for the people with whom a leader chooses to engage. It is a tool, therefore, that should be used wisely and intentionally. If it becomes commonplace, it may lose its value.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    To summarize, Charlene Li says \u201cCollaboration depends on trust, and it\u2019s crucial for leaders to learn how to do this in the digital era. The tools themselves matter less than the ability of leaders to describe the intent and purpose of the tools. Simply putting a technology platform in place won\u2019t suffice\u2014you must think through how the organization will change and how you will lead it into and through that change. Unless you have a magic wand, the fairy tale world of collaboration won\u2019t happen simply because you plug in a technology. But you have something better\u2014a leadership vision, strategic objectives, and the passion to guide your organization through the changes ahead. Rely on these foundational leadership skills and learn to extend them into the digital world. If you can do that, then collaboration will find its place in your organization.\u201d<\/p>\n

    {{cta(‘d9b53c57-57e5-4fd3-89b5-5392f7440d30’)}}<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    To find out more information about our collaborative tools found in our latest version, Edvance360 Version 8.1<\/a><\/span>, contact us at sales@edvance360.com<\/a>. For more information on how to make your online program successful, download our <\/span><\/span>free guide<\/a><\/span>, talk with our <\/span><\/span>experts<\/a><\/span> <\/span>at no cost, and access our other online resources.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In a recent Harvard Business Review article with an eye-catching title of \u201cWhy No One Uses the Corporate Social Network\u201d, Charlene Li says corporations must wake up to \u201ca landscape littered with failed technology deployments.\u201d She explains:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"categories":[144],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy No One Used Your Previous Software Systems - Edvance360<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/edvance360.com\/lms\/why-no-one-used-your-previous-software-systems\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why No One Used Your Previous Software Systems - 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