“Microsoft SharePoint has taken the market by storm, but the embrace of the technology has run ahead of the business and human factors thinking required to make it work. For many organizations, SharePoint has become a chaotic nightmare.”– Michael Sampson, expert on collaboration software.
While SharePoint is a versatile and in-depth development tool, there are many challenges that businesses face when implementing it. First, employees often dislike using the software because they see it as too much of a hassle. Second, there is a large learning curve involved with SharePoint onboarding and it requires a high level of competency to be successful. These problems are exacerbated by organizations’ unwillingness to invest in initial training costs.
However, to get your employees’ on-board your SAP program, you need to foster a positive experience amongst your employees. This gives your organization an excellent opportunity to focus on training in order to increase SharePoint adoption rates.
Here are five steps that you should take to get your employees onboard SharePoint:
1. Use real-time in-software training assistance to motivate users
A big problem in traditional training is sub-par knowledge retention. When it’s forced upon them during initial training, end users have difficulties grasping SharePoint from a technical standpoint. Instead, managers should look towards long-term training solutions. In-software solutions are a great asset because they are cost-efficient and effective. Also, it is more effective to, rather than teaching technical methods without context, train employees on how to be more successful at their jobs.
2. Use analytics to identify end user-needs
Using analytics is an efficient way to determine whether or not SharePoint adoption is successful. This includes who the software is used by, how often they are engaged, conversion rates, and other indicators. If many users are active and make contributions, you can assume that adoption rates are increasing. You can also identify where there are bottlenecks in the system and find out whether it is due to improper training, poor website design, or some other problem.
3. Encourage teams to share success stories
You should encourage teams to communicate their successes, complaints, and ideas with one another via community portals. This allows for the organic sharing of knowledge, without the stress of rigorous training. This medium demonstrates team unity and can be a good starting point for users that are feeling lost.
4. Collaborate with the Internal Communications department to create content
Internal communications departments are often in charge of publishing news articles and maintaining the home page of the organization’s portal. You should work closely with this department to leverage it as a learning tool. By having it on the front page, it not only makes it more visible, but also allows users to passively learn material.
5. Build and follow a coherent strategy
The most important starting point for improving SharePoint adoption is by building a strong core strategy. This shows that all levels of executives, departments and teams are dedicated and serious about successfully implementing SharePoint. A long-term vision is important because it dictates the direction that the organization will move towards and also gives a tangible goal to reach for.
There is no all-in-one solution that will improve SharePoint adoption. All of these solutions are contingent on a cohesive plan and must work together in tandem. WalkMe can help simplify this process by providing a step-by-step guidance system right on the software. Its onscreen guidance windows show users what and where to click as they are navigating SharePoint. This on-demand service is more cost-effective than traditional training programs.