Nobody is Using Our System! Best Practices for Sure-Fire System Adoption for Nonprofits

The Dream

Used with permission from Kylie Jaxxon

Imagine this. You work for months on a new software system for your organization. Late night, weekends, and tight deadlines. You are tearing your hair out by the time it actually launches, but it does…..Yay! But wait…

The Nightmare

Bradley Newman

But you turn around after your triumphant launch to find everyone closing their browsers and opening their old spreadsheets…..

Tunnel Vision

Dushan Hanuska

Software projects can give you tunnel vision. There is so much going on to just keep up with the project, from deadlines to requirements, that you often haven’t thought about what happens when the solution is delivered to your users.

The End Game

Philo Nordlund

But what’s actually important and why you are doing all this work is to deliver a great solution to your staff. You want to help them save time and get a better sense of how your organization is doing.

Your Judge and Jury

Clyde Robinson

What will determine the success of your system is your staff. Are they using the solution that you built? Are they collecting the data you’ve asked for, and are they using the data to make decisions? You invested in this system, and you want it to bear fruit.

Start Off on the Right Foot

Damian Gadal

So how do you make sure this happens? You think about adoption from day one ….and that’s day one of your first thoughts about a system. How do you make sure your system will last long into the future?

Your Chief Advocate

Tom Bullock

The first question to ask yourself is “Are you even ready to adopt a system?” Do you have executive buy-in? Does your executive director or leader understand why you need a system and support the system? Will she or he advocate for it to your whole staff?

Your Champions

Sarah Stierch

And then ask yourself, who else has to be bought in? Is there another leader in the organization who has influence over the organization? Maybe it’s your program lead, a board member, or a key volunteer. You need to make sure these people are also on board or they can sabotage your system.

Changing minds…

Forest Runner

If any of these people aren’t on board initially, don’t give up hope. Think about the biggest organizational concerns for your ED or key leaders. How does this solution help them achieve their goals? What are their pain points and how can you solve them with this system?

Setting goals

Olle Svensson

Once you’ve got the key people on board, you can start thinking about your users. The first step in this process is making sure you are solving the right problems. What are your organization’s goals and strategies? What are the key things that are making your organization less efficient and effective? Make sure your system addresses some/all of these.

A System Administrator

Ray S

Another key role in your plan is your system administrator. This is the person who might be leading the project to build your system, but will sustain your system for the long term. Identify this person as early as possible to ensure they are the expert in the system and can start thinking about the future.

A Plan for Training

Marcin Winchary

The next step is to set the stage for training. Training doesn’t necessarily come at the end of your project. Key power users, including the system administrator, can start to become expert in the system by being a part of the project to build it. In addition, make sure you are not only training based on the system but on the process that you expect staff to follow when using the system.

Internal Support

GotCredit

Your system administrator can also start building your internal support processes, including a ticketing system so they are ready as the system rolls out. Support will be crucial so that users don’t get frustrated and stop using your system..

Communication and More Communication

Adrian Scottow

Communication with your staff through the project and launch process is equally important. People will want to know what to expect from the new system. They will be more bought in if they can ask questions and give their opinions. You can use your executive sponsor or your champions to deliver the details.

Measure Success

Pat Pillon

While you are building your system, make sure you’ve set up ways to measure if your staff are using the system and how they are using it. As a start, you can easily build dashboards in Salesforce to show how often staff are logging in and whether key fields are being completed. This will help you get a sense early on whether your training and communication is working.

Plan for the Long Term

Adrian Scottow

All of these previous items can impact your project immediately after launch, but they are also part of the long term sustainability of your system. You are expecting to use this system for years to come, so you’ll need to think about how you can maintain it and keep it current. This includes some of the items I described as well as a budget and roadmap for changes into the future.

Build a Roadmap

Hans Poldoja

A roadmap can sound like a tech-y item, but it really just means a plan for how the system needs to evolve over time. It’s crucial because if your system does not adjust, your users will see it as out-of-date and might stop using it. You might already know some additional features you want to build, but you should also set up a regular schedule for re-assessing your system.

Institute a Budget

Tax Credits

Of course, this roadmap and the on-going support for your system won’t be free. Costs might be in the form of internal resources or external resources, like consultants. Will you need a full-time admin? Do you have third-party apps for which you need to pay on-going license fees? Will you need more licenses as the organization grows? These are all things to think about when building the budget.

Celebrate

CJ Sorg

It probably seems funny to celebrate software, but celebrating the successes of your system makes it fun for everyone. If staff see the progress they are making (for instance, the data they can now report on in the new system), they’ll be motivated to stick with it. Reward those in your organization who are learning the system and sticking with it!