Disruption from adopting new tech is inevitable, but it can be managed
Capable management key to adopting new technology
Ephraim Vecina
REP
Adopting a new technology into the operations of a brokerage often comes with the promise of greater efficiency, but introducing such a disruptive factor into an established workflow will almost certainly lead to friction.
A crucial component of ensuring the smooth transition is capable management.
“When we decided that we were really going to go paperless, the key to making it successful was for someone to own it – from beginning to end,” according to Leanne Forsee, administrator with Dilbeck Real Estate.
Such a shift should ideally be managed by those who have deeper familiarity with the technology and how it best relates to the brokerage’s processes. These point persons should be designated as the “Change Champions” that could explain the virtues of the new tech to the rest of the firm, and help ease the brokerage into the new environment.
“The very first thing you have to do is clearly articulate why you are making the change. You cannot over communicate this point,” says Angela Raab, Director of Technology Advancement with F.C. Tucker.
Ensuring the best possible knowledge transfer would also entail the training of a “Pilot Group”, a crack team of technically proficient individuals who can best relate the new system to the existing workflow – and might even devise a novel application of the new tech in the process.
Overall, the roll-out of a new tool or platform could certainly be far less of an ordeal and more of a new beginning for a brokerage looking to expand its reach and offerings even further.
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