You\u2019re ready to implement Salesforce<\/a>. That\u2019s great! You\u2019ve done your research, found the best solution from the extensive Salesforce suite, and have leadership buy-in. Now the only thing to do is flip the switch and watch the magic happen, right? Wrong.<\/p>\n Many organizations fall into the trap of believing a well-thought-out plan is all you need to implement Salesforce. However, while documenting plans is critical to the implementation process, great plans alone do not guarantee great outcomes.<\/p>\n One key factor people often overlook during any implementation, or consider only as an afterthought, is the need for communication and education throughout the process.<\/strong> It\u2019s important to ensure the stakeholders clearly understand why you need a Salesforce and its benefits to both the organization and individuals \u2014 as is sharing metrics that show their success.<\/p>\n In this blog, I will cover some best practices in educating your team to help ensure post-implementation success for Salesforce. Along the way, I hope you\u2019ll see that managing your Salesforce implementation<\/a> will help you manage any big change in your future.<\/p>\n \u201cSuccessful organizations understand the importance of implementation, not just strategy, and, moreover, recognize the crucial role of their people in this process.\u201d — Jeffrey Pfeffer, American business theorist and the Thomas D. Dee II Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Change is inevitable in all aspects of life, including in business. Evolving customer needs, outdated technology or new competition require change for the continued growth of any business.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, as humans, we often fear change because it more than likely brings challenges as we struggle to adapt to new processes and systems. But as a leader, it\u2019s your responsibility to mitigate this apprehension during any change implementation process, whether it\u2019s implementing Salesforce or reimagining your digital strategy.<\/strong><\/p>\n The best way to alleviate some of the fear is to explain why the change is necessary for your organizational and employee growth. Transparency and communicating the implementation\u2019s goals and outcomes can help you minimize uncertainty<\/a>.<\/p>\n Understanding the end goal and benefits will also help the team see the positive outcomes while working through the challenges of learning a new process or system. When you explain how Salesforce will help employees every day, from tracking leads to seeing the impact of their work, it can help them appreciate the change\u2019s positive outcomes.<\/p>\n Without question, you did your due diligence to make sure implementing Salesforce will bring positive results to your organization and customers. Your research likely demonstrated an increased efficiency, less operational costs, higher customer satisfaction, and more.<\/p>\n While these metrics are great — and tend to drive leadership buy-in — they don\u2019t necessarily have the same impact on motivating your employees. Even if the measures lead to direct positive outcomes for team members, they do not speak directly to the challenges and issues they might face during and after implementation.<\/p>\n To address this, make sure your metrics and outcomes relate directly to your team\u2019s pain points. If your team says they spend too much time gathering and entering data into a system, show them how Salesforce will reduce manual data entry with automation and logic. If the team says they can\u2019t find the information they need to solve customer problems, show them how it will give them better search functionality or add structure to their knowledge base.<\/p>\nStart with the \u201cWhy\u201d<\/h2>\n
Demonstrate the Benefits of Your Salesforce Implementation<\/h2>\n