New Tech for Clients

In this chapter of “The Geek Leaders Handbook” we are discussing how to introduce new technology to clients. In the beginning of the chapter it talks about why most efforts fail when trying to introduce new technology. This happens because sometimes its too late, IT people are too focused on the technology, and IT ignores the importance of the experience. When the chapter talks about IT people are too focused on the technology, they end up fixing something that really didn’t need to be fixed in the first place. When IT people are focused… they are really focused on what they are doing that may sometimes go a little overboard.

One thing I found interesting in this chapter is the “Understand where they are coming from” section. That stood out to be because when asking a worker for help you must be compliant and understand where your user is coming from. You really don’t know much about their experience and they do not know about yours either, so you have to be thoughtful of that. You have to think about what is important to them, how they feel about using technology at work, how they feel about their IT department, and last how are they likely to feel about the new technology that you are giving them. A lot of stuff goes into making sure everyone is happy and that everything is right. So with that being said, you have to plan ahead to avoid future disasters, and promote good feeling. The book states that once you have your list of the things that can create a good experience you should decide which one you are actually going to plan out. There are some things that you have to do like testing out the technology, have a communication plan, practice kindness, display confidence and enthusiasm, acknowledge user feelings and last but not least the most important you have to remain flexible. This is important because things make come up out of the blue, you have to be able to work under pressure and be able to get tasks done and started in a timely matter.

When talking about having a communication plan, you’re going to need to “beyond the facts” like the book states. Like having assurance that support is easy to find and get and other things. When working with users, you should know your facts, know what you’re doing, and be able to communicate successfully  with them. Always have a backup plan, make sure you and your user know where to go for immediate help. In the paragraph it says that on the first day of contact, users feel particularly fearful and vulnerable. So if they don’t end up needing extra support, it’s important for them to see what is available and that the team is ready to jump into help them get started. Be prepared for anything.

With “practicing kindness” make sure you have people around you who knows how to turn a sour situation sweet. “Few words of kindness can transform a bad experience in to a positive feeling…ect” You would never want to have an IT person that doesn’t know how to handle certain situations and knows how to speak respectfully and helpfully.