As a director, manager, or someone in the C-suite, you often have to wear several hats to keep your teams motivated: visionary, decision-maker, guide, coach, and even friend. This is especially true when you’re introducing an operational shift like IT service management (ITSM).
Your IT team feeling a sense of trepidation during times of change is expected. However, this is a unique opportunity to solicit the kind of teamwide buy-in that can elevate a transition to a win-win-win situation. To help you with that, here are six tips for introducing your team to IT service management, so you get everyone on the same page and ready to move forward.
Tip 1: Try a Smaller Test Run of IT Workflow Automation
A smaller test run of IT workflow automation not only reduces the risk associated with committing to a new solution—it also lets your team know their feedback is central to the adoption process. By phasing in IT service management, you take a prudent, pragmatic approach instead of diving in headfirst.
This is where GSI's GatewayNow can play a pivotal role. For many companies, an organization-wide implementation of ServiceNow may be too much to take on all at once. For others, the budget just might not be there to support it. GatewayNow allows your team to try out a full implementation of ServiceNow with only a few licenses, enabling a gradual transition for the team to get used to the ServiceNow ITSM.
Tip 2: Explain the Reason Behind Needing to Make a Shift
Some members of your IT team may need reassurance regarding the reasons behind the change, especially if your IT service management solution will automate elements of their day-to-day tasks. It’s best to be transparent, using data-based talking points that highlight the need for a more efficient system. Let your team know how much you value them and how this move is designed to make their lives easier.
Also, be sure to break down the benefits for several different IT divisions so no one is left thinking the upside is limited to only a privileged few.
Tip 3: Listen to Their Concerns About the Change
When you listen to your team members’ concerns, you both empower them and gather helpful feedback you can use during the implementation process. During meetings about your new IT service management solution, it may help to:
- Take notes, writing down specific concerns people have
- Read them back towards the end of the meeting to help validate their opinions
- Without minimizing their sentiments, point out how the IT service management solution addresses some—or all—of their concerns
Tip 4: Establish Meaningful Metrics
Meaningful metrics are something your team can get behind and sink their teeth into, as well as strive to achieve. The end goal of adopting an IT service management solution is to improve your processes, and with metrics, you quantify the progress everyone on the team will be working towards.
Some high-level metrics, which may apply to a variety of teams, include:
- Time spent manually inputting data
- Productivity metrics, such as mean time to resolution and average response time
- The time it takes to release iterations in the DevOps process
- Financial savings from software and hardware asset management tracked against license usage and warranties
Of course, the metrics for each organization will vary, but putting some goals front and center can get your IT team to rally behind your new tech.
Tip 5: Work Together to Define a Strategy for Using IT Service Management
Although you may be the one ultimately in charge of making the call, because there are multiple people involved in the transition, it needs to be a team effort, and working together to define your strategy makes it feel that way.
There are several ways to bring the team together around your implementation, management, and assessment processes. For example, you can:
- Solicit ideas for goals and action steps in a town meeting format
- Meet with different teams individually and design strategies around their needs
- Discuss how to get the most out of your IT service management solution with individuals via one-on-one meetings
At the end, soliciting input reinforces the value of everyone on the team and gets them ready to embrace your new solution.
Tip 6: Clearly Outline the Plan Moving Forward
Getting started with an IT service management system is only the beginning, and you will want to make this clear from the outset. This may involve:
- Setting up a timeline that outlines when and how you will assess the solution’s effectiveness
- Clearly defining the roles of individual players when it comes to assessing and supporting your new solution
- Assigning specific people to maintain the solution, ensuring they know how and when to interface with your IT service management providers
Get Your Entire Team Onboard with GSI’s ServiceNow Experts
GSI’s ServiceNow experts have extensive experience helping organizations implement ServiceNow in a way that meets their unique business needs. From choosing the most effective automations to deciding which features give you the best bang for your buck, GSI’s team of professionals can guide you through a smooth adoption process. Learn more by connecting with GSI today.