There’s no doubt that the construction industry is behind when it comes to technology, but things are beginning to change. In the past few years, our industry has seen millions of dollars poured into new technology, including smartphone apps, advanced construction materials, and advanced safety equipment. One of the struggles –and perhaps the main struggle- with introducing new technology to the field staff is that many of them have been managing their jobs the same way for a long time. It can be difficult to convince them to change, especially if they have been successful with their current process.
Pete Schott, Senior Product Marketing Manager for PlanGrid, recently published a blog post on the company’s website with 6 helpful tips for how to get field teams on board with construction software. We’ll highlight a few of our favorites below and encourage you to visit the original post to find out the others.
Detail How the Software Improves Their Jobs
There are many advantages to harnessing technology on the job site, but many of them may not be very clear immediately after rolling out a new software. Take some time up front to tell your team why a software was chosen and how it can make their life easier. “Will it mean fewer trips from the jobsite to the office, or make it easier for them to share progress updates? It’s hard to turn down your proposal if it gets them home earlier, or saves them three or more hours per week.,” Schott says in his blog post.
Focus on a Small Amount of Functions of the Software
Sometimes introducing new technology can be overwhelming for people that either don’t use it in the free time or are new to a particular program. You don’t want to scare your team away from the technology with a large learning curve right out of the gate. Schott further explains, “Start by selecting just a few key software functions to focus on, and learn to use those well. Don’t worry about being experts immediately — that will come with time.”
Train and Support Your Team
It’s easy to hand your team a new tablet or smartphone with some new software loaded to it and walk away, but that’s also a recipe for failure. Everybody learns differently and at different paces, so it’s important to keep them interested and build confidence with support and training. The great thing is, many software companies have a variety of helpful videos on their website or Youtube that you can utilize. “Any construction software company worth its salt will offer onsite training, online webinars, a responsive chat support team, and more,” Schott explained.
To read the full blog post with more helpful tips, click here.
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