An active parks and recreation organization will often rely heavily on their management software. Everyday tasks such as class registration, billing, venue rentals, and email communications are all handled by management software, which helps to reduce workloads and boost efficiency. Recreation management software should also have frequent updates and feature additions, to keep up with new demands, evolving trends, and technological advancements.That being said, acclimating to new features or even a new software solution can be a big undertaking. Here are some of the ways to help your recreation facility staff adapt to new technology, using effective change management.

Get Them Excited

Transitioning to new technology will be a lot easier if your staff members see the benefits it can provide for them. For some, new technology can initially spur anxiety or excitement. Some may be worried about an increased workload, whether that’s temporary or long-term, while others may be worried about finding the new technology too difficult to learn. Creating a list of advantages and disadvantages can help team members better understand its effects on their day-to-day operations, reducing anxieties and fears. Highlight how the new technology can make their jobs less tedious and build a public timeline so they can follow along.

Active and visible adoption by senior leaders and change champions can also help reduce resistance. When there is resistance, management should not ignore them; recognizing and managing the team’s concerns can quell negativity towards the new technology. The project’s success is dependent on clear, consistent, and wide-reaching engagement. Asking for feedback on the implementation and initial deployment can also help reduce any errors before they cause issues for end users.

Training Millennials and Boomers Alike

Most recreation facilities have a mix of younger and older staff members who contribute to the well-being of your community. Through the transition process, managers will have to ensure adequate, easy-to-understand training that doesn’t need a great deal of tech know-how to implement. Most new technology will come with training guides, but your administrative team must supplement these guides, if they’re insufficient or difficult to decipher.

Management should be very involved in the transition phase, so employees have everything they need to adapt quickly to the system while being able to modify their work routines effectively, post-implementation. Your software provider should also have an experienced client success and training team, to better simplify training. Always remember that you can call on them for additional assistance, as they will have time-tested recommendations on how to improve your transition.

Build out Timelines for Efficiency

Creating a timeline can provide employees with a general roadmap that takes into account certain dates for when they’ll need to be familiar with the technology. Gathering requirements, educating, testing, training, updating, coaching, and feedback are all necessary steps to successful implementation. A detailed timeline can help make the transition seem more manageable for your team, while breaking up their training into specific modules that will both simplify learning more complicated tasks and keep them from being overloaded with too much new information at once.

Maximizing your ROI

Reducing time waste during the transition phase can help maximize the ROI of the new technology. Three factors affect the ROI of a new technology rollout: speed of adoption, utilization, and proficiency. An effective roadmap can help reduce the time it takes employees to learn the new technology. Utilization depends on your management’s ability to show the value of the new tech to staff members, while proficiency is affected by the quality of training, as well as the amount of practice team members have with the new technology.

Check out our cloud-based parks and rec software, to see how Xplor Recreation’s PaaS solution can help you create an exceptional customer experience, while connecting with your communities. Our training team is always ready to help with your transition period, while providing ongoing service that will help your organization succeed.