Change begins with planning and processes, but its success hinges on people.

Colin Sloman examines what is essential for individuals to adapt to and embrace cloud technology migration. 

In 1789, Benjamin Franklin wrote, "...in this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes." While we can't fault him for not foreseeing cloud computing, the reality is that the internet is full of historical data and forecasts concerning cloud adoption rates that are, frankly, remarkably high. These figures might astonish even Mr Franklin if he were alive today. 

Take respected analysts at Gartner, for example, who last year predicted that by 2025, 95% of new digital workloads will be deployed on cloud-native platforms – up from 30% in 2021. Even technologically conservative sectors like banking are being swept along, with forecasts indicating that 87% of the banking industry will migrate its IT services to the cloud by 2032. 

This prompts the question: what is required for successful transition and transformation? Often, people know what needs to be done, but executing these tasks presents the greatest challenge. 

  

Adopting New Ways of Working 

Lessons from history regarding technology evolution and changes in work methods may provide insights. Mainframes evolved into networked systems, client servers became desktops, and now cloud services represent the next step in computing technology. Similarly, the first generation of the internet focused on connectivity, the second on collaboration, and we are now entering a third generation that is transforming work practices. 

Although accelerating digital transformation is critical in today's marketplace, technology adoption hasn't matched the same enthusiasm. Industries that are slow to adapt face critical business failures similar to those arising from legacy systems and outdated practices. They cling to existing infrastructures and established, customary methods. 

Many large companies have been slow to embrace change for this reason, despite their aspirations. The migration to cloud-based services and infrastructure exemplifies this. The benefits are widely acknowledged, and the drawbacks are manageable. Consider our daily interactions with ubiquitous cloud-based SaaS platforms such as social media sites, Gmail, Netflix, and Spotify. Their rapid adoption and delivery are remarkable, to say the least. However, the biggest hindrance to cloud migration is not the pros and cons but rather the willingness of people to change their ways. 

  

Adapting to Change 

In the 1980s, when typists transitioned from typewriters to word processors, the design of computer keyboards aimed to improve satisfaction, accuracy, and comfort. But there were challenges. The Shift and Enter keys were too small, leading to the creation of keytop expanders to address shortcomings. This ultimately resulted in the expanded Shift and Enter keys we use today. The lesson? User adaptation is key to whether adoption becomes entrenched. In other words, people drive change. 

The biggest challenge of adapting to change is not in the product's drawbacks but in whether people understand and support the change. Cognician CEO and co-founder, Patrick Kayton, wrote about Cognician's eight activation catalysts– a behavioral change methodology to activate and accelerate change. By applying these catalysts, you can create a pathway to successful change adoption. 

For example, if you want your team to back a change they find meaningful, provide them with a clear understanding of its benefits for them and the organization. This aligns with discussing purpose and meaning. 

  

A Large Organization Sees Results in 15 Days Post-Standstill 

Cloud adoption can reduce costs, increase speed and efficiency, and foster scalability, flexibility, and enhanced collaboration. These benefits are realized when people collectively embrace the change. This is where our eight catalysts for activation can facilitate employee buy-in and adoption. By infusing meaning into change initiatives, employees are motivated to support them. They contribute to change through reflection and insight, focusing on connections, commitment, and, most importantly, inspiration to act. Explore all our activation catalysts and tactics here. 

A recent Cognician engagement serves as a case in point. We assisted a large organization struggling with cloud-based software adoption during its rollout. Employees needed to interact with this software 90% of the time, making adoption imperative. After identifying inefficiencies in their workforce management solution, we increased adoption of the new software by 32% in just 15 days. By implementing an activation program featuring fun and informative daily challenges, we helped over 2,500 employees engage successfully with the new software's features. 

  

Accelerating Change – Changing Mindsets Leads to Changing Behaviors 

What do companies need to achieve their change agendas? To my mind, it's the same thing typists needed – the chance to share ideas, overcome fears, and adopt new methods with support at every step. 

At Cognician, we have synthesized impactful tactics into eight catalysts for activation. These catalysts are design principles for encouraging engagement, impacting the hearts, minds, and actions of people. 

To learn more about the eight catalysts for activation and how they can facilitate behavior change in your organization, follow this link: https://info.cognician.com/blog/change-hearts-minds-and-actions-through-activation-heres-how.