Don't Forget the People: Unified Leadership Drives UC&C Success

A successful UC&C implementation team is comprised of individuals who bring together many different areas of expertise. In my experience, the most effective team has a composition similar to this:

Project leadership, while only small piece of the overall "pie," is critically important. For more details on key considerations and important activities that all people leaders play when it comes to successful UC&C, once again I looked across the dinner table (because UC&C is great dinner conversation!). Over to you, Anna...

Our conversation over dinner one night had me reflecting on the role of leadership in the UC implementation equation. An organization's people leaders can either facilitate or hinder new technology implementations, as well as end-user usage and adoption.

To drive your organization's UC implementation and deployment success:

1. Organizational leaders should align the UC implementation, and the knowledge and skills required to optimize its use, with organizational innovation and learning strategies. Many people have a healthy dose of skepticism. Aligning goals sends a signal that the UC project is not simply the "flavor of the month" but part of an on-going organizational strategy.
2. Name a credible executive sponsor to endorse, and assume responsibility for, UC implementation and deployment. This will communicate the importance and value the organization is placing on the technology and its use.
3. The executive sponsor should ensure adequate financial resources; time and opportunity are allocated for both implementation and skills training. Having an advocate for the project at an executive level will help secure on-going support from all organizational leaders.
4. The executive sponsor should, whenever possible, kick off each training session. Having an executive make the time to do this reinforces how important learning to use the new technology is to the organization.
5. All people leaders should serve as role models by participating in the training sessions and, visibly and verbally, embracing use of the new technology. They need to both "talk" and "walk the talk."
6. Both people leaders and end users should have relevant individual performance goals relating to UC implementation, deployment and utilization. This will help sustain support from leadership and end users, and keep it "top of mind."
7. Both people leaders and end users should have individual training and development plans that incorporate UC training. If it's not in writing, it's not going to happen.

Credible executive sponsorship of UC implementations communicates the importance of technology innovations and improvements across an organization. Technology innovations require the acquisition and development of new knowledge, skills and abilities. To optimize an organization's UC technology investment, organizational leaders must allocate the opportunity, time and financial resources for related training programs.

The new knowledge and skills acquired through training must be transferred and applied on the job in order for effective UC utilization and adoption to occur. An organization's people leaders, collaboratively with Human Resources, must ensure that human resource systems such as performance management, training and development, and rewards and recognition reinforce and sustain usage and adoption.

Credible executive sponsorship and unified people leader support sends a powerful message of the importance and value the organization places on UC implementation, deployment and utilization.

Anna Kieller is a Human Resources Professional who helps people and organizations move forward through effective human resource practices.

My three key takeaways:

1. Having an executive sponsor is critical; however, all people leaders play an important role in driving a successful UC project.
2. On-going executive visibility matters.
3. Leaders need to practice what they preach.

If you are interested in learning more about how to succeed with UC&C, please consider attending the exclusive BC Summit at the beginning of November. I will be leading a session that focuses on the practices and approaches of organizations who succeed.

Also on UCStrategies.com in this series:

• Don't Forget the People: Training, by Kevin Kieller and Anna Kieller