How Can Companies Overcome The Challenges Of Implementing Intelligent Automation?
According to the CNBC/SurveyMonkey Workplace Happiness Index performed in 2019, 27% of workers between the ages of 18 and 24 are worried about new technology eliminating their jobs.
I can almost hear you saying, “But these are pretty young folks—if anything, they should be the ones being less afraid of technology and innovation.” Well, that is exactly where you are wrong.
Of course, people being afraid of automation is a natural thing, and it’s actually a generational thing. When you think about it, the workforce that’s in the market has not received proper education related to automation; instead, they learned by executing manual work. And because we learn by repetition, you can’t expect people to go through their first 20 years of education (in the first portion of their life) while they are forming all of their ideas doing manual work and all of a sudden expect them to adopt the mindset that’s required to automate their day-to-day activities.
So what’s a company to do when they try to implement automation and are not only dealing with people not being informed but also dealing with the issues related to habits deeply rooted in their minds?
After taking into consideration these two concerns, the third thing employees need to keep in mind is that most managers underestimate people’s reluctance to change. Change management in any organization is the most overlooked aspect of implementing pretty much any improvement. Overcoming such a challenge requires constant training (and internal marketing) but also the establishment of a culture of continuous evolution…and this is not an easy thing to adopt.
Here are four strategies you can implement in order to overcome the fear of automation and finally get the full benefits of adopting new technologies:
1. Train people from the very beginning.
During onboarding, give employees direct examples of how automation can help with their daily work life. Do you have automation software that helps reduce tedious and time-consuming activities? Train employees properly to use the system so they can spend their time on more complex and important tasks and better understand how automation can help them do their jobs better.
2. Humanize your vision of technology through your leaders.
Reassure employees that the technology is there to help them, not replace them. Share your technology pipeline with your employees so that they understand what sort of technology will be implemented within the organization and why. If you bring employees into the process, they will feel empowered and be more apt to adopt the technology.
3. Showcase People’s achievements
Once a month, showcase the achievements of those who have implemented automation in their processes to the rest of the company. Employees will see real-world examples of how automation has helped their co-workers as well as motivate them for recognition within the company.
4. Gamify, gamify, gamify.
When all else fails, make it fun! Gamification allows for more employee collaboration and helps them make stronger connections. Companies can add enjoyable features such as badges and leaderboards into existing software to help engage employees.
Automation is no longer just a futuristic technology used in science fiction movies—it is in the workplace to stay. Companies need to implement automation to keep up with their competition, but they need their employees on board to make it successful. By training employees and humanizing, showcasing and gamifying automation, companies will be able to increase their chances of using automation successfully.
Written by
Arturo García
Arturo García is the CEO of DNAMIC – Specialists in Databricks Data Solutions.
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