This was taken from the latest Adtran posting regarding what is next in Wireless/ Wireline convergence.
-I’ve wanted to write about this angle for some time, as I think it says a lot about the core value proposition behind UC. Let’s start first with “you”, as there really are two audiences involved here. I’m sure most of you are thinking about us – the end users – and there’s a lot to explore there. However, we’re not the decision makers for UC, so we must also consider what “you” means for IT and executive management.
So, what does “you” mean for the end user? That really depends on what you’re used to and how much you know about UC. End users are generally not concerned about lower telecom costs, so there has to be something else to get their interest. Improved productivity is the catch-all answer, but that has more to do with management than end users. To get end users interested in UC, the benefit has to be about them, but of course it must also align with business needs.
This is a delicate balance to strike, as end users typically gravitate to new applications that fall into their personal use bucket. More tech-savvy employees will have interest in new work-related applications, but most will not. As such, it’s difficult to set the bar high for UC benefits that will have broad appeal to end users. Initially, the end user value proposition will resonate more with those who will see it right away, and some companies know their employees well enough to know who those people are.
If you’re lucky enough to have that type of insight with employees, you’d be well served to tap them to understand what UC means to them, and what types of applications really add value for them. In most situations, UC will be new, and to encourage adoption, it really helps to spell things out very clearly in a way that all end users will relate to. This is where the early adopter employees come into play. They’re the ones who will quickly discover which specific UC features and applications have immediate utility for them, and in time, for everyone else.
Typical examples would be visual voicemail, ad hoc multimedia conferencing or mobile call handoffs. End users don’t usually think of these in terms of UC, but the utility of each feature or application is clear. Working backwards, if you said to them “this is what UC can do”, they will tend to agree that UC is a good thing. Your early adopters should be able to identify these specific capabilities, and once you have that, the “you” in UC can now have meaning. For employees to adopt new things, they need to think about how it benefits them more so than how it benefits the company, and that’s what we’re after here.
For companies that don’t have this early adopter insight, there are many ways you can compile it, and I’ve addressed this in previous posts. The main point is that it’s not difficult to obtain, and will greatly improve your odds of success. UC adoption can be successful without considering the end user, but will occur faster and with greater impact with it, and in essence, that’s the “you” in UC.
In my next post, I’ll move on and talk about “you” in terms of IT and decision makers. Until then, how are you gauging insights about the value of UC from your employees?
http://blog.adtran.com/putting-the-you-in-uc/
