Getting an app developed is a very elaborate and complex process that takes endless cycles of planning, dedication and technical efficiency but even such endeavors aren’t nearly enough to make an app successful. Whether it’s an in-house enterprise application or something that you will be projecting to the larger audience, it is not the features or design of your application that makes it a success, but the users.
Suppose you got a new application developed by an offshore development company. Now once they deliver, how do you move forward? If it is meant for a wider release, you need to first run a beta test through your employees to test its performance. If it’s meant for in-house usage, getting your employees to use it is even more important.
So how do you do it? Put your staff to work and promote your new endeavor? Here is a rough outline:
#1. Get everyone onboard
No matter how great your app is or how many exponential benefits it delivers to your business, few of your employees will always be skeptical of the idea. While some of them may be just resisting the change, others may have valid reservations that you must address. So, if you want your app to be a success, the first thing you need to do is convince all your employees. As a caution, sometimes businesses are tempted not to waste their time and energy getting those handful people convinced but what they fail to realize is that skepticism grows faster than satisfaction. So even if you have just five employees opposing the change, you must convince them before they convince others to get on their side.
#2. Train them
After you have all the employees onboard, you need to put in place an elaborate and effective training mechanism. Since not all employees are going to have technical proficiency, the training needs to cover the full spectrum of their needs- from using apps for dummies to exploiting it to its full potential. The exact process of training will vary depending on the type of application, your staff, and other factors, but one thing you must include is one-on-one engagement.
#3. Feedback
Contrary to what many believe, training isn’t a one-way road. Yes, you have to shape your staff according to the new technology, but you must also be ready to shape your technology according to your staff. If there are some components that many of your employees complain about, you must not reject them as mere reservations but take a serious look back at it. This will not only make your application more refined but also keep your staff happy knowing that their opinions are addressed.
#4. Keep it fun
This is perhaps the most important factors that businesses generally do not take into account. Most of your staff are adept at various skills of their own field and so to pound them into getting proficient in other technologies is not always the best route to take. You should make the process as swift and simple as you can. Even the kids resist learning by force, so you must not use it on already well-trained professionals.
While many of these steps may seem rudimentary at first glance, it is their proper implementation that actually matters. After all, once your offshore app developers deliver your application, the onus of making it a success lies entirely on you and by extension, your staff. You may feel that keeping all the staff on your side is tough, but it’s not a rocket science.
