Windows 10 Empowers the Healthcare Industry

Digital technology is rapidly changing the way we work – and the healthcare industry is no exception.

This pharmaceutical company knew that the faster their employees can safely and securely access their data, the faster patients could receive the medications that are critical to their health. Additionally, as healthcare becomes one of the most regulated industries (given the sensitive patient data) they were under increasing pressure to modernize their systems to protect their patients’ private information.

With Windows 10 being the most secure Microsoft operating system to date, they were eager to modernize their platform for better performance and were looking for an IT service provider to help guide the way.

A New Definition of Successful IT Deployment

The role of IT is changing. In the past, IT was responsible for building and deploying new technology solutions while maintaining existing systems. The parameters of a successful project were straightforward – finish on time and on budget.

Today, technology is infused into every layer of business, and while the tools are improving workforce capabilities, they are also becoming more complex.

Deploying the solution is no longer the last step to a successful IT project. Ensuring the users are leveraging the solution to their full potential, and the business is getting a return on their technology investment, is the new measurement of success. Often, these soft skills are not part of the typical internal IT job description. And this pharmaceutical company was experiencing the growing pains of this dilemma first hand.

The Challenges of a Rapidly Changing IT Landscape

The company recognized that all too often the frustration that comes with launching a new technology is not in the design of a new solution, but rather in the delivery of it to end-users. With IT already overstretched, finding resources to consider, plan, develop, and execute a change management strategy that ensures the new technology is being properly leveraged was leading to challenges with product launches and costing the company time and money in the process.

To further complicate the issue, the pace of technological change that was taking place across the workforce was impacting employee satisfaction. Without input and context for the changes, users were growing increasingly frustrated with the disruptions in their day-to-day work, leading to a lack of trust and satisfaction with IT and company leadership.

Building Trust in the Face of Change

As the healthcare industry becomes more dependent on technology to serve customers and patients, the organization recognized that a thoughtful change management strategy was necessary to maintain trust and enable their most valuable asset – their people!

They knew the upgrade to Windows 10 was going to temporarily disrupt certain aspects of their employees’ day-to-day activities, and they were looking for a partner to not only provide the IT expertise to assist with this complex migration but also expedite employee productivity after Windows 10 deployment with a tried and tested change management strategy.

BDO Digital’s holistic approach to IT solutions proved to be a valuable differentiator for the company.

Partnering in Success

The company was currently operating a dispersed workforce, with some users working out of the US and others working remotely overseas. Additionally, the generational gap among teams was wide, with varying degrees of understanding and willingness to adapt to the new Windows 10 capabilities.

On top of these challenges, the company was on a tight deadline. The migration needed to happen before the holidays to avoid scheduling conflicts that were likely to occur as more people were taking time off work.

As a result, BDO Digital began incorporating a range of techniques from the very beginning to build momentum prior to launch. The same training and techniques wasn't going to work for everyone, so BDO Digital and company leadership worked in collaboration to manage the initial installation. BDO Digital took ownership of the  subsequent support that would ensure every individual was up and running within a short timeframe.

From leadership all the way down to the individual end-users, BDO Digital’s customize user enablement and adoption program was designed to manage the full lifecycle of a change management strategy. The framework includes these five primary components:

• Marketing
• Change Management
• Training
• Support
• Feedback

Marketing

To build excitement and gain buy-in, BDO Digital released timely marketing materials around the new solution well before the actual launch. A variety of channels were used to promote and highlight how Windows 10 was going to benefit users, including emails, banners, TV posters, and swag. The practice of amplifying the right message through the right channel at the right time was a key component to driving awareness and inspiring action across the entire organization.

Change Management

From corporate newsletters to virtual campaigns to individual email messaging, BDO Digital helped align IT and business through a thoughtfully crafted change management strategy. This allowed the technical teams to focus on the project at hand while BDO Digital’s operational change management team handled the communication around what to expect, scheduling time for each individual’s upgrade installation, and answering questions throughout the lifecycle of the project.

Training

BDO Digital complimented the company’s internal team by working on-site to provide one-on-one training when users picked up their newly configured laptops. Individual training was designed to cater to the wide-ranging needs of a dynamic workforce. Additionally, classroom training was provided as an additional option for those who needed additional support. BDO Digital created a scavenger hunt with prizes to incentivize users to pursue a deeper understanding of the platform that would ultimately help them leverage the technology faster and more successfully.

Support

Like the majority of today’s workforce, the company’s employees expected their IT service desks to deliver a high degree of personalization, speed, and convenience. BDO Digital was able to step in and provide help desk support for the anticipated increase in calls. Resources were established ahead of time to alleviate any post-deployment issues or questions.

Feedback

One of the best ways to build support for the entire organization is to empower everyone to have a voice throughout the transition. Anonymous feedback surveys were used to empower the employees to speak up. The response was used to incorporate into the next rollout to improve user satisfaction and accelerate adoption for future deployments.

User Adoption Leads to Significant Gains in ROI of Windows 10 Investment

With Windows 10 in place, the organization not only benefited from better performance and security, they were also able to restore faith in company leadership’s decisions as they continued to lead the organization through their digital transformation.

Although change always comes with a certain degree of resistance, BDO Digital was able to infuse the principles of learning (clear expectations, step-by-step instructions, visuals, feedback, and reinforcement) from the beginning to bring enthusiasm and energy to the process. Instead of fearing the change, the staff was excited for it. The outcomes were outstanding, resulting in a 87% approval rate during the transition and true ROI gains for the business.

If you are preparing for change within your organization and are looking for an IT service provider to help drive strategy, contact BDO Digital to learn more about how our user enablement and adoption framework can help you obtain successful outcomes in today’s rapidly changing business environment.