In schools and hospitals, staff may be skeptical of new technology unless they understand why it’s being adopted. Obtaining staff buy-in is crucial; without it, you wind up with pushback or a lack of adoption that makes your solution less effective.
If you’re trying to implement an emergency notification system, buy-in is vital to ensure that everyone uses it as they’re supposed to when the time comes. Dr. Roderick Sams and Jay Floyd, experienced school administrators and edtech experts, along with Andrea Greco, a seasoned healthcare safety leader and advocate, explain how to gain buy-in from your staff so these solutions are as effective as possible.
Getting Buy-In from School Staff at the Building Level
Dr. Roderick Sams, Chief Development Officer, CENTEGIX, has two decades of experience as an educator and administrator and deeply understands how to gain staff buy-in when implementing new solutions. “Technology often feels like ‘one more thing to do,’” Dr. Sams commented. If you don’t tie it back to why you need it, there will be complaints, challenges, and potentially a lack of participation. All those things must be included in the rollout and the decision-making process.
How do you explain why you need a new solution for your staff? Dr. Sams advised administrators: “With any technology, leaders have to consider: what is the reason for the implementation? What purpose is it going to serve? Tie this purpose to a problem you are trying to solve.”
He suggested the following checklist:
- What problem are you trying to solve?
- What things do you need to consider if you want to solve this problem? For example, if the problem is getting help quickly for staff and teachers dealing with behavioral issues, does the solution need to work outside of the classroom as well as inside of it? Is discretion a consideration?
- What’s the best way to solve this problem?
- Which solution checks all of the boxes you’ve created?
- How does the solution work?
- What do staff members and teachers have to say about this solution?
- Are there regulatory requirements to consider (or even regulatory requirements on the horizon)?
- How can you partner with the solution provider for the most effective implementation?
Consider the case of an emergency notification system. If administrators implement that solution, they will be able to notify the whole school in an emergency. The solution’s purpose is to make emergency notifications more effective and efficient so that emergency responses can be put into action quickly.
Dr. Sams emphasized that staff should be included in the discovery a solution. “When staff is involved successfully, implementation is smoother, and utilization is more effective,” he remarked. He recommended teacher-led groups such as unions be directly involved in the process, as it can lead to “fewer challenges in implementation and usage.”
Dr. Sams predicted that schools will soon be required to have an emergency response or emergency management system. He suggested it could become a national requirement soon, spearheaded by parents, staff, and other community members.
As part of gaining buy-in from staff, they must feel that the new solution empowers them to keep the school safe. “A variety of community members in a school can be empowered to protect themselves: cafeteria worker, custodian, front office person,” Dr. Sams explained. “The staff feels like, ‘I’ve just been empowered to be part of the process, and I don’t have to put myself in harm’s way to do it.’”
Dr. Sams’ last piece of advice is to select a solution provided by a company with which you can form a partnership. You need to know that the company providing this solution has invested just as much in its success as you do.
Getting Buy-In at the District Level
Jay Floyd, CENTEGIX Director of Customer Success, is a former educator who has worked as a principal and a superintendent. His professional experience as a superintendent has given him unique insights into making business cases for new solutions.
“The most difficult thing to do in education is change,” Floyd stated. “It’s not because of the people; it’s because of the nature of the business. Once the year is set in place and the calendar is committed, you are fulfilling your calendar, and you’re working that strategy.” However, change is not impossible in the education system. It requires leaders to advocate for change effectively.
Floyd noted that superintendents play a significant role in bringing about change. “Leadership is key,” he commented. “The expectation for the adoption of a new solution should come from the superintendent.” He emphasized that teachers are ultimately the most critical factor, though. “The most important part of the buy-in piece is the teacher level,” he said. They’re on the front lines daily, and their acceptance of a solution directly impacts its implementation.
Investing in school safety solutions has positive long-term consequences, contributing to teacher retention. “This whole process of creating a healthy culture is the best way to attract teachers,” Floyd asserted. “That’s a place teachers want to be. Once they get in that place, they’re a better teacher than if they were concerned about support in their classroom.”
Because the education system calendar is planned so far in advance, leaders must consider the timing when advocating for new solutions such as emergency notification systems. Floyd remarked that the budget process starts in late December or early January for the next school year, making that the right time to introduce new solutions.
How to Get Buy-in from Healthcare Staff
Healthcare professionals have a long list of daily responsibilities. They don’t want to add another technology they have to learn to that list. Andrea Greco, CENTEGIX Senior Vice President of Healthcare Safety, noted, “The amount of tasks expected from team members every day is overwhelming. Adding one more thing to the mix can be met with resistance.”
However, leaders can get buy-in from healthcare staff by demonstrating the value of safety solutions. Explain that::
- A safety solution such as the CENTEGIX CrisisAlert™ duress button enables them to request help where they are so they can receive assistance as rapidly as possible.
- The solution doesn’t track their every move—it only locates them during active emergencies, giving responders the knowledge they need to help.
- The wearable solution is always accessible so healthcare teams can focus on their patients with the confidence that help is just a button push away.
Demonstrating the Value of Safety Technologies
Getting buy-in involves demonstrating the value of the technology in question. When the people asked to adopt by the new system understand what value it will deliver, there will be more champions for the benefits it will produce.
The arguments for value will depend on the role of the person to whom you’re speaking. Let’s say you’re trying to argue for an emergency notification system, and you’re speaking with an educator. You’d want to explain how such a solution would help the educator resume instruction quickly because of an accelerated emergency response. Such a solution would also create a safe, supportive learning environment because teachers feel that administrators are taking steps to protect them.
Let’s say you’re making the business case for an emergency notification system to a superintendent or another education leader. You would highlight the connection between teachers’ feeling safe and their ability to do their jobs effectively. Such a system would improve schools’ safety culture and aid in recruiting and retaining teachers and other staff.
Similar principles apply in the healthcare setting; healthcare team members want to feel that they’re safe and protected at work, and by demonstrating that safety technologies allow them to do their jobs by minimizing risk, they’ll be more willing to adopt them.
Champion a Culture of Safety in Education and Healthcare
Creating safer schools and healthcare facilities is a team effort. Education leaders must have the vision and perseverance to shepherd school safety solutions through decision-making processes, including getting buy-in from teachers. The same goes for healthcare leaders. When teachers and healthcare workers understand the value of these solutions, they will champion them and aid their implementation.
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