The Generation Y workforce does it different. Collaborative, entrepreneurial, connected, culture oriented--all words that can be used to describe the fastest growing segment in the American workforce. And as you roll out technology changes within your organization, how can you ensure success and user adoption? 

Your employees are excited that you have decided to adopt a cloud based technology. Gen Y views this as a competitive advantage. They want to be where the best technology is. But that doesn't mean you can launch a new platform and expect them to immediately jump on board. Technology adoption is still a process. 

So, what are some common characteristics of this generation and how can you put in place a plan that will focus and engage your employees?

Some common Generation Y traits:

• Technology dependent
• Desire flexible management
• Possess an entrepreneurial spirit
• Value training and onboarding
• Have a sense of urgency
• Aware of corporate culture

When you are determining your go-live adoption plan, it is crucial that you take these traits into consideration and design a plan that will motivate your employees to succeed. In order to ensure maximum ROI for your new solution, you will need your employees to embrace the change.

Strategy 1: Incorporate Corporate Culture
Before you embark on the change management journey, it is vital that you understand the cultural makeup of your organization--this will help determine the most effective roll-out process. Not sure what your corporate culture is? Why not schedule a round-table meeting with a selection of employees? Ask them to describe to you what the corporate culture is like and get a sense of how teams collaborate. You can also send out a survey to get a broader view of employee opinions. This will begin the cultural exploration process and help you determine how to most effectively promote user adoption. Your Generation Y employees will appreciate that you have taken the time to understand and consider how culture can affect the go-live process. 

Strategy 2: Create Custom Training Paths
Gen Y loves to enhance their professional toolbox. Learning a new technology that will streamline business processes is a great way for them to add more value to an organization. Set up a detailed training process for learning the new technology. Offer certification classes and be prepared to take on a mentorship role. You can also set up study support teams and assign top performers as team leads in order to motivate, increase collaboration, and foster an entrepreneurial attitude. Keeping your employees constantly involved in their training paths will empower them to become engaged in the process. 

Strategy 3: Manage with Flexibility
Gen Y loves collaborative and flexible environments. They want to actively participate in the process and they want their opinions heard and respected.  Yers crave support and they want to have a relationship with management. As you are rolling out your implementation plan, make sure to engage your users. Set up weekly meetings and ask for their feedback and suggestions. Because the implementation and roll-out process is iterative, you can adapt your plan based on their feedback. Yers want to feel like part of the process and, by encouraging their participation and feedback, they will feel like they are an owner.

An organization that knows how to focus and motivate their talent will not only maximize their ROI by total user adoption, but they will also have a strong competitive advantage. Generation Y employees are extremely high performing and it is vital to the success of an implementation program that management understands how to properly foster and leverage their talent.

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