The workplace is constantly evolving as a result of remote and hybrid employment. Businesses must adapt in order to compete. The good news is that those who keep up will benefit. Microsoft 365 is a vital tool for staying on top of remote work. Microsoft 365 cloud-based productivity apps will help your company prepare for the future.

Having an all-inclusive tool suite can be substantially less expensive than purchasing and maintaining different solutions with separate licenses. Because it is a subscription-based service, a corporation can pay a price and have access to the services they require.

If you stick with existing software or older versions of Office 365, you will always be forced to purchase hundreds or thousands of new licenses whenever a new version is introduced. In this situation, you must decide whether to continue using outdated software or pay the higher cost of new licenses for everyone. Being a Microsoft 365 early adopter is a good answer to this problem.

Every business leader must consider end-user acceptance when adopting new technologies like Microsoft 365 (previously Office 365) in their environment. No matter how beneficial the product is, reaping the full benefits will be difficult if your employees do not accept it or find it hard to grasp. Remember that because your employees are unfamiliar with it, you will need to give it an extra push to ensure the successful deployment of Microsoft 365. For this objective, you require a digital adoption platform for Microsoft.

Implement a Digital Adoption Platform

Digital Adoption Platforms (DAPs) are a type of digital adoption solution that interacts completely with enterprise systems. The software guides users through various areas of the application, providing step-by-step directions to assist them in completing specific tasks.

DAPs also have self-help menus that include links to; articles, videos, and guided walk-throughs to help users learn every part of the program. Its role is to facilitate digital adoption by customers or within a firm. DAPs assist users in learning to use new technology fast and easily. They achieve this by guiding them through the application and providing broad resources to address any questions. The program ensures that users do not face difficulties while learning certain jobs on the platform, and do not ignore important features.

Encourage Executives to Support the Use of Microsoft Tools

Executive sponsorship in technology installations is almost always a surefire technique to convince consumers to adopt new technology, even if reluctantly. To be honest, an IT administrator does not wield the same power as the president, CEO, or owner. If not addressed at the initial stages, problems like cybersecurity, insubordination at work due to lack of control, and even verifying the customer’s identity online.

Once you've identified the executive sponsors for your technology deployment, make sure you're all on the same page about what you want from them. Ideally, you want executive sponsors to share responsibility for the implementation's success. They can provide support when you face political problems in your business, or when end users object to the changes you're doing.

Make sure to provide your executive sponsors with training on the technology's functionalities based on relevant cases. For example, if they prefer email to co-authoring papers, train them on the new Outlook features rather than teaching them how to store and share files on SharePoint. They will be able to share their experiences with the rest of the business once they recognize the benefit of the technology.

Identify and Mobilize Champions to Encourage Microsoft Tools Adoption

Although scientists have not yet developed a cloning machine, you can generate clones of yourself to scale up your training efforts. How? By enlisting and mobilizing a network of champions for your cause, namely Microsoft tool adoption. These individuals are typically early adopters and power users of your organization's current technology.

Allow them to use the entire array of Microsoft 365 services and provide them with specialized training. Use the "train the trainer" technique to help them comprehend that they will be responsible for teaching others in the organization. Ideally, you'll want a champion from each department who understands the process for each department's users.

Inform People About the Change

It has been said that communication accounts for 90% of a project manager's duties. This data is accurate and relevant when it comes to installing Microsoft 365 tools in your firm. It's vital to have a robust communication plan in place whether you have a project manager assigned to you or are entrusted with being the project manager.

Keep the communication pace in mind. If you send an email every day for three months telling end users of an approaching change, you may wind up with irritated recipients who will set up a rule to delete your emails or route them to a folder to read later. If you position the communications too far apart; they may miss one and be caught off guard when you finally make the changeover. Based on what you know about your end customers, you must strike the correct balance.

Create and Carry out a Microsoft Training Strategy

When it comes to integrating new technology, the adage "fail to plan, plan to fail" could not be more true. The training plan for end users is critical to the entire deployment strategy. The training program does not have to be complicated. Even a rough idea of who will be trained on what and when is sufficient, especially if you’re a small organization. Do you recall the Champs Network and the executive sponsors? These groups must be included in the training strategy.

As you have a sense of how well your initial groups of learners are responding, you may need to change your training plan. As a result, design your training plan in a style that is simple to update and collaborate on. You can expose your learners to new technologies by storing your training plan in SharePoint lists or document libraries. They will begin to get schooled on the features without even recognizing them!

Prepare to Provide Microsoft Integration Support

Nothing fails more spectacularly when delivering new technology than a deployment with no support model in place. People have even been dismissed after deployment due to poor user experience and a lack of a clear mechanism for escalation.

You may have different support choices depending on how you obtained your licenses. If you purchased your Microsoft licenses directly from Microsoft via their website, Microsoft will give support. Only the global admin can submit support tickets to Microsoft Assistance unless you pay a premium for Premiere support.

That implies you, as the IT administrator, will be ready to assist your end users. You can, however, submit a ticket on their behalf. Microsoft Support may wind up working directly with them to address an issue.

5 Best Practices to Increase Adoption Rates for Microsoft Tools