Overcoming Challenges in Adopting New Technologies
- Howard Mann
- Jun 13
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 25
Technology can boost performance, cut costs, and future-proof your business—but only if you get it right. Many SMEs struggle to adopt new tools because of unclear planning, team resistance, or poor fit with business goals. This guide offers advice on how to make tech transitions smoother and more successful.
1. Engage Employees to Reduce Resistance
Resistance is one of the biggest blockers to successful adoption. Employees who feel blindsided or excluded often fear change, delaying or derailing rollout.
Help your team feel heard and involved:
• Host inclusive workshops to gather input and surface concerns early.
• Use anonymous tools like Slido to encourage honest feedback.
• Explain how each role benefits from the new technology—link it to daily routines.
Several SMEs in the North West participated in the Made Smarter pilot programme, directly involving staff in selecting and testing new systems. The result? Faster adoption and better morale.
Takeaway: Early engagement builds trust and lowers resistance.
2. Build a Transparent Technology Roadmap
Lack of structure leads to drift. A clear plan with milestones gives direction and ensures accountability at every stage.
Create a roadmap that keeps everyone aligned:
Define success metrics linked to your business goals.
Break the rollout into clear phases—prep, pilot, launch, review.
Nominate internal champions to support teams and feedback issues.
The National Trust created a digital roadmap aligned with its seasonal operations, ensuring technology rollouts integrated with organisational rhythms.
Takeaway: A shared roadmap avoids confusion and keeps progress on track.
3. Upskill for Confidence and Capability
New systems often fail not because they’re flawed, but because users don’t feel equipped to use them confidently.
Build digital skills from the ground up:
Audit your team's current capabilities before rollout.
Deliver blended training—short online sessions, peer mentoring, and practical walkthroughs.
Celebrate early adopters as internal role models.
Virgin Media O2’s “Get More” programme helped UK SMEs deliver tailored upskilling support. Results included higher productivity and increased digital engagement.
Takeaway: Confident users accelerate adoption and unlock ROI.
4. Align Technology with Strategic Priorities
Tech adoption only works when the tools directly support your strategic goals. Otherwise, you’re adding complexity, not value.
Make sure your investment drives business outcomes:
Review your strategic objectives and assess which tools support them.
Score options by impact, ease, and ROI potential.
Involve department heads to map how tools will be used on the ground.
Fever-Tree adopted Beacon’s supply chain software to gain greater control and visibility—key to their international expansion goals.
Takeaway: Tech should serve the strategy—not the other way around.
5. Measure Success
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Tracking adoption metrics helps you adjust your approach in real time.
Monitor what matters post-rollout:
• Training completion rates—e.g. 90% within 60–90 days.
• Process efficiency gains—e.g. time saved per task.
• Time-to-value—how soon are you seeing measurable returns?
• Usage stats by team or function.
• Satisfaction surveys—user feedback on system experience.
Baxi Heating collaborated with Energy Systems Catapult to test a digital ‘heat-as-a-service’ model. Through KPIs such as system uptime, support volume, and user satisfaction, they validated adoption success and scaled confidently.
Takeaway: Measure adoption like you would any strategic investment.
Struggling with slow rollouts or team resistance? MannagementXP offers strategic oversight to help SMEs adopt the right tools the right way—aligned with people, goals, and outcomes.
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