Many enterprises lag in technology adoption, even when they realize the competitive benefits on offer. Here are the challenges to adopting new technology, and tips to overcome it.

1. The Business Case

A competitive business economy forces the C-suite to tighten their purse strings. They need a financial reward or a compelling business reason to invest in new technologies. Consider the case of the COBOL programming language, which has long given way to modern languages and software packages. Yet 43% of the US banking systems and 70% of all business-processing systems continue in COBOL. Top management across enterprises have not found compelling business reasons to upgrade.

2. Resource Crunch

New technologies do not come cheap. The initial development cost itself may be pricey, even with open-source software. The indirect costs of training, disruption, and downtime increase costs. There is also the risk of customer dissatisfaction during the difficult transition period. Enterprises find such costs overwhelming and put off technology adoption. Many enterprises do not have the financial muscle to hold on and wait for long-term benefits.

A recent survey shows small businesses increasing spending on technology by 18%. But decision-makers focus on the development of the particular technology. But they leave very little resources for implementation. Consider the case of a large manufacturer of computerized processing control equipment. The clients received the shipment, but without the linking software. Payment for this small, yet critical software led to a major dispute and major delay in implementing the new technology.

3. Skill Challenges

An overwhelming majority of businesses cannot find talent for implementing new technologies. The skill shortage is rife for emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence. A lack of thought leadership and risk-taking at the higher echelons further inhibit new technology adoption.

The lack of continuous learning programs and limited macro-level initiatives aggravate the situation.

Enterprises seeking to overcome the skill crunch have to upskill existing employees.

4. Technology Challenges

At times, enterprises do not grasp the new technology. The inability of enterprises to put new technology to work is a big stumbling point.

Enterprises adopting AI in the APAC region face operational challenges. 59% of enterprises found it tough to break organizational silos. 55% found it difficult to identify the right predictive analytics platforms. 49% of enterprises had difficulty in identifying the right technology partners.

Also, market pressures force innovators and developers into a race against time. They launch new implementations without testing. Consider the case of Galaxy Note 7. In an attempt to make an efficient battery, Samsung ended up making a ticking time bomb. The phones became explosive, forcing Samsung to scrap the new technology.

5. The Disruptive Impact of New Technology

New technology is disruptive in the short-run. It realizes its potential only when it integrates with legacy enterprise systems. The enterprise will have to upgrade existing systems and procedures, causing major disruptions. The new implementation may develop glitches when exposed to real-time conditions. It takes a while before it settles. For users, new technology forces a learning curve, which decreases productivity.

Many enterprises find such a disruptive impact of the new technology overwhelming. They cannot afford the temporary loss of business caused by the disruption.

There are no shortcuts to overcome such disruptions.

• Review incumbent structures. Compare it for compatibility with the new technologies under consideration. Include the cost of any new database purchases with the new technology budget.
• Factor the loss of productivity into the cost of new technologies.
• Develop effective training interventions to aid end-users to unlearn the old system and learn the new system.
• Be transparent on the ill effects of new technologies. Hiding the possible ill effects frustrate end users.
• Be patient with the technology and the workforce. The glitches iron out in time, and productivity increases.

6. End-user Resistance

End users push back technology. Most of them find new technology unsettling. They fear a loss of skills or power.

Any new technology requires an innovation champion to nurture it. The inevitable internal politics of an enterprise provokes opposition to such innovation champions. Innovation assassins are a natural and inevitable corollary to product champions.

Supervisors and managers may become innovation assassins and subvert the new technology implementation. The new technology makes their intimate knowledge of the legacy systems redundant.

Often, resistance ferments and grows into sabotage.

Pushing through innovation requires sponsors or champions who can overcome the innovator assassins. 

The best champion and sponsor:

• is a diplomat and a problem solver. He has a fine eye for administrative details and is adept in managing conflicting priorities.
• identify loss of power and other benefits brought by the change in technology. They need to make proactive interventions to avert problems from those who lose out.

Apart from sponsors, new technology also requires tech endorsers. Have people at each level of implementation talk on the new tech, and communicate the benefits on offer.

Retrain the workforce whose automation would otherwise displace.

An engineering test equipment manufacturer developed a program to identify missing components. Omissions and incorrect selection of parts was a major issue. Manual identification cost enormous amounts of time, money, and customer goodwill. The inability to identify a sponsor or champion led to half-hearted and lacklustre adoption.

7. Ownership Issues

Resistance to change boils to ownership issues. If the rank and file disassociates with the new technology, or perceive the sponsor pushing it down their throats, they resist.

Successful tech implementation requires empowering end-users. For instance, a large warehouse relied on its crane operators to work out the wrinkles, when installing materials handling systems, for good effect.

Successful technology adoption depends on specific enterprise-level factors. For best results, focus on the end-user and the primary objectives.