Training needs to be considered in the early stages of the project. We've found that while our user experience is intuitive and doesn't usually require much training, oftentimes there are process changes in play that will change expectations of end users, requiring them to be trained on those changes.
It’s also important to align and engage with unions during the deployment. Key considerations include use cases, contracts, and collective bargaining agreements. This is just one example of helping users understand how the experience will be different (and better) and how certain processes will evolve and potentially impact them.
Lastly, be mindful of your organizational structure and foster continued leadership engagement across the agency. It’s important to have a steering committee or other group that meets regularly to drive effective change management.
Don’t Forget About Data
Effective data management can be complex and overwhelming for any organization in today’s fast-paced environment. Many government customers have legacy systems with few knowledgeable internal experts who understand the technical landscape. This can lead to data quality concerns, which means data extraction, cleansing, and transformation may require department engagement to verify the data.
It's critical to dedicate resources to this data effort, whether internally or through a third-party deployment partner. One of the biggest benefits of moving to the cloud comes from access to data that can provide insights and help drive better decisions.
Although government IT projects can be complex, we believe that if the proper steps are taken throughout the engagement, the reward is a successful deployment that can transform key HR and finance functions at any government entity.
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