There was a recent article in the New York Times that discussed Japan’s reluctance to give up using fax machines. The fact that such a leader in technology still relies on archaic spools of slippery fax paper to communicate is a bit of a mystery, until you hear the reasoning behind it.
A Japenese restaurant owner attempted to convert his customers to utilizing an online ordering process, but the attempt failed. Japan’s aging population, accustomed to handwriting their food orders and faxing them to the restaurant, seems unwilling to give up a method of communication that they are comfortable with and this is a common trend across the country.
The evolution of technology always involves a learning curve, but if the participants are not willing to learn, the evolutionary process will be stalled.
At Teltek, we understand that change can be daunting and challenging and we are here to help make technology transitions as effortless as possible for you and your business.
Here are a few tips we have picked up along the way to assist you in your own evolution:
1. Give your customers and employees plenty of notice: if you advise of the change far enough in advance, your people have time to adjust and prepare for it
2. Provide adequate training: change is much less intimidating when it is understood. Have manuals or other reference materials on hand that users can refer to during and after the training. Bring in an expert on the equipment or software you are implementing if you need to
3. Have support in place: It’s best to have support available internally and externally. There should be a person in your office knowledeable enough to answer basic questions. Externally, there should be a website, 800 number or other resource that can be contacted for help when needed
4. Be patient: It’s possible that during the implementaion phase, orders may be processed slower and other routine tasks may require more time. Eventually, speed and efficiency will pick back up
5. Prepare yourself for possible backlash: It’s not just the elderly folks in Japan who fight change. Many people are comfortable doing things as they always have and don’t want to take the time needed to learn a new way. Make the process as easy as possible and things should work out for all parties involved
6. Call Teltek! Our #1 priority is to take this burden from you. We have technicians who are skilled not only in installing, repairing and maintaining telecommunications and technology equipment, but they can teach as well! Let us guide you and your employees through this process. Whether it’s implementing fax to email, new desktop PCs or a more sophisticated phone system, we can help.
Teltek is proud to offer IT services as the fourth component to our multi-systems approach as your single source technology services company. This Managed Service Provider (MSP) offering completes our longstanding goal to provide our clients with a one-call resource for all of their business technology needs. IT outsourcing, remote back up and disaster recovery, helpdesk support, computer network relocations, security products and server/desktop virtualization are just a few of the services now available.