How does a company creatively launch and integrate GlobeSmart into its workflow? In the newest GlobeSmart Collaboration forum, Amber Kanareff – the Organizational Development Specialist at Hyland Software – shared how this groundbreaking software company did just that.
Here are some of the key insights from the webinar:
Hyland Brought in GlobeSmart for Increased Cultural Awareness
As Hyland Software went from a small, home-grown company in Westlake, Ohio, to a multinational powerhouse with 30 different offices and 3,400 employees, its executives put a premium on building cultural awareness.
“Our CEO, Bill Priemer, came to us and said that he wanted to invest in cultural awareness at Hyland,” Kanareff says. “This was an important topic for him and the company’s executives. They wanted to put a focus on building cultural awareness, so employees understood the differences, similarities, and opportunities presented to us with such a large workforce around the globe.”
With that in mind, the HR team searched for vendors that could fulfill their cultural awareness requirements – and GlobeSmart quickly stood out.
“We wanted to partner with folks in this space that had a proven track record with cultural awareness, and ones that have spent years dedicating time and research to this space,” Kanareff says. “We felt we needed a strong partnership, and we really enjoyed what GlobeSmart had to offer and what it had for us going forward.”
Hyland Software Brought Change Management Principles to its GlobeSmart Usage
As Kanareff explains, she approached the use of GlobeSmart within the organization through the lens of change management, thinking through three key questions:
- What does it mean to become more culturally aware?
- What does that shift look like?
- How is this a change for our organization – and how do we make sure our people adopt this tool and shift their mindset to build cultural awareness, ability, and understanding?
Before rolling GlobeSmart out to their organization, Kanareff put together a project team covering critical areas within Hyland – including internal communications, employee resource groups, and instruction and design.
“We wanted to let our people know that this is an important resource, and to get them excited about leveraging it not just once or twice – but continually,” Kanareff says.
The team decided they needed top-down adoption and buy-in from senior leadership. The team presented GlobeSmart at VP meetings, performed demonstrations, and talked about its importance. They even provided “sneak peeks” of GlobeSmart to other leaders and Employee Resource Group personnel worldwide, seeking to build a champion network.
“When GlobeSmart got released to the rest of the organization, these people were ready to engage in conversations with their peers and team members,” Kanareff says.
The GlobeSmart Roll-Out Process at Hyland
As part of the process, Kanareff’s group asked each member of the organization’s leadership team to create their profile and build awareness. They leveraged management meetings and management memos and offered virtual, instructor-led training.
“We really explained and answered key questions for them that they thought their teams might ask,” Kanareff says. “We tried to prepare them to answer any questions that came up, and to champion this tool among their own teams.”
From there came the company-wide rollout. As Kanareff explains, this was tricky; the team needed the rollout materials to be quick and easy to digest. It needed not to lose people in the details but also be informed enough to help users get the most out of GlobeSmart.
“We wanted to make things fun and incentivize people,” Kanareff says. “We created a GlobeSmart ‘scavenger hunt,’ where people had to go find answers about different cultures and countries, made short, easily-digestible demo videos, and created a quick reference guide. We also had our CEO create a welcome message explaining why GlobeSmart, and his excitement for the tool.”
The team also at Hyland wanted to make GlobeSmart easily accessible through the organization’s learning and talent management system cornerstone. To do that, the team put access to GlobeSmart on its landing page.
“All of this effort came before we even told the employees about the tool,” Kanareff says.
The final step in the process? Letting the employees know about GlobeSmart. To do that, Kareneff introduced GlobeSmart at the company’s weekly Monday meeting and held a “GlobeSmart Month,” introducing new elements weekly from November to December.
Going Beyond the Rollout
As Kanareff explained, the effective adoption of GlobeSmart didn’t stop with the rollout. The team continues to spotlight GlobeSmart in communication channels, employee onboarding, and formal leadership development programs. Hyland utilizes custom team debriefings and meets quarterly to help foster the adoption of the tool going forward.
The result of all of Kanareff’s efforts for adoption?
“We have about 30-40% adoption over a year,” Kanareff says. “The number that excites me the most? Of the folks that are in GlobeSmart, 80% have their profile completed and have engaged it in that way, making comparisons or personalizing it for themselves.”
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