Securing Leadership Buy-In: A Guide to Construction Tech Adoption

From establishing foundational software solutions to investing in robotics, the process of adopting a new technology initiative almost always requires getting buy-in from leadership to agree to, invest in and ultimately support the tool. 

Even when a specific tech solution is likely to revolutionize the workplace, leaders have to be thorough and, at times, skeptical in considering how it will impact company goals and priorities. Getting buy-in from key decision-makers is one of the most important — and potentially challenging — steps to realizing the potential of a new tool and connecting it to a larger technological ecosystem.

This article explores best practices, important considerations and mindsets for getting buy-in from leaders and decision-makers for new construction technology.

The Importance of Leadership Buy-in

Depending on a general contractor’s size, age and maturity, leadership may include c-suite executives, project executives, project managers or the heads of the technology or innovation department. These positions are often responsible for deciding whether to invest in new tools, such as BIM or artificial intelligence.  They also set the culture and vision for an organization that can determine whether an adopted technology gains traction. An executive who supports a technology, feels invested in its success and understands what the process will look like is more likely to help drum up the same type of support from other stakeholders.

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Understanding Stakeholder Perspectives

The resistance of some construction executives faced with adopting and investing in a new technology often makes sense. New tech that promises to unlock unimaginable potential seems to hit the market all the time and often requires a large investment of time, money and energy. Much of buy-in begins with understanding the concerns of key decision-makers, as well as how they measure success in business and project outcomes. 

Executives often need to assess how a technology will impact the financial health and performance of a company, which they might do through monitoring cost, reflecting on process improvement, assessing risks, backlog or the impact on other business operations. 

Company leadership needs to assess how a piece of technology will impact specific projects, which they might do through the budget, measuring productivity increase, risk assessments or impact on a timeline. Understanding these perspectives can help to frame a new technology as an investment in achieving organizational and project objectives. 

Getting buy-in also often involves aligning the priorities of leadership with the needs of workers in the field. Some leaders might be concerned about how to protect the interests of those who work for them, as well as navigating their feelings, concerns and questions related to working with a new technology. 

Feedback sessions and training can help gain an understanding of workers' priorities and perspectives. When worker perspectives are represented in technology decision-making with leaders, it demonstrates an understanding of the likelihood of a technology’s success in the field, as well as an understanding of the challenges that it might bring up. 

4 Best Practices for Getting Buy-in

Every organization is different and has its own priorities, challenges and needs. So naturally, getting buy-in looks a little different every time, but there are a few practices that make the pitch, the buy-in and the ongoing support from leadership more likely to be successful.

1. Craft a persuasive business case.

Executives need to know that an investment is going to be worth it. Presenting them with a new technology should start with making a business case to them about how the tool will help them meet goals, become more efficient, save money or reduce risk that could lead to increased cost. 

The business plan should communicate the potential benefits of the technology and its impact on productivity. This might include tangible benefits, such as accurate tracking of materials, change orders or RFIs, as well as intangible benefits, such as an increased ability to attract and retain talented workers. 

The process of communicating benefits often requires comparing past performance with potential future performance through data-informed insights, which might include metrics or analytics demonstrating potential for efficiency gains, cost savings or decreased risk. 

2. Share success stories.

Sometimes the most effective tool for winning someone over is a real-life story. Be ready to share examples of how similar technologies have led to success in other projects or companies. Leaders are more likely to give support when they can hear how their day and the days of people who work for them are going to be improved. 

Leaders will often repurpose these success stories as a sort of internal marketing, sharing it with others to gain wider support. 

3. Start with pilot projects.

Choose a manageable and measurable pilot project to showcase immediate benefits, build trust and identify potential issues through real-life performance. For example, some robotics companies allow for demo periods that cost significantly less than purchasing the whole machine. 

These pilots allow leaders to witness the value of innovation without feeling like they’ve gone all in and are on the line for a large amount of money. 

4. Create a dedicated technology committee.

When possible, establish a dedicated tech or innovation committee to make well-rounded, thorough decisions about new technologies or investments. Gain an understanding of as many perspectives as possible by including members from various departments, including field workers, IT and the C-suite. 

This helps alleviate pressure on leaders by placing the responsibility for research, collaboration and financial management in the hands of trusted team members. It also helps ensure the ultimate success of tech adoption because it factors in the needs of different stakeholders, finds solutions to potential issues and increases collaboration. 

Technology Alignment and Integration

Each new tool should connect to a larger technology ecosystem — which should be anchored by a tech stack — and include other software solutions and emerging tech such as reality capture, laser scanning and robotics. Making sure tools and devices are integrated isn't just best practice for tech implementation — it’s also important to decision-makers. 

Leaders invest money and energy into making sure a company has the tools to visualize and analyze project progress and outcomes, gain competitive advantages in the market and help workers do their jobs as effectively as possible. Ensuring tools are aligned and complementary makes good on that investment, while also building trust to help gain their buy-in for future tech. 

Use data to support the decision and improve outcomes.

A tech ecosystem should always be collecting and analyzing data to help create new possibilities and improve performance. Having a well-integrated ecosystem helps leaders and key stakeholders make better decisions moving forward and stay confident about investments they’ve already made. 

Consistent, high-quality data also helps optimize the performance of tools, further adding to the ROI.

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Getting Invested in the Process

Getting buy-in from leadership and other key decision-makers often comes down to cultivating, appealing to, and, in some cases, modeling the mindset that technology implementation is an ongoing process that involves continuous improvement. Tech adoption should be iterative and have room for collaboration, creativity and innovation. 

Leadership often has pressure to get results as quickly as possible, but hoping that a new tool will suddenly change the fate of a company or project is perhaps the surest way for that tech to get abandoned before it’s realized its potential. Embracing the mindset that tech adoption is a long-term process helps keep people open to new ideas and helps companies stay current, optimize each new tool and consistently benefit from new advancements.

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