“Relative Advantage is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as better than the idea it supersedes.” (Diffusion of Innovations, p. 15)

How do we get adoption for social learning (or anything really?)  The above statement has two Key parts.

1) BETTER. It must be seen as better.  Better how?

More efficient?

More cost effective?

More quick?

Less of a hassle?

Less obtrusive?

More conforming to current _______?

More integrated with _______?

Notice that ‘better’ may be monetary or social or ego or convenience or…  What is better for your organization and culture?  You may want to find their pain or the thing that will give them the most freedom.

2) PERCEIVE.

Whether ‘better’ is truly better & can be quantified or not doesn’t matter (at least not for adoption).  What do they perceive is better – the old solution or the new one?  The old way of thinking or the new one?

Both ‘better’ and ‘perceive’ is an individual matter, not so much an organizational matter, as you will see with the following four Keys.  The individual make the collective.  So you need to get to the individual.

EXAMPLE: (I think I have written about this before, but shall do again.)

To get adoption for one solution I approached the Support department and asked, “What process are you having problems with right now?”  I got a list, but at the top was reporting bugs and enhancements to the development team and then tracking the results.  They showed me their process (convoluted and lacking to be sure).  Then I stepped up to the whiteboard and showed them a different process, with a wiki, reaching the end goal, with less headache.  Bingo.  They were on board.  After coordinating the whole thing with the other department, the new process went into effect.

They haven’t looked back.  If something goes off, they quickly tweak it as necessary.  The problem is now gone and the communication between the groups for that instance improved immediately.

For you to perceive their perceptions, you will need to get in their heads. This is part of the necessary analysis you will need to conduct before even thinking of a solution.

What questions could you ask to find what is most important to them?