From Zero to Qlik Hero
How to become the go-to expert at work
It’s a daunting task. You want to become the work hero, solving business analysis problems with efficiencies that make your company better. You want to go from not knowing much to being an in-house expert. But how do you get started? What can you do to really become proficient with software?
It’s not just about training
It is important to know that user adoption requires not just education, but also motivation, and a reduction of hurdles and roadblocks. Education is critical; learn as much as you can about the software and how it can help improve your business. Motivation is achieved by mastering demonstrations relevant to your interests and goals. Reducing or removing hurdles and roadblocks is accomplished by proper implementation, support, and enablement as you go through the user adoption maturity model. This is a process and not a single event.
The path to “Hero”
Users who are seeking to configure data models or develop visual analysis solutions will go through various stages during the adoption of the software. This is what is called the “user maturity model”, which has five stages: Awareness, Learning, Trial, Application and Adoption.
Each stage will have various efforts required of the users, and each stage will require various enablement offerings to support them:
Awareness: The “Skeptic” User
During the Awareness stage, users achieve awareness of the software and begin forming perceptions around its importance and value to them. There is minimal effort required in the awareness phase. During this phase users should check out resources like demos or webinars, where they can watch a short video or two to see what value they can get from the software. This should get users interested enough to start doing some hands-on work in the software (if you are not already at that stage). This stage should get users interested enough to start doing some hands-on work in the software, attempting to construct simple data load scripts or create visualizations which answer basic questions.
Learning: The “Productive” User
In the Learning stage, users obtain an understanding of the software’s fundamental attributes, such as what it does, its value, how to use it and how it integrates with existing work processes. Users can benefit from training resources like free Qlik Continuous Classroom modules to help them quickly learn key capabilities. They can also benefit from industry-specific webinars to learn about how other companies in the same industry are using the software. Presales workshops will also help explain how to integrate the software into their daily work lives.
Trial: The Still “Productive” User
During the Trial stage, users experiment with the software on current projects to experience how data can be accessed and represented visually within the Qlik environment, and how that fits with current modes of working. This gives them real-time understanding of the benefits as well as experience with the software. Users will need support as they transition from learning to trial. This is the most critical stage of a user’s adoption where users will encounter most of their hurdles. They will benefit from formal training offerings as well as performance support tools.
Application: The “Advocate” User
In the Application stage, users apply the software regularly and gain greater familiarity with it, specifically as it relates to fundamental tasks. This stage finally sees all of this effort coming together, and as the pieces fit into place - and functional applications are created – the user effort decreases. This is where more informal learning and performance support tools come into play.
Adoption: Finally, the “Hero”!
Finally, during the Adoption stage, users can incorporate the software as an indispensable tool. This is where users and companies see the payoff and return on investment. The level of effort has returned to the late stage of the Awareness stage, because consumers are performing their analyses on configured applications. It plateaus a little higher than the Awareness level due to maintenance of these documents, the server, enhancement requests for their analysis applications.
Want to go from zero to hero with Qlik? Get started now by checking out the FREE learning modules in Qlik Continuous Classroom!
