What is employee buy-in and why does it matter?

Employee buy-in is your team’s commitment to your business’s strategic goals, including the methods used to reach those goals. That matters because your strategic goals may be tied to a particular initiative that requires change.

Everybody reacts differently to new technologies, processes, workflows or team members. Some may be quick to openly embrace new ways of working or new tools. Others may be more apprehensive or question exactly how the change will make their day-to-day more efficient.

Whether you’re creating a new department or replacing an aging CRM with something more modern, one of the most efficient ways to generate buy-in is consistent and transparent communication. If you and your leadership team are intentional about how you communicate and enact change, you can inspire employee buy-in.

It’s crucial to prioritize the “why” over the “how” and frame changes positively. Unifying your team to work together toward a common goal and helping them see the value in making the change are the best ways to encourage buy-in and boost engagement.

Employee buy-in example

Say the change taking place is new software being implemented in a contact center. It’s designed to handle initial live chats so employees are only contacted if a customer escalates an issue. Previously, all live chats were dealt with by employees from start to finish.

Because you understand the importance of employee buy-in, you build a change management strategy and communicate clearly about the software in advance. In doing so, you help your team see its benefits for them individually and the company as a whole. Through effective and transparent communication, you shift what could have become negative conversations into excitement around a change in responsibilities and workflows.

Team members are comfortable asking each other and the leadership team questions about the change, and communication is a two-way street. With sufficient buy-in, you may even look to incorporate key non-management employees into your change management strategy, whether that be by assisting with setting up and testing the software or evangelizing it to other employees.

How to get buy-in from your team

Ideally, to create a culture of change acceptance, you build it into your business plan and core values long before any major changes occur. Developing resilience in your company and teams helps you navigate challenges and remain focused on your goals and objectives.

Excellent change management begins with a strong sense of culture, including well-defined and regularly reinforced mission, vision and core values. Employees have clearly defined job roles and receive regular feedback, and change is reflected in company documentation as it’s implemented. Most importantly, you need a passionate leadership team that understands your vision and is adept at communicating it to the workforce.

When your leadership team gets employees excited about upcoming changes and updates, you’ve built a culture of change acceptance.

1. Explain what’s going to change

Change is nearly constant, so it’s important to be clear, succinct and enthusiastic about any upcoming changes. Explain the change with a focus on the benefits, but be sure to acknowledge potential roadblocks and consider explicitly including them in the process by letting teams know that a successful change will rely on their participation. This can help ensure that their perception of the change is positive and realistic.

2. Describe what’s in it for them

Anything that disturbs the status quo can be uncomfortable, but you can make it more appealing by helping employees see what’s in it for them. Personal and professional advantages could include lighter workloads, opportunities to up skill, more streamlined processes and better traceability for key tasks.Connect upcoming changes with the company’s mission and help staff see that it resonates with existing values and priorities.

3. Define how it’s going to change

People can be significantly less resistant to change if they know what’s expected from them and have a roadmap for how it’s going to pan out. Begin communicating your company’s strategic mission months in advance of changes taking place, and gently remind employees at opportune, relevant moments. For example, if you’re phasing out in-house phone lines, let employees know as long in advance as possible and get them excited about the new digital support options you’re implementing. Use staff meetings as an opportunity to get them excited about the upcoming shift.

4. Address concerns directly

In some cases, employees may make a leap to worst-case scenarios. This is where your leaders must shine.By taking the time to listen to employee’s concerns and responding in a thoughtful, personal manner, they set a good example. It’s vital to address any concerns as early as possible and provide honest, realistic answers.

5. Foster a culture of open communication

Ensure communication is a two-way street by resisting the temptation to shut down objections and actively seeking feedback. Build trust with your employees by being honest with them about what’s happening and why, and carefully explain the reasons behind roadblocks or challenges. If you’re committed to being open with employees, they may be more likely to voice their own concerns openly.

6. Personalize tasks and incentivize success

Make each employee feel valued and reward success by personalizing tasks and offering customized incentives for excellent work. Use one-on-one meetings to communicate very big changes and help them understand their unique contribution to gain commitment, support and buy-in. If appropriate, get them involved in shaping how they’ll contribute to the change and let them have some choice in which new skills they gain.

7. Focus on building a unified culture

Aim to instill a “one team, one dream” mentality in which every individual employee and collective department is actively working toward common goals. Use company culture, team-building, shared incentives and motivational leadership to unify the team.

8. Leverage influential employees

Every organization has leaders and employees who seem to automatically understand and buy into new initiatives. If any of these team members are looked up to by the rest of the team, leverage their credibility to help create buy-in. When speaking about the upcoming change during meetings, ask these leaders and employees to speak up and give their opinions in front of the team.

9. Market the changes

If you have the budget, develop an in-house marketing campaign to encourage employee buy-in. Create promotional material, develop a newsletter, leverage social media and organize fun training sessions. Create a clear and consistent message to normalize the change before it happens and demonstrate your dedication to helping your employees thrive.

10. Monitor the changes and adjust

Use every available channel to monitor attitudes to change and shift your strategy if necessary. For example, if multiple members of your team report feeling fatigued by seeing too much messaging about change, scale it back. On the other hand, if there are lots of rumors going around about an upcoming change, take steps to address them through a combination of direct communication and clearer messaging.