12 Common Objections to Worksite Software Adoption (and How to Respond)

Digital in the Field: Tactics to Support Worksite Software Adoption

High experience worksite supervisors are some of the highest paid and most in-demand professionals in the industry—and often key players in successful worksite software adoption. Contractors rely on them to make the company money. They are not just influencers in technology decisions, but often the gatekeepers when it comes to construction technology adoption.

The overwhelming consensus is that the construction industry must prioritize worksite software adoption and other modern, data-driven management techniques. Otherwise, it will never address its productivity and safety issues, nor hire enough to address workforce shortages. Not just the construction trade press but the national press publishes on this topic frequently.

But a big blocker to faster adoption of digital solutions are these very important worksite supervisors. What’s that all about? Why won’t they get with the digital program and adopt worksite management software?

Here are some objections we’ve encountered—we think we’ve heard pretty much all of them over five years—with our suggestions about how to respond.

In our opinion, most objections are not based on business logic, but on the relative power of field managers vs HQ, plus the differences between the experiential culture of building trades vs computer based office culture.

Digital leaders—even with a proven business case—need to overcome such objections patiently, but firmly, if they are going to make their firms more efficient and profitable. Get the support of senior management, but only request intervention for the hardest of cases.

The Many Objections of Jobsite Supervisors…and How to Respond

#1: I Have Too Much To Do Already

The toughest argument to overcome because it’s true. Jobsite supervisors have a long list of responsibilities which we’ve covered in another post. But when a digital solution would actually make their job easier and their firm more money, it’s still an excuse.

A temporary field engineer to assist supers during initial worksite software adoption can make rollout smoother and more successful. But don’t allow a super to escape responsibility for success or failure.

#2: Worksite Management Software Doesn’t Help

Most supervisors have a background in the trades or field engineering. Their motivation is Building, their identity that of a Builder, both with a capital “B”. Building is a physical experience more than an intellectual one. It generates a dopamine rush as you see a structure rise and overcome safety risks.

Process improvement and compliance may be boring compared to watching a building rise. But as a digital leader, a Superintendent’s job is not to bring the most joy and pleasure to the work. Their job is to deliver what the project owner is paying for and make the GC more efficient, profitable and lower risk.

At least on larger projects there’s one digital technology they’re closer to embracing: the digitization of architectural and design documents. Whether it’s called BIM, VDC or any other acronym, the more visual the better. Unfortunately, visual construction digital tech is also the most expensive and complicated to deploy.

#3: What’s In It for Me? Nothing.

Site supervisors are compensated for finishing a project at the best cost possible. Whether the company makes a profit is less of a concern. Not surprisingly, if technology doesn’t directly help the jobsite supervisor make more money, it’s going to be less motivating.

To build digital innovation into your company’s DNA, your compensation mechanisms very likely need a tune up. We talked about this issue earlier this year. Unifying your HQ and field teams means sharing profits equitably as well.

#4: The Technology Won’t Work Reliably

Now that nearly everybody relies on their phone during waking hours,

Much of the newest digital solutions require good Internet connectivity. When cell network coverage is spotty, it’s a legitimate concern. Jobsite environments are not like offices. Custom WiFi might be required on some projects.

But most devices these days are designed for ubiquitous computing, able to operate even in weather. And products have improved usability, security and speed to the point where the “won’t work” objection is getting pretty weak. And by next year, consumer mobile phones will begin to satellite internet access.

#5: Not My Problem

Field managers equate data with “paperwork”. They despise paperwork, but still prefer it to entering data into software. You can always scribble on paper and pretend it has served some business purpose, especially if the departments that consume the data are at HQ. Just move the paper to HQ so that data entry, scanning and filing are their problem.

#6: Paper is Technically Fine Anyways

Whether it is the owner, OSHA or some other regulator, there are always requirements for jobsite data. But not necessarily digital data. So paper forms may be technically fine, even when everyone knows they are grossly inefficient and just push costs around the firm.

Inspectors also tend to be old school, and many are former supers themselves, anyways, so they may doubt the reliability of good old paper vs digital data. During the pandemic, some cities even insisted on paper everything to prove compliance, all at the insistence of local inspectors.

#7: You Can’t Make Me

Jobsite supervisors are some of the contractors most highly paid and important personnel. Most will only take on a project if they can be captain of the ship.

That means there’s an inherent imbalance of power between senior jobsite managers and younger data technologists. Even if the field supervisor is not really qualified to make technology decisions, they often do so as the more senior partner.

As a digital leader, our job is to make firms more efficient, profitable and safe, both in the field and at HQ. So excuses like this need to be forcefully dismissed first by the middle managers leading the digital push. Only ask for the support of senior leadership for the really hard cases.

#8: Workers Don’t Have Cell Phones or Speak English

This problem is probably the second most BS of excuses: Nobody living in the North American economy lacks a smartphone. Yes, sometimes they are out of battery, or lost, but there are always workarounds, such as checking in workers using a supervisor’s device.

All major software vendors for the field have Spanish language capabilities in addition to English, and often more. We think the “no English” excuse is cover for “I don’t carefully check if my workers’ are legal”.  In other words, keeping good data is a liability because it could be used against me.

#9: HR and Finance Object to Personal Phone Use

A variation of the no cellphones excuse comes within the states which require compensation for use of an employee’s cell phone in performance of their job. Rather than comp them $10 or $20 a month, many companies may, in fact, ignore digital efficiencies because of required changes to payroll. Even though the payback is much more than the monthly cell phone reimbursements, and most payroll software easily handles this edge case.

#10: The Project Already Started

Pretending that once a project is started, nothing can change is a favorite. Almost all projects change personnel or scope once started. Onboarding of employees and subcontractor staff is a more or less continuous activity for most firms. Another BS excuse.

#11: I’ll Enter Data Myself

One of the more passive/aggressive strategies is fake cooperation. Supervisors will agree to capture field data, and then have endless excuses why they are late or never get around to it.  This one is closer to sabotage than just being a BS excuse, since it deprives project management software of essential data, or drives up the cost of obtaining field data.

#12: My Workers will Quit

Supervisors also used the politicization of vaccinations to object to digital solutions. The excuse was “my workers will quit”.

The generational labor shortage in construction is caused by too many job openings and too few trained and experienced workers. The problem is especially acute with trade labor and field supervisors. That does give them more power.

But the only way out of the crisis is either by importing more workers, creating more workers in trade schools, or applying technology to raise productivity.

Find Your Allies

Construction firms rarely have rigid top-down decision making about technology. Generational differences between younger, digital natives and the old guard can be exploited in both positive and negative ways.

You have to find innovation allies wherever they are in the firm, and get them to work together to create a sense of urgency and effect change. Here are some ideas on how to begin.

Creating Urgency and Demand for Worksite Management Software at HQ

Departments that use data the entire day understand data-based arguments. “We Need This Data” is your strongest pitch, especially if the data is directly related to financial metrics.

For example, worksite management data such as check in and out times can be used to automatically update project plan actuals vs scheduled. Project managers can confirm daily of proper staffing levels whether employees or subcontractors. Digital archiving directly saves filing and records management costs, and access control and safety screening data cuts the time needed to resolve claims and timecard disputes.

Budget the Costs of Change

Vendors and over-enthusiastic leaders often push benefits without addressing the costs of change. There’s no magical formula that makes change—especially large-scale worksite software adoption—completely cost-free, even for the most advanced automation and consumer-friendly devices. If you skip implementation planning and costs you’re headed for disappointment.

Digital project teams assisted by the CFO need to account for the costs of change in any new technology’s business plan: Capital and expense costs, training and time away from existing work, carrots and sticks, consultants, all on a realistic schedule. Yes, this will slow down adoption. But the most expensive tech is the tech purchased yet never used, and a failed project becomes just one more obstacle towards improving the business.

Counter Oversold Vendor Claims

Technology vendors always over-hype benefits and downplay costs, especially the costs of change & conversion. That’s just the way of the world.

Don’t simply accept a vendor’s claimed benefits. Estimate yourself the costs and benefits to your company, and be able to prove them once the technology is adopted. Have your project team do extensive due diligence with a vendor’s existing customers. And always, always perform a pilot test with measurable results of both savings and costs before purchasing.

Counter Change Fatigue

Office workers are exposed to a daily vendor bombardment of emails, texts, social media and phone calls. Viral videos, fear uncertainty and doubt lurk in every corner. And FOMO (fear of missing out) jeopardizes their careers. Greener job pastures are around the next block. And the competition is always nipping at  your heels.

Leadership must protect the office from unnecessary and unwanted interruptions. Maximize anti-spam tools. Train workers how to turn off notifications which default to “on”. Preach the virtues of focus and the evils of multi-tasking.

Above all, set the change agenda for your firm. Don’t allow your technology vendors to control the pace or justification for change. Their end of quarter revenue requirement is not your emergency.

Risk Reduction is Real But Often Unquantifiable

Business insurance protects against risks. But it can also disguise opportunities for risk reduction. Even if digital reduces the risk of fines and claims, most companies pay the same as their competitors whether they use modern digital tools or not.

But any claim of any type is costly, insured or not. On top of the deductible charge, just collecting the information necessary to process a claim is very labor intensive. And the fear of premium increases may cause firms to eat some claim costs.

Insurers like AXA are building momentum for finer-grained policies that reward firms for using more jobsite digital to reduce risks of all types. If you don’t start creating the data now, your firm won’t be able to take advantage once these new policies are offered.

Finally, keeping workers safe and properly compensated is as much a moral imperative as financial. As business people, at some point, you just have to do the right thing.

Summary: Safe Site Check In Makes Worksite Management Adoption Easier

Safe Site Check In supports easier worksite software adoption by using digital data to benefit all construction project stakeholders: project owners, superintendents, project managers, safety, subcontractors, workers and jobsite visitors.

Intuitive for everyone to use, works on any device, secure and private in the cloud.

Sign up for a demonstration and learn just how easy implementing digital in the field can be.