The Most Expensive Line in Any IT Budget Isn't the Software

Why change management is the difference between a technology investment and a technology failure. 

In 1999, Hershey's spent $112 million on a new SAP system — and went live right before Halloween, their peak shipping season. The technology worked. The implementation hit every milestone. But employees who were handed new software with minimal preparation couldn't execute. $100 million in candy sat in warehouses. Stock dropped 8% in a day. 

Hershey's didn't have an IT problem. They had a change management problem. 

"70% of large-scale transformations fail — and poor user adoption is the leading cause." - McKinsey. 

Organizations are spending billions on technology that their own people won't fully use. Not because the technology is bad. Because the human infrastructure around it was never built. 

Training Is Not Change Management 

Most IT projects treat user adoption as a training problem to solve in the final phase. That is the fundamental mistake. 

Training tells people how to use a system. Change management answers the questions that determine whether they will. 

"Why is this replacing the system that works fine?"· “Will this make my job better or just different?"· “If I struggle, will anyone help?" 

When the FBI spent $170 million on the Virtual Case File system — canceled in 2005 without ever going live — lessons learned revealed agents were never consulted, never brought into the design process, never given a reason to believe in what they were handed. 

"You cannot expect adoption from people who were handed a solution to a problem they don't recognize as theirs." 

Adoption vs. Absorption 

Adoption is employees logging in and clicking the right buttons. Absorption is employees' understanding of why the system exists — and integrating it into how they actually think about their work. 

You can mandate adoption. You cannot mandate absorption. And when you mistake low absorption for resistance, you respond with more training and more pressure — which deepens the distrust causing the problem. 

Organizations that close the Adoption-Absorption Gap do three things differently: 

Start change management early - involve end users in requirements gathering, making them feel valued and confident in shaping the project, and communicate the 'why' before the 'what,' so they feel informed and engaged, and identify skeptics early to foster trust. 

Measure beyond go-live - tracking behavioral indicators at 30, 60, and 90 days — focusing on whether people are using full functionality or reverting to workarounds to help the audience feel in control of the project's long-term success. 

Treat resistance as data - your most vocal resistors are telling you something. Listen before you override, so the audience feels respected and open to feedback, building trust in the process. 

The Question to Ask Before Your Next IT Investment 

What is our change management strategy – and does it start before go-live? 

Not your training plan. Not your communications calendar. A structured, intentional approach to preparing your people not just to use the technology — but to believe in it. 

PowHer Point 

The technology is the easy part. The people are the project.