By Lisa Ayala, Cameron, 2015-2016 SAPinsight Leader Board Member.

You may have heard it stated, “Super Users are your best and brightest people”.  This implies they are at the top of class, the high end of the bell curve and the “go to” people in your organization.  As you look at the state of your Super User program, in context of the initiatives and projects you are delivering for significant business value, stop to consider the key to success for a Super User in your organization.  What are the key competencies and most valuable skills for this role in your program?

Key Competencies and Skills for Super Users

• Communication – Know who to and how to communicate.  Know your audience and train how to deliver the information.  A Super User must listen and engage with openness, being aware of the filters that form a lens over one’s perspective.  Choice of words and timing are keys to engage the audience for a Super User, building credibility at all levels of the organization.
• Problem Solving – Know when to and what to do. The ability to quickly ascertain facts and diagnose symptoms.  A Super User must triage problems and refer to various teams for full resolution.  Knowledge of the business process and the channels of your organization are critical to reduce the time to return to normal operations.
• Change Management – Know why we are doing this. Awareness, understanding and insight to the factors which can influence the state and pace of transformation to a business.  These are the intangible aspects which accelerate or impede the wheels of change to an organization.  A Super User is an agent of change by saying, showing and doing the activities which enable change to behavior and ultimately change to activities and outcomes.
• Knowledge Sharing – Know what to share, in what context and find many avenues to channel information. The goal is to create an interconnected link of expertise across the organization.  This happens with each conversation, meeting, email or blog post shared in a chain reaction by people, to people and for people with intentionality to drive continuous improvement.

I challenge you to find the leaders in your organization who are transparent and honest, vulnerable and authentic, who inspire others to lead in a way that will model change for your business transformation.  These are the team members who will dig deep and find it in their character to inspire, engage, trust and respect others.  These are the Super Users you want to build a successful program by leading the way.