Technology Adoption: Lessons from Ecosystem Dynamics

Technology adoption can hinge on the intricate dynamics of ecosystems, as highlighted by Michael Lewis, Chief Technology Officer at Management Controls, during his address at the CIO Association of Canada’s Peer Forum in Ottawa. Lewis shared insights from nearly two decades of experience building software for industrial giants, illustrating how a single misstep can jeopardize the entire adoption process. He emphasized that success is not merely defined by product features but by whether all stakeholders—including owners, vendors, and end users—find genuine value in the technology.

Importance of Structured Feedback

Lewis underscored the necessity of structured feedback within technology development processes. He advocates for rigorous checkpoints that can catch potential missteps before product launch, despite the time these processes may consume. His team employs a quarterly advisory board that mitigates bias and ensures ideas remain grounded in practical realities.

A notable example he shared involved a mobile timesheet tool that seemed robust internally but faltered during customer testing in remote locations. The advisory board’s early rejection saved the company from a costly rollout. “Without that checkpoint, we would have spent resources building a solution that wouldn’t have worked well in the market,” Lewis stated.

This discipline is particularly crucial since nearly 40% of his employees have backgrounds as customers. Their insights are valuable but can be misleading if they replace necessary external validation.

Learning from Failures

Lewis candidly addressed the reality that not every initiative meets success. A previous nine-month evaluation of a reporting tool ended in reversal when users indicated a preference for Power BI over the embedded system. Addressing this misjudgment during a leadership meeting was uncomfortable but essential. “Unless I come in and tell you guys this and we switch, then we’re going to be living with this pain for years,” he explained.

This experience reinforced a critical lesson for Chief Information Officers: sunk costs do not justify the retention of ineffective systems. Having a dedicated internal services group using the software provided Lewis with the necessary evidence to pivot.

Generative AI in Ecosystem Management

The design of ecosystems also influences the application of generative AI within Lewis’s team. He described a chatbot that facilitated real-time vendor support and allowed authorizers to query contract terms directly. This innovation addressed significant gaps where procurement files were often inaccessible, enhancing efficiency in environments marked by high turnover.

Initially skeptical, Lewis found that understanding the specific business problems being addressed transformed the chatbot from a mere trend into a valuable tool. “When you understand the business problems you’re trying to solve, it adds a lot more meat to what you’re delivering,” he noted. The initiative not only earned a CIO 100 award but also illustrated how generative AI can effectively resolve genuine challenges.

Revisiting Traditional Contracting

Lewis’s team also achieved success by reframing traditional contracting practices. They encountered a lump-sum project valued at $600,000 for an estimated 10,000 hours of work. Upon review, only 4,900 hours had been logged, effectively doubling the hourly rate. Without evidence, procurement teams had little leverage to challenge these inflated figures.

By employing generative AI to reconcile contract language, workforce data, and market benchmarks, Lewis’s team provided leaders with unprecedented transparency. “We’ve figured out that your blended rate should be $61 an hour, not $122.45, and here’s all the by-line item rates based on market assumptions,” he explained. This insight empowered owners to contest inflated rates while enabling vendors to demonstrate compliance with regulations.

Leadership in a Complex Ecosystem

The overarching message from Lewis is that ecosystems magnify both risks and rewards in technology adoption. For products to succeed, buy-in from multiple groups is essential. CIOs must cultivate processes that identify friction early, recognize failures openly, and root new technologies in real-world challenges.

“When you have an ecosystem-type product where it takes multiple user communities, the importance of these items gets amplified,” Lewis remarked. He encourages leaders to view discipline not as bureaucracy but as a protective measure. Implementing guardrails such as checkpoints and candid reversals may seem slow, but they prevent wasted efforts and build trust within the system.

Ecosystems raise the stakes for decision-making in technology adoption. A feature that works for one group may fail another, leading to systemic breakdowns. Acknowledging mistakes early can save teams years of frustration and foster credibility by prioritizing evidence over personal pride. Guardrails that facilitate thoughtful decision-making become essential in environments where the cost of failure can escalate rapidly.

Through his experiences, Lewis highlights that success in technology is not just about innovation but also about collaborative problem-solving within complex ecosystems.