Driving PIM user adoption: roles, training and measures

Why does PIM user adoption fail?

PIM user adoption fails when the PIM is slower than the old tools for a user's daily task. Users are pragmatic: they keep the spreadsheet that works until the PIM works better for them.

Four causes come up in most rollouts:

• Training happened too early, on demo data, and did not match daily tasks.
• A common task, such as a bulk edit or a supplier import, is harder in the PIM.
• Nobody explained why the change matters for the user's own work.
• Old tools stayed available, so working around the PIM cost nothing.

Each cause sits outside the software. The implementation pillar treats adoption as one of three workstreams after go-live, alongside stabilisation and governance. Adoption needs the same planning discipline as migration, with owners, dates and measures.

Adoption starts during selection. Users who took part in scenario demos and requirement workshops arrive at go-live knowing why the PIM was chosen. The selection team page explains how to involve them early. Users who first see the PIM in training start from scepticism.

The goal is concrete: every role does its daily product data work in the PIM, and the old tools are switched off.

Who are the PIM users and what does each need?

PIM users fall into a few roles, and each needs different tasks, training and support. A single training programme for all roles serves none of them well.

Map every user to a role before training planning starts. Some people hold two roles and need both paths. The map also shows the number of super users needed: at least one per team.

How does the ADKAR model apply to a PIM rollout?

ADKAR breaks individual change into five elements, and each one maps to a concrete PIM action. Prosci presents ADKAR as a model for individual change, so assess it per role and per person.

Training covers knowledge and part of ability. Awareness, desire and reinforcement depend on management and on the project's choices. Three actions do more for adoption than extra training hours. A sponsor explains the reason, the project removes old tools on schedule and team leads recognise fast approvals.

Use ADKAR as a checklist per role in the adoption plan. The weakest element for each role shows where to act.

How should PIM training be organised?

Train by role, on your own data, close to the moment users start working in the PIM. Training that matches daily tasks is what users retain.

1. Train super users first, during testing, so they can help design job aids.
2. Build training data from your own product families, ideally from migration rehearsals.
3. Run short task-based sessions per role in the last weeks before go-live.
4. Give every role written job aids for its five most common tasks.
5. Offer follow-up clinics in the first weeks after go-live.

Session content follows real work. A steward session walks through creating a product, filling attributes, attaching assets and submitting for approval. A supplier manager session imports a real supplier file and resolves its validation errors.

Plan training for new joiners from the start. Staff turnover means the PIM will need onboarding sessions long after the project ends. Recorded short videos per task and up-to-date job aids keep onboarding cheap.

How do you measure PIM adoption?

Measure the work done in the PIM, per role and per team. Work measures show whether tasks actually moved into the PIM.

Report the measures per team. An average across teams hides the one team still working in spreadsheets.

Combine numbers with conversations. When a measure stalls, ask the users in that team what blocks them. The first 90 days guide sets these measures into the weekly reporting during the go-live period.

What keeps PIM adoption going after the first months?

Reinforcement keeps adoption going: retired old tools, visible results, a working feedback loop and an active super user network. Without reinforcement, workarounds return within months.

• Retire old tools on announced dates and keep the dates.
• Share results with the teams that produced them, such as faster time to market or higher completeness.
• Run a feedback channel where users propose improvements, and show which ones were delivered.
• Keep the super user network meeting regularly, with time allocated in their roles.
• Include PIM tasks in role descriptions and onboarding plans.

The feedback loop links adoption to governance. User proposals that touch the data model or workflows go to the governance forum as change requests. The governance after go-live guide explains how that forum works.

Leadership attention matters most after the launch energy fades. A sponsor who asks for the adoption measures each month keeps them on every team lead's agenda.