Unlocking Adoption: How Training Transforms Change Into Success

No matter how useful or cutting-edge the technology is, merely implementing it won’t produce the desired impact. If teams aren’t aware of the attributes, properly trained on the tech or given a realistic timeframe for rollout, they’ll likely show resistance.

That underscores the importance of effective training, which can ensure associates not only understand the technology, but the reasons why the organization is adopting it. At the 2025 Entrata Summit session Unlocking Adoption: How Training Transforms Change Into Success, two operators shared their perspectives on how they empowered their teams and overcame resistance during the implementation process.

With an assist from Entrata’s Training and Enablement services, Tailwind Group and Blanton Turner developed actionable strategies to ensure a seamless process from onboarding through adoption. 

Tailwind Group quickly ramps up

Tailwind Group, a top 20 manager of off-campus student housing communities, began rolling out the Entrata system in March 2024. The organization did so in quick phases, beginning with four properties in the first two phases and upping it to 10 to 12 properties in subsequent phases to ensure all 31 of its student properties were onboarded before the turnover phase of the calendar. 

“It’s a crazy timeline because they started it in March, and the student turn season is July and August,” said Justin Lynn, Principal of Product Education for Entrata. “You really can’t be onboarding in July, because you turned 19,000 beds at 31 properties over the course of a few weeks. So, they had a four-month window that they could onboard these properties, and they did so very successfully.”

While it was something of a whirlwind, Tailwind Group utilized Entrata’s vast resources to help ensure a quick changeover, including webinars and live question-and-answer sessions. 

“The trainers at Entrata are amazing,” said Colleen Lewter, Director of Corporate Operations for Tailwind Group. “They did a great and incredible job of making sure our teams were fully engaged and excited about the switch. They didn’t want to disrupt any of our organization’s practices or regular workflows but were able to build some additional resources surrounding them. And they were able to guide our team through any detailed and specific processes.”

Blanton Turner utilizes a measured pace

Blanton Turner, a Seattle-based third-party manager that oversees approximately 5,000 multifamily and student homes in addition to commercial space, had a longer rollout window. After a pilot program, the company migrated the Entrata system at five to eight buildings per month and wanted to ensure all properties were ready for their respective leasing seasons. 

“We also had to work with properties that have specific non-fiscal-year budgets and ensure there was as minimal a disruption to operations as possible,” said Jesse Anderson, Director of Systems and Sustainability for Blanton Turner.

Anderson said the primary objective was to make sure training was manageable and easily digestible, and to ensure ongoing training remained continually available. With properties spread out, it wasn’t always feasible to get everyone in the same place. That meant much of Blanton Turner’s training was virtual, which Anderson said received surprisingly positive engagement from associates.

“We hope we’ll never have to onboard a new system again, but at least we have a methodology now,” he said. 

Key takeaways

After their respective onboarding experiences, Lewter and Anderson had recommendations for operators amidst the adoption process. Lewter encouraged teams to fully utilize the bevy of training resources available and make sure associates are positioned to grow the system. 

Anderson recommended having a subject matter expert available—whether a member of the organization or a third party—to ensure teams don’t spend valuable time trying to figure out answers to questions that could be easily answered. He also recommended training in smaller groups to promote engagement.