In a post pandemic world, more and more organizations are relying on ERP systems to stay operational. With easy access to business tools and resources, automated reporting, real-time controls, and electronic data exchange, we’re seeing a huge increase of use with these systems.
While these systems are ideal for remote work and automating business processes, it can’t provide the employee experience that’s been radically changed .
To attempt to keep employees connected, organizations worldwide have implemented new digital tools as a way to improve productivity and communication, and to maintain employee experience. Sadly, these tools often have the opposite effect. While these tools have their benefits, many aren’t suited to handle the unique conditions of this pandemic. They’re disruptive, not scalable, and can leave workers feeling frustrated and further isolated.
Today, the business world is getting one step closer to bringing back the employee experience we’ve all been missing with Microsoft Viva, the employee experience platform (EXP) created by Microsoft specifically for this new digital era.
A Look at Microsoft Viva
is the first EXP that combines tools for knowledge, learning, communication, and discovery and places them directly into people’s workflow. The platform integrates directly into Teams and 365 and helps employees grow, develop, and thrive while capitalizing on the collaboration and productivity tools featured within the Microsoft technology stack.
“Microsoft Viva is a groundbreaking Employee Experience Platform, ushering in a new enterprise software category that focuses entirely on the daily needs of employees at work,” Josh Bersin, research analyst at Microsoft stated. “Vivia will enable companies to integrate their fragmented workplace tools and provide them in the flow of work.”
Currently, the platform is divided into four modules, though Microsoft has already stated that more are in the works. These modules are: Connections, Learning, Topics, and Insights.
Connections
Social connection is a basic human need. With empty offices all across the country and colleagues struggling to stay connected to each other, it’s no surprise that feelings of loneliness and isolation are on the rise. These feelings of loneliness have a significant impact on productivity and creativity in the workplace.
Stanford University economics professor Nicholas Bloom said: “Productivity will be down dramatically. I have four kids at home, and I’m struggling to get anything done. And it’s not just that—it’s also that motivation and creativity come from being around other people. So I find it hard to be creative and hard to self-motivate if I’m stuck in one room at home day in and day out.”
Viva Connection was designed to combat feelings of isolation and loneliness. It acts as a gateway to your digital workplace. Here, everything from company resources and HR information to group discussion boards and communities are housed. Companies can also create various social communities within this module to help keep employees connected. New hires will especially benefit from Connections as they’ll find all the company information and resources they need to connect to both the company and their colleagues.
Learning
found that 87% of workers feel that learning new skills or developing existing ones throughout their life is important to keep up with changing work demands. With the new normal created by COVID-19, learning is more important than ever.
Viva Learning allows every organization to adopt a continuous learning philosophy by bringing learning directly into a user’s workflow. No matter what they’re working on, within Viva, they’ll have access to an AI-powered dashboard that contains helpful content and training from both company and third-party sources such as LinkedIn Learning, edX, Cornerstone, Skillsoft, and more. Microsoft has already announced that additional integrations are already in the works.
Topics
Within the business world, there are thousands of acronyms, terms, and jargon to remember, and it varies from industry to industry and company to company. Remembering and keeping track of all this information can be overwhelming and take a long time to master.
With Topics, mastering these terms is done more quickly through topic cards. These cards are powered by AI and will automatically surface with helpful content like training materials, helpful documents, and more. For new hires, these cards provide faster understanding of a company’s language and help them more quickly adapt to a new environment.
Insights
Finding that balance between work and home life has been upended thanks to COVID-19. Because we’re working from home day after day, it can be difficult for some workers to separate work life from personal life. This can leave employees feeling burnt out, unsupported, and unproductive.
To help organization’s avoid employee burnout, Viva Insights provides valuable, actionable insights on an individual, manager, and leadership level. For individuals, these insights can help protect free time, keep them focused on working and learning, and strengthen relationships with fellow colleagues. Managers and leaders are able to drill down into company and team trends to determine where employees are at risk for burnout and what changes need to be made to protect well-being. Future insights will allow executives to see how changes to work norms are working over time.
All of these valuable insights are privacy protected, meaning that personal insights are accessible only by the user. Managers and leaders can drill down into personal data, but it is de-identified and aggregated by default to protect privacy.
What’s Next for Microsoft Viva?
What we’re already seeing with Microsoft Viva is only the beginning of what we can expect. Leaders have already announced plans for more modules and additional tools to keep employees connected, drive learning, boost productivity, and improve employee experience company-wide.
The announcement of Microsoft Viva also solidifies as their centralized hub for all workplace collaboration.
Ready to Get Started?
If you’re anxious to start enjoying all the benefits that Microsoft Viva brings, contact JourneyTEAM. Not only will we help you through the installation process, but also provide support as you customize the solution to fit your specific needs. No matter what type of support level you need, we’re happy to provide it. Contact us today to get started.
JourneyTEAM is an award-winning consulting firm with proven technology and measurable results. They take Microsoft products; Dynamics 365, SharePoint intranet, Office 365, Azure, CRM, GP, NAV, SL, AX, and modify them to work for you. The team has expert level, Microsoft Gold certified consultants that dive deep into the dynamics of your organization and solve complex issues. They have solutions for sales, marketing, productivity, collaboration, analytics, accounting, security and more.
