On May 14, 2024, Meta announced that Workplace, its Enterprise Social Network (ESN) platform, will be phased out over the next two years. Customers have until June 2026 to find a replacement.
Some organizations have leveraged Workplace as their company intranet, focusing on employee engagement. However, Gartner does not consider it to be an intranet packaged solution.
Meta recommends Workvivo (by Zoom) as a migration partner. We encourage Workplace customers to take the opportunity to revisit their intranet strategy and evaluate other options. In particular, customers who heavily utilize Microsoft tools at their organizations may find that Workvivo, a Zoom-owned company, poses a conflict to their digital workplace strategy, as it is highly focused on employee-driven content. Intranet teams who have struggled with governance and top-down communications using Workplace may face similar challenges with Workvivo.
Staffbase offers a leading Workplace alternative that is particularly ideal for Microsoft customers looking for a communications-focused intranet with more control.
Staffbase: The leading line-of-business application for communication for Microsoft customers
For organizations wishing to protect their investments into productivity, Staffbase offers deep, best-in-class M365 integrations, developed by Microsoft experts, to complement the tools you already use.
We understand that many companies have a Microsoft strategy in place, and use Teams for conferencing. Whether your workforce is on Sharepoint, Teams, Outlook, or simply on the go, companies need to reach their frontline and desk-based employees. Staffbase allows organizations to bridge that gap by having all of their employees on one singular, branded platform.
With our award-winning, branded employee app, you can reach all of your people. This includes employees without Microsoft licenses or company email addresses. A decision for Workvivo may prove challenging for organizations with Microsoft-aligned digital workplace strategies. Workvivo is a Zoom-owned company whose products compete with Microsoft Teams.
In the recently released Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Intranet Packaged Solutions, where Staffbase was recognized as a leader, Gartner writes “Staffbase’s integration with Microsoft applications and development tools strengthens its appeal for organizations looking for a complementary IPS that focuses on employee communications.”
What are the limitations of using an Enterprise Social Network as an intranet solution?
- On an ESN, corporate communications compete with user-generated content for your workforce’s attention. For example, the company update about a new DEI initiative is competing with the popular cat post from a new employee.
- ESNs are good for keeping a pulse on output, for example, via content metrics. However, communications teams which are focused on outcomes will find ESNs lack the depth to uncover workforce alignment and resonance with strategic topics.
- ESNs focus primarily on connection and engagement via social interaction. While important, this is only one part of a holistic employee communications strategy. ESNs typically have a weaker ability to service the needs of the digital workplace.
- While employees find the social network-style channel entertaining, it has also been described as “noisy” and distracting. On G2, Workvivo users report having their workflow interrupted by a stream of non-critical notifications.
How Staffbase is different
For organizations that want to really move the needle through their communications, Staffbase provides more control. We offer advanced tools for publishing and content creation, as well as campaigns and communications measurement. Our award-winning, multichannel publishing studio moves communications from reactive to proactive. It features strategic topic-planning, advanced collaboration tools, actionable analytics, and responsible AI.
We recommend customers consider three key questions in the present situation:
- Does the strategic direction set by Workvivo’s acquisition by Zoom align with your digital workplace strategy?
- How do you prioritize company comms and user generated content? To what extent do you want to curate information and be visible as a communicator?
- Who will own the communities, measure success, keep engagement high, and delete inactive communities? Does Workvivo’s community-first, gamification approach fit your overall corporate culture?
Staffbase will offer strategic advisory and commercial support to Workplace customers considering their next steps
Effective immediately, Staffbase will offer affected customers Strategic Advisory support on the best-fit approach for their company and potential scenarios moving forward.
This offering includes:
- A 30 to 60-minute diagnostic workshop where we will discuss Workplace usage, amount of content/communities, use cases, digital workplace strategy, IT strategy, etc.
- A 1-hour tailored replacement strategy workshop, where we will present different strategies for migration and governance moving forward.
To further support customers during their transition, organizations that select Staffbase as their new intranet vendor by the end of 2024 will enjoy a free pilot and/or 6 months service free of charge. Additionally, there will be no customer onboarding fee.
