FOMO, @mentioning and data – tips to get people using Viva Engage
If you’re struggling to get your colleagues using Viva Engage, we’ve compiled tips from world experts to help get your people conversing, connecting and collaborating on Viva Engage.
Some of the best ways to get employees using Viva Engage is to create a sense of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) by sharing exclusive information, getting leaders using the platform, @mentioning colleagues to bring them into the conversation, showcasing success stories and using the power of data to showcase Viva Engage's potential.
These are some of the top tips from the world’s experts in managing and facilitating Viva Engage networks.[1] As part of our research into SWOOP Analytics’ 2024/25 Viva Engage Benchmarking Report, we surveyed these experts and asked them:
What has worked for you in convincing individuals of the benefit
of using/becoming interactive on Viva Engage?
Leverage data to drive adoption
Sally Jackson, Senior Manager, Content and Channels, at National Grid says by demonstrating the reach of messages within specific communities, colleagues quickly realise the limitations of traditional email communications, which often fail to engage.
She says the key is showing the value of Viva Engage with data. Highlighting the performance metrics of Viva Engage posts helps shift the mindset towards using it, as well as showing people how others are interacting with their content.
“When a colleague sees the potential reach of messages in certain communities this instantly sells the channel, and they no longer want to send everyone an email – which we know does not always perform well.”
Sally says Viva Engage allows people to be more creative, have more fun and show their personality. She says the speed of using Viva Engage is also appealing because you can reach people quickly.
Sally notes the importance of getting leaders on board, and some leaders may feel understandably nervous about posting in such a public forum. Sally’s team offers reassurance by helping to get leaders started, proof posts on important topics, and show them how to reach the right people and maximise visibility of their posts, and reassure them about the different nature of Viva Engage compared with external social media.
Sally said it’s also important to share best practice stories from other SWOOP Analytics customers or from benchmarking internal teams.
FOMO
Sean Zintl, Global Intranet & Channels Manager at Sage, says while Viva Engage may not be for everyone, over the past few years at Sage, it has evolved to the point where if you’re not on it, you’re missing out!
“Showcasing examples or successful communities with great engagement is usually an eye opener for some individuals or business areas.”
“Once they see how easy it is to connect with colleagues, they’re quickly won over.”
Fiona Roberts, Senior Digital Engagement Manager at Westpac New Zealand, takes this one step further and says having information available exclusively on Viva Engage can draw more people to the platform.
More importantly, Fiona says finding a person’s “why should I use it?” is the key to getting them engaged.
“If they feel there’s no reason why they should use Viva Engage, for example they think there are no ways it could add value to their day-to-day work life, they’ll continue to use other channels.”
“So, helping them understand that it does offer a place for them to add value is important, and taking the time, through questioning, to uncover what their specific use cases may be.”
Westpac New Zealand helps create this value by:
Presenting regularly to teams as to how to differentiate their communications by channel, so they have a clear proposition for their people as to what Viva Engage is used for.
Having information that’s available only on Viva Engage, versus other communication channels, to encourage slow starters, and increase FOMO.
Having the executive team running communities for their specific business areas, so value is delivered through employees being able to hear from, and communicate directly with, their leaders on a regular basis.
Sharing analytics with comms partners and leaders so they know how their comms have engaged their intended audience, and what has or hasn’t resonated.
Empower employee ambassadors
Launching ambassador programs, by tapping into and utilising your Influential People, can significantly boost engagement.
At Air Canada, an employee ambassador program was launched with active users representing each operational branch. To promote these ambassadors and emphasise the importance of Viva Engage, a campaign called “Get to Know our Yambassadors” was introduced.
Each ambassador (called a Yambassador based off Viva Engage previously being called Yammer) was featured in a Q&A series in the company’s monthly e-magazine, allowing their colleagues to learn how the platform benefits everyone.
“There is genuinely something for everyone on the platform,” said Andrew Clarke, Manager, Employee Social Media Communications at Air Canada.
“Additionally, the airline’s digital signage network in each branch was utilised to promote the ambassadors and direct colleagues to their featured articles, which were posted in their branch’s community on Viva Engage.”
Since the launch of the original Yambassador program, Andrew said other departments within the airline have created their own ambassadors and champions programs, including UBY (Unlock the Best in You) ambassadors for health and wellness, DEI champions, and cyber security and privacy champions.
“These ambassadors and champions have discovered the benefits of using Viva Engage for collaboration and knowledge sharing, especially in an organisation as geographically dispersed as Air Canada,” he said.
Andrew said the Employee Communications team also actively promotes Viva Engage at onboarding events and training classes for newly hired employees, ensuring they are aware of its benefits from the start and are more likely to become active users.
Another key approach to getting employees using Viva Engage at Air Canada was the creation of business-related communities that developed organically and quickly became popular and beneficial.
These communities provided employees with quick and easy access to information and advice, Andrew said. For instance, the airline’s Employee Travel community became a go-to resource where employees could ask questions and receive timely and relevant information from community members and colleagues.
Similarly, Kevin Crossman, IT Manager and Content Collaboration Service Owner at Juniper Networks, said he employs programs such as Employee Affinity Groups, where the idea of making deeper connections with colleagues is viewed as an important company initiative.
Showcase success stories
Evita Puccio, Senior Communications Manager, Internal Engagement - Digital Channels at Bendigo and Adelaide Bank said sharing examples of best practice on Viva Engage, along with high performing posts, has been key to getting people using the platform.
“Demonstrating the impact these conversations can have on the organisation has been key,” she said.
“We also help our stakeholders identify the types of initiatives and campaigns that would be well suited to Viva Engage.”
Microsoft Viva Engage Adoption and Training Consultant Bernie Murtagh also advocates for storytelling and showcasing tangible outcomes to convince people of the benefits of Viva Engage.
By sharing success stories where employees have gained insights, solved challenges, or received recognition through their engagement on Viva Engage, Bernie creates a compelling narrative that resonates with people. She summaries these successes in a weekly Viva Engage post called “The Week That Was” with the hashtag #vivaengagewins.
Bernie also runs Viva Engage training sessions, which are conducted live on the company’s Viva Engage network.
“This real-time interaction helps users have that ‘aha’ moment, where they truly ‘get it’,” she said.
“Attendees leave with practical digital behaviour techniques that they can immediately apply post-training. Often people will post on Viva Engage within seconds of the training finishing!”
Jorn Nurkka, Senior Communication Advisor at Danfoss, says; “Showing is believing”.
Danfoss launched Viva Engage by running pilots in different areas (Denmark, US, China and some communities of interest) that were a great success. These pilots were used to show the many benefits of using Viva Engage across the organisations.
“When we rolled out to everyone, we had made short videos with the head of HR, head of communication and a segment president explaining how they thought Viva Engage would benefit the organisation.”
“Those videos helped selling the message to many of the managers who saw Viva Engage as an opportunity to connect with their employees on a more informal way. ”
Bringing the fun to work
Rajinder Pryor, Head of Business Partnering at Network Rail, says the informality of Viva Engage is a huge drawcard to bring colleagues together to talk in an open and informal way, where they can share their thoughts.
“Not everyone works in a formal office environment so this channel ensures we reach and include everyone.”
“People engage at their own leisure based on what interests them.”
Leonie Challacombe, Principal Advisor (Digital Culture) at the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) lists a variety of strategies used to encourage people to become more active on Viva Engage.
Sharing success stories: TMR presents case studies from teams that have adopted Viva Engage as their main communication tool, showcasing benefits like improved project outcomes and enhanced team cohesion.
Promoting Storyline for personal branding: TMR encourages employees to use Storyline to build their personal brand, share skills and interests, and connect with like-minded colleagues, fostering a sense of belonging.
Emphasising relationship building: TMR stresses that Viva Engage is a platform for building relationships in a digital workplace, enabling users to ask questions and share knowledge and insights with peers and leaders, creating a collaborative environment.
Creating a Viva Engage toolbox talk: Using the familiar form of a toolbox talk, TMR provides practical tips and guidance to help employees use the platform effectively, empowering them to engage confidently.
Promoting the 1-2-3 rule: TMR encourages users to tag others, use images, and engage with content, enhancing visibility and fostering community spirit.
“We’ve learned that it requires an ongoing, continuous effort as what will resonate with one person or team will not work for another.
“It’s a combination of these strategies that ultimately help employees recognise the personal and professional benefits of engaging on Viva Engage.”
Don’t underestimate the impact of leaders
Shailesh Kumar, General Manager- Communications Performance Management at Schneider Electric, said there was a definite correlation between leaders’ engagement on Viva Engage and increased employee engagement.
“The more the leaders participate in the conversations, we notice a higher employee engagement,” Shailesh said.
“The conversations flow seamlessly, making employees feel more connected to the company’s vision. YamJams have been particularly helpful in bridging the virtual gap across hierarchies, leading to a sense of belongingness.”
[1] The experts contacted by SWOOP Analytics for this research are people who have been top performers in our previous benchmarking studies and recipients of a SWOOP Analytics Award for Outstanding Collaborative Performance or nominated by peers for the annual SWOOP Analytics Community Manager Award.
