Intranet Case Study
Abbeyfield launches mobile friendly internal hub with Engage intranet
Abbeyfield is a charity for older people, providing housing across the UK and internationally. Its mission is to enhance the quality of life for older people through high quality accommodation in a stimulating environment to maintain a socially active life.
Abbeyfield provides housing and residential care in approximately 500 homes across the UK. The organisation employs around 5,000 dedicated staff and volunteers.
Location:
UK
Industry:
Charity
Employees:
5,000
Location:
UK
Industry:
Charity
Employees:
5,000
The Challenge
Abbeyfield had an existing intranet, but the user feedback was that it was unintuitive, poorly designed, and no longer fit for purpose. The existing intranet had been built in-house and, whilst it had other functionality, it was only really used for storing documents.
Users found it challenging to find documents within the existing intranet and this led to them getting frustrated and losing confidence in the system. Passwords had to be changed regularly, due in part to the fact that some houses shared a login.
As part of a review of the whole internal communications strategy in 2018, it was decided a new intranet was needed to enable the organisation to communicate in more modern and engaging ways.
The Solution
Abbeyfield chose Engage as their preferred intranet solution. They created ‘Abbeyfield Connect’, which is feature rich, easy to use and engaging.
The Abbeyfield communications team conducted a staff survey before embarking on the project and held focus groups all around the UK with staff and volunteers. The focus groups involved a cross section of staff from all levels of the organisation and some of these people went on to be involved in the more detailed planning process.
Workshops were held to plan the structure and functionality of the new site and staff from different parts of the organisation were also involved in those sessions. The result is an intranet that the users have helped shape to meet their needs.
Effective search is crucial to Abbeyfield staff and it was also important to get the look and feel right. The Abbeyfield communications team wanted to make it easier to add content and also introduce more 2-way communications in the form of blogs. Mobile access was also required for those staff who do not have access to computers.
The site was launched to staff in December 2019, with videos created to help users get up and running quickly with the new structure and functionality.
Initial feedback from users was good but plans for a more formal user survey were put on hold when the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the spring of 2020. The need for an effective intranet quickly became more important than ever and usage of Connect increased even further.
During this time, the site was used for daily updates, including video updates from the organisation’s Chief Executive. Other content which received high engagement from staff included wellbeing resources and activities for residents.
The Result
Connect has been designed to be more intuitive and user friendly and people can now easily find what they are looking for within the search. The site is kept up to date with news and users are engaging with the regular content updates.
The Engage mobile app has been rolled out to remote workers and this has provided invaluable access for those staff who are not desk based.
“The intranet came into its own during the coronavirus pandemic as it became the central hub for crucial updates and the latest guidance.”
Catherine Jacques
Head of Communications
Document management is hugely important to Abbeyfield and there have been significant savings in operational efficiency due to the time saved in looking for documents. When they access a document, users also love that they can be sure that they are looking at the latest version.
Abbeyfield’s homes now have access to an area on ‘The Abbeyfield Quality Standard’, where they can find all the information about the standards they are expected to achieve to ensure they are providing a high-quality service for older people.
“The intranet has become a key internal communications channel containing business critical information that people need to do their jobs effectively.”
Catherine Jacques
Head of Communications
Connect’s contact directory has been structured to store both Abbeyfield direct staff and contacts from its membership societies. Approval functionality has also been added for membership society contacts to agree or disagree to their details being shared within contact searches. A directory of homes enables users to search for a home and find key information about that location, including all the key contacts.
“The new contact directory is a game changer. Being able to find all staff and membership societies in one place has given everyone a direct line to communicate with the right people.”
Catherine Jacques
Head of Communications
Content is being added more regularly to Connect and by more people. Staff feel that they have a voice and people are now asking the communications team to allow them to blog and add content.
Functionality has also been added to enable people access to change their own passwords which has been very well received. As so many of Connect’s users are volunteer trustees and not direct staff, they need to be truly self-sufficient in accessing and using the system.
Due to the individuality of its user community, lots of new features have been planned and implemented during the first year of its usage. Sorce has worked closely with the team at Abbeyfield to ensure that the site meets all its requirements.
Abbeyfield now has an intranet that serves its primary purpose of being an effective way to manage and find documents, but also does much more besides.
“Our old intranet was always owned and managed by 2 people. The new intranet has been opened up to lots more people and it’s now everyone’s intranet. People go looking for a document, but then have a good look around whilst they are there. The intranet is very much a ‘go to’ place now. The Sorce team have also been a pleasure to work with. We really consider them as an extension of our own team.”
Darren Beharry
Head of Digital
