Microsoft Unveiled Viva, a New Kind of Employee Experience

Microsoft unveiled Viva, the first employee experience platform for professional development and emotional well-being of employees, which contains tools for learning and sharing professional experience.

As the world is still facing the global pandemic that has made remote working the new norm, Microsoft sees the need for employee engagement platforms to bring all the tools employees need to succeed in one place.

"We have participated in the largest at-scale remote work experiment the world has seen, and it has had a dramatic impact on the employee experience," said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. "Every organisation will require a unified employee experience from onboarding and collaboration to continuous learning and growth. Viva brings together everything an employee needs to be successful, from day one, in a single, integrated experience directly in Teams."

Microsoft Viva launches with various modules available in preview, and the platform will also integrate with third-party solutions such as Zoom, Salesforce, and SAP SuccessFactors.

The new platform integrates into Microsoft Teams and is supposed to help workers and employers make it easier to work from home. Microsoft Viva consists of four modules – Connections, Insights, Learning, and Topics.

Microsoft Viva Insights

Viva Insights is the first Viva module to launch in public preview today with a dedicated app in Microsoft Teams. Viva Insights can help employees stay connected with colleagues and be more productive by taking time out for regular breaks and focusing on work. Insights will allow users to plan their workday and responsibilities, as well as set aside time for rest.

Managers can use Viva Insights to get guidance on how to improve the well-being of their teams, and all data is de-identified by default to ensure that personal insights are only visible to the employee.

Microsoft Viva Topics

Viva Topics is another Viva module that is now generally available as an add-on to Microsoft 365 commercial plans. Topics will create cards by category and topic using artificial intelligence.

When they hover over a topic in Microsoft Teams, employees will see a topic card with an instant summary of it, as well as information about related documents and top experts on the topic. Staff will also be able to open a more detailed topic page, which will include all the information Viva Topics has gathered on the subject.

Microsoft Viva Learning

Learning will bring together all of the company's learning resources. Viva Learning will appear as a tab in the Microsoft Teams channel where employees can search for content in the learning library to share with colleagues. Managers can also use Viva Learning to assign courses to employees and view the status of assigned learning tasks.

Microsoft Viva Connections

Viva Connections is the fourth Viva module to launch in public preview on desktops in the first half of 2021, with a mobile version coming later this year. Connections is a digital workplace for communicating with colleagues. It provides access to company resources. The app acts as a carefully curated portal that provides access to the latest news, conversations, and other resources from SharePoint and Yammer.