Introduction
From scientists to engineers, WACKER’s workforce is comprised of experts that have set the enterprise apart as a pioneer of modern chemistry for more than 100 years. To pave the way for the next century of innovative work, WACKER sought to launch a user-led solution that would reimagine collaboration across the enterprise, including its extended network of partners.
Mission
Utilize end user feedback to debut a cutting-edge intranet that will transform collaboration and efficiency across the workforce.
Key project goals
- Replace legacy SharePoint intranet
- Utilize user research to launch an employee-centric solution
- Enhance collaboration across WACKER, including external partners
The Challenge
From a single plant in Burghausen to an international enterprise with 25 production sites, an ongoing commitment to innovation and team-based research have fuelled WACKER’s unprecedented growth. With high demand for their solutions in virtually every major sector, WACKER sought an enhanced intranet that would drive collaboration and efficiency across their extended workforce, including several thousand collaborators.
The enterprise’s legacy SharePoint platform was reaching a decade of use and the functionality was no longer fit to serve WACKER’s workforce needs. “In the ten years that SharePoint has been in use at WACKER as an intranet, information and communication needs have developed rapidly,” notes Joerg Hettmann, WACKER’s SVP of Corporate Communications.
As opposed to merely updating their platform, WACKER envisioned the debut of a user-centric intranet that would make collaboration limitless. While knowledge sharing may have once been confined to colleagues within the same role or region, the forthcoming intranet would put the enterprise’s expansive array of expertise on full display. From frontline manufacturers in silicone production sites to laboratory-based scientists, every WACKER employee would soon be able to take full advantage of their enterprise’s vast network.
With an understanding that widespread intranet adoption was needed to maximize collaboration, user experience emerged as a top priority. To provide a superior platform for all, leaders aimed to take cues from consumer technology. As Hettman explains, “In our private lives, we are all familiar with digital platforms, which we use to get information, exchange views, network with other people, and collaborate in diverse ways.”
The Solution
Instead of making assumptions about what their employees might want in an intranet, WACKER took a research-driven approach when designing their solution.
First, the enterprise hosted 18 different focus groups with employees from various departments to identify existing pain points and pinpoint priorities for their forthcoming platform. Non-intuitive navigation and an overriding sense of segmentation emerged as common challenges, further cementing user centricity as a key focus for their project.
When it came to finalizing platform requirements and selecting an intranet vendor, employee input once again played a crucial role. 150 employees tested multiple solutions and assessed each on criteria that ranged from security to ease of use. Through user testing and evaluations, Unily emerged as the optimal partner to lead in the design and launch of GLOBE, WACKER’s forthcoming intranet.
With their service provider identified, WACKER utilized their employee research to translate their project vision into key use cases. From an initial list of 135 requirements, leaders used the Kano model for product development to select eight core use cases that would guide GLOBE’s design.
“Throughout the design and launch of GLOBE, WACKER’s eight use cases were our North Star,” notes Kaz Hassan, the Unily consultant who played a leading role in the intranet’s development. “We referenced these priorities before every decision to ensure that our final product fully aligned with the vision that WACKER’s workforce had come together to create,” he concludes.
A winning combination: GLOBE'S 8 use cases
To fully understand and effectively prioritize user requirements for their forthcoming intranet, WACKER turned to the Kano model. This theory for product development illustrates how various factors influence user satisfaction and pinpoints which efforts will generate the greatest impact.
#1. A customizable homepage
Employees wanted more control over the content they consume and streamlined access to digital tools.
#2. Publishing and sharing
Users wished to upgrade publishing processes, which were previously outdated, lacked targeting, and proved difficult to manage.
#3. Optimized onboarding
It took months for new joiners to learn where to find information in WACKER’s old system. GLOBE would make it easy to access needed resources from the start.
#4. Channels for leadership
Previously, leadership could only communicate with employees via email or 1:1 conversation. The new intranet would create the opportunity for transparent communication from the C-suite.
#5. Subject-specific project hubs
Employees sought a clearer understanding of the diverse business functions within WACKER and a resource to pinpoint where to turn for various services.
#6. Cross-functional collaboration
Instead of asking around to find expertise, users wanted a streamlined way to connect with their colleagues with the requisite skill sets.
#7. An IT-Help community for support
As opposed to relying solely on a help desk, employees can help their colleagues with a “user help user” approach that reduces open tickets and inspires improved collaboration.
#8. Superior search
Previously, WACKER’s intranet search function didn’t offer reliable results due to a siloed content architecture. Users wanted a streamlined process that pulls results from various sources for a unified experience.
The building blocks for GLOBE
From employees working out of the Burghausen plant to leadership teams based in WACKER’s headquarters, GLOBE is designed to unify the enterprise’s dynamic workforce and fuel inspired results. To ensure the platform delivers on all fronts, WACKER prioritized several key capabilities.
A game changer for knowledge sharing
How can global enterprises ensure that employees take full advantage of all the knowledge within their organization? For WACKER, The Portfolio is their solution to safeguarding against silos and segmentation.
While designing GLOBE, WACKER took stock of every service they offered and identified which department employees should turn to for fulfilling various needs. This information is catalogued on their portfolio page, which serves as a centralized hub that puts the enterprise’s entire knowledge base on full display.
The Portfolio is every end user’s go-to tool for sourcing information and taking advantage of all that WACKER has to offer. If an employee is looking for language assistance, The Portfolio points them to the department that provides translations and includes information on how to request these services. GLOBE’S FAQs also empower autonomous work by putting key insights at every user’s fingertips.
A superior source for people and places
WACKER’s leaders envisioned that GLOBE would serve as the first place employees turn to when they’re looking to find information. To make this a reality, the intranet includes a comprehensive directory that profiles not only every WACKER employee but also all meeting rooms, legal entities, and subsidiary trading companies.
A unified search center allows employees to efficiently locate exactly what they are looking for using keywords, filters, and refiners to surface information intuitively from across the digital workplace. Users have the option to search for peers by location, role, skills, and specialism, helping to promote cross-departmental networking and information exchange. There is also a built-in phonebook to ensure workers can be reached at all times, even when working out of a production site or in the field.
Merging user centricity and unification
From its inception onwards, GLOBE has been designed to prioritize the end user. When employees navigate to the intranet, one of the first things they see is a personalized newsfeed that curates content based on their role and region.
As an extension of this user-driven emphasis, GLOBE’S navigation bar focuses on everyday employee needs and actions, featuring options such as “Career Development” and Benefits” as opposed to categorizing information by departments. To create a sense of unification amongst users from different divisions, GLOBE also features enterprise-wide news updates and content from senior leadership.
When it came to envisioning futuristic collaboration processes, WACKER wasn’t afraid to think big. In addition to improving internal knowledge sharing, the enterprise launched an extranet to invite partners and suppliers into GLOBE.
External users have specific views, which enable partners to glean key insights while keeping restricted information confidential. A homepage designed specifically for external users centralizes relevant content, such as safety protocols for those visiting one of WACKER’s production sites. Several thousand collaborators have accessed GLOBE, illustrating its ongoing use in driving third-party collaboration forward.
The Results
Within the first 2 months, GLOBE has achieved...
1m+ platform views
300k user sessions
230% increase in story views
WACKER’s ongoing commitment to creating an employee-centric platform and involving users from the start paid off when it came time to launch GLOBE. From the day the intranet debuted, employees were quick to take full advantage of the solution because they were made familiar with it from the beginning.
With virtually their entire workforce counted as active users, GLOBE underpins a new era of enterprise-wide collaboration that transcends any previous boundaries. The intranet also fulfills each of WACKER’s original eight use cases, as evidenced by the following highlights.
3 outcomes that demonstrate how GLOBE fulfils every use case
#1. Limitless collaboration is now a reality
WACKER’s comprehensive directory has quickly become the go-to place to find colleagues, legal entities, and subsidiary trading companies. To level up the efficacy of this resource, a unified search center makes it easy for employees to pinpoint exactly who they are looking for and initiate groupwork seamlessly. Consequently, the directory achieves several of WACKER’s use cases in one: superior search experiences power efficient cross-functional collaboration.
#2. Spotlighting updates from across the organization
Particularly for global enterprises telling the stories of an entire organization can often prove challenging. Publishing and sharing and channels for leadership were named as two of WACKER’s eight use cases for this very reason. Following GLOBE’S launch, story views on content including pieces written by WACKER’s C-suite have climbed by 230%. Much of this success can likely be attributed to the personalized news feeds that curate content for every user, another one of GLOBE’S initial use cases. By prioritizing the needs of its end-users, GLOBE encourages WACKER’s entire workforce to remain in the know.
#3. Powering up productivity
From an employee’s first day onwards, GLOBE is designed to help every user achieve peak performance. Apps & Tools, a centralized catalogue of enterprise systems, enhances efficiency by providing streamlined access to every tool an employee might need. Whether users are looking for onboarding resources or reaching out to their IT-Help community for support, GLOBE serves as the backbone for more efficient work. Employees have been particularly quick to take advantage of Apps & Tools, as indicated by a 120% increase in views since launch.