Swedish Sports Confederation streamlines internal communications
The smoothest implementation project ever gave Swedish Sports Confederation a new vibrant intranet, full of activity and interaction between end-users.
Sweden’s largest citizens association, with more than 3.1 million members, is headed by The Swedish Sports Confederation. Implementing a new Omnia-based intranet, the Confederation’s secretariat has now consolidated and streamlined internal communications and in doing so significantly upgraded its ability to support and develop the Swedish sports movement.
– Our internal communication has improved immensely, with open, transparent, clear-cut and engaging communications throughout the organisation. Everyone now has much better insights into our activities, as well as a greater degree of control and a much-improved overview of what’s going on, says Åsa Bergström, Head of Internal Communications at The Swedish Sports Confederation.
– With our new Omnia-based intranet, we’ve successfully created a consolidated and more effective communications structure that allows our employees constantly to have finger-tip access to whatever information they might need.
From digital billboard to full-fledged digital workplace
With its wide range of sports initiatives and member associations, the Swedish Sports Confederation organises and supports the entire Swedish sports movement, covering all areas of sport from junior soccer and orienteering to athletics. The Confederation’s secretariat is responsible for planning, organising and executing the full range of activities carried out under the Confederation’s umbrella.
Up until May 2019, internal communications were handled via a multitude of communication channels, such as e-mail, SMS and an Episerver-based intranet. But the intranet was out-of-date and difficult to manage and the secretariat clearly needed to radically modernise and sharpen its communications efficiency. As part of a new communications strategy, adopted in 2018, an Omnia- and Office 365-based intranet was therefore implemented in the spring of 2019.
Launched in May 2019, this new solution fundamentally transformed the secretariat’s internal communications structure and impact. In Åsa’s own words:
– We went from just having a digital billboard that only a few people used to a modern future-oriented intranet solution, which is fun and easy to use and strongly enhances communications and collaboration. After the launch the intranet is vibrant, full of activity and interaction. The difference is like night and day.
Today everyone in the secretariat reads news and other relevant information on the intranet, with many employees getting involved in discussions or sharing, liking and commenting on various blog posts and news articles. It used to be the other way around. The old intranet was seen to be boring and complicated, especially since you had to log in just to read an article.
The new intranet, though, is unencumbered by a log-in process. Quite the contrary in fact, with the digital workplace now being the first thing to greet employees when they start up their computers every morning. It’s always on.
Improved mobile accessibility has furthermore made the organisation a lot more flexible and alert to news updates.
– Although mobility wasn’t one of our most pressing demands, we really appreciate the enhanced accessibility that Omnia’s mobile capability and responsiveness offer. The Omnia App’s notification functionality has also made it so much easier to keep up with news and updated information on the intranet, Åsa concludes.
Smoothest project ever
When the secretariat kicked off the intranet implementation project in February 2019, they decided to have it up and running in just three months. Launching date was to be May 13. Any initial worry that the timetable was too optimistic was soon put to rest.
– Everyone involved in the project thinks it’s been the smoothest ever. It’s been right on track from day one. With a crystal-clear project plan combined with highly professional execution, expert consultants from Precio Fishbone have guided us through all the various phases of the overall project. No doubt another reason for the bump-free ride was our defining in precise terms exactly what it was we wanted and expected of the intranet.
– The whole project team was also very motivated and engaged in every step of the way, Åsa points out. And the fact that I haven’t had to consult Product Support more than once in six months is testament to the quality of the solution’s meticulously developed structure, user-friendliness and performance.
Local districts next in line for upgrade
The Confederation’s 19 local districts, scattered all over Sweden, will in the near future be offered the same intranet solution.
– Our plan is to offer our districts a packaged intranet solution based on our common templates and graphics design. Their intranets will be harboured under our cloud-based enterprise umbrella, but they’ll be able to create and manage their own unique content, Åsa explains.
Although it’s a little early in the planning process, Åsa believes that further ahead an interconnected intranet solution allowing the secretariat to communicate efficiently with every district would be of immense value to all concerned:
– It would be really fantastic if we could reach every district via a united digital communications platform. This would enormously facilitate and strengthen our communications in a synchronised, uniform and cost-efficient way.
– What’s more, our internal communication would be measurable in ways not possible today, Åsa dreams.
