Igloo Intranet to a SharePoint Based Involv Intranet Migration

03 July 2023

The Client:

A Migration for a not profit Organization.

The Need:

The client sought a transition from Igloo Intranet to a SharePoint-based intranet, prioritizing seamless customization, maintenance, and scalability. Key considerations encompassed effortless scalability, streamlined management, and advanced functionalities not inherent in SharePoint’s standard offerings. These encompassed tailored templates, proactive notifications, a comprehensive people directory, seamless social integrations, and user-friendly content creation controls, collectively enhancing the intranet’s versatility and user experience.

Challenges:

The client embarked on this journey after shortlisting several SharePoint-based intranet solutions, primarily focusing on scalability, technical manageability, and content creation capabilities. They also demanded a unique design and branding approach to maintain consistency across visual elements. Adding to the complexity, a substantial portion of their existing content resided in Igloo, a platform lacking APIs or direct database access, necessitating a labour-intensive and error-prone manual content migration process.

The Solution:

Star Knowledge proposed a comprehensive solution, combining automated data extraction from Igloo with tailored SharePoint templates designed to align with the organization’s branding guidelines.

• Data and content extraction were executed using a combination of Power Automate Desktop and Python Scripts, ensuring the extraction, classification, and segregation of data from Igloo. This data was then meticulously updated, replacing outdated hyperlinks with new ones, preparing it for migration to SharePoint.
• The SharePoint sites were meticulously designed and developed with a templated structure, facilitating effortless collaboration and maintaining a standardized structure. This involved creating an organizational-wide Hub site and 21 departmental and project-specific sites, each with customized data modules and components for content and data filtering.
• Custom metadata properties were defined at both the site and global levels to enhance data classification. Upon finalizing the designs, the content migration process was initiated using SharePoint APIs, successfully transferring various data types, including departmental updates, CEO communications, strategic updates, staff announcements, training materials, and wiki-related content.
• Additionally, Viva Engage and Viva Connections were seamlessly integrated to enhance collaboration and communication within the organization.

Benefits:

The implementation of this innovative solution yielded a multitude of benefits:

1. Content Migration: The migration of content from the legacy Igloo system to Office 365 and SharePoint was executed successfully, preserving critical information.
2. Enhanced Communication: The organization achieved an improved communication channel, accessible across mobile devices, desktop computers, and email platforms, ensuring seamless connectivity.
3. Custom Branding: The custom design and branding guidelines were meticulously realized, reinforcing the organization’s identity.
4. Scalability: The new intranet’s structured approach empowered the organization to plan and organize effectively, enhancing its overall scalability.
5. User Experience: The user-friendly design and navigation of the new intranet resulted in an improved user experience and a reduced learning curve for staff.
6. Templatization: The introduction of templated structures facilitated rapid scalability while maintaining standardization throughout the organization.
7. Automation: The automation of content migration processes resulted in significant time savings, exceeding 90%. This was especially crucial given the absence of APIs or database access in the Igloo platform.

Technologies Utilized:

The successful implementation of this project hinged on the strategic use of the following technologies:

• Power Automate Desktop
• SharePoint
• Viva
• Office 365
• Viva Engage

Conclusion:

The challenges posed by their legacy Igloo Intranet our non-profit client has successfully leveraged a tailored SharePoint-based solution. The automation-driven data migration, custom branding, and enhanced user experience have culminated in a more scalable and user-friendly digital workspace. the organization gained a powerful tool for improved communication, collaboration, and content management. To embark on your own transformative journey, contact us to explore how we can tailor solutions to meet your unique needs.