YFF is driving collaboration with SharePoint and Valo.

Creating an engaging intranet for real-time, cross-functional collaboration

Youth Future Foundations (YFF) is an independent, not-for-profit organisation established in December 2019 with the desire to improve employment outcomes for young people from marginalised backgrounds. Their aim is to narrow employment gaps by identifying what works and why, investing in the evidence generation and innovation, and vitally igniting a movement for change. Meaning all young people, regardless of background or start, have fair access to good quality jobs. They are actively working to change the youth employment system by collaborating with organisations, policy makers, employers, practitioners, and young people themselves.

Recently, they realised that the current communication platform they had wasn’t ideal for connecting users across their three hubs based in Birmingham, Leeds, and London. Therefore, they realised they needed a platform to better facilitate the sharing of information, data, company news, and events. A platform that would help employees work together effectively and efficiently, regardless of location.

The Solution

During our initial discussion, it became clear that YFF were looking for a richer design than SharePoint Out-Of-The-Box could offer. Ultimately, they were looking for a communication platform that truly engaged and inspired their employees. This led to a demonstration of our Partner Valo’s solution, Valo Intranet, and so began the creation of a visually exciting intranet that would connect employees across hubs and across the country. The main driver of this decision was that Valo builds on top of SharePoint Online, enhancing, simplifying, and enabling YFF’s team to take full advantage of everything that Microsoft 365 has to offer, as well as extending the capability to brand the intranet to their corporate style.

After a workshop and thorough discussion with YFF, we produced an intranet requirements document that showcased how each requirement would be prioritised and detailed how each requirement would then be built in SharePoint. We worked closely with the YFF team throughout to create an information architecture that worked for them. Understanding their unique work culture and taking their branding requirements into consideration, we utilised the design functionality of Valo to create an inspiring intranet.

The Outcome

Despite physical distance, the YFF teams feel closer than ever. They are able to utilise a singular source of company information, giving each and every team member access to the data, files, news, and event information that they need to thrive. Better yet, the platform has provided a place where these dispersed teams can work together collaborating on the same document, regardless of location.

With improved collaboration and enhanced communications, employees are already more engaged with the intranet. Each time they fire up their browsers they are met with the latest company news and are able to react and celebrate their business and colleagues.

“The team at YFF was a joy to work with. Their clear vision for both the young people of the country and the experience they wanted to create for their employees, ensured project success.

This Valo intranet, with its rich engaging design will empower collaboration throughout their hubs, for years to come. We cannot wait to see what they achieve in the future.”