How the Newly Released Microsoft Viva Goals is Changing the Game

Today’s workforce is hungry for more purpose and meaning in their work, and Microsoft has responded to this by launching Microsoft Viva Goals as part of the Microsoft Viva Suite. Microsoft Viva Goals aims to change the way people see work in addition to its other modules, resulting in the best digital employee experience. These other modules consist of Viva Learning, Viva Connections, Viva Topics and Viva Insights.  

Many companies find it difficult to know how to inspire their employees and drive them to achieve their best in this ever-changing world of work. Therefore, many of them seek to adopt a goals-based culture (often called “high-performance culture” or “performance culture”). With goals-based culture, employees are guided towards meeting objectives and key results (OKRs), which is the methodology that Microsoft uses to address the goal setting for the entire organization with the introduction of Viva Goals.   

What is Microsoft Viva Goals?  

Viva Goals is Microsoft’s new solution designed to help employees discover and pursue their work goals at work. It is based on the previous acquisition of Ally.io, which has been helping revolutionized how organizations use technology to bring deeper connections to work, purpose and results in the hybrid world since 2017.   

Microsoft Viva Goals enables employees to create aligned goals and keep track of them by setting reminders for regular check-ins about their progress. The tool is mainly to be used inside Microsoft Teams to coexist in the flow of work. It also provides the ability to connect different sources of information, automatically feeding into the designated OKRs, as well as reflect the progress made on each project without human effort.

Why is a goals-based culture so important to help employees find their purpose?  

A goals-based culture aims to help employees find meaning in their work, achieve their goals, and have a sense of fulfilment at the end of the day. Employees are more likely to stay with the company if they can see how their daily tasks contribute to the organization’s greater purpose. And, if companies can retain more employees, it will be easier for the organization to thrive and save money as hiring and onboarding can be expensive. 

Why it’s a game changer 

The Microsoft Viva suite brings a holistic approach to providing a good employee experience. Before this release, Viva Learning, Viva Connections, Viva Topics and Viva Insights felt like loose ends that were missing something. The experience of using the other modules was isolated and lacked a deep alignment and purpose, making it difficult for employees to get the most out of them. With Microsoft Viva Goals, the conversation starts with the company objectives and key results and goes down to each person’s objectives, key results and projects, which can leverage the other modules to get there.

This goal-based approach will fill their purpose of why they do what they do, as well as focus on their everyday activities. Having employees with clear goals tends to improve productivity and collaboration, leading them to achieve their goals as a team and as a company.  

What’s in it for your organization?  

Besides helping employees find meaning in their work, a goals-based culture can help organizations save money by reducing employee turnover rates, which will save on the costs associated with hiring new employees. Additionally, employees who feel genuinely invested in their work will likely be more productive, and it is easier to hit company-wide goals. Microsoft Viva Goals keeps company goals on track by setting reminders for regular check-ins about individual employee’s progress. The seamless integration with Microsoft Teams enables the check-ins without leaving a chat conversation. 

The power of Microsoft Viva Goals 

Microsoft Viva Goals is a game changer because it will drive the conversation towards the company, team and personal goals and will leverage the Viva Topics, Viva Learning, Viva Connections and Viva Insights to provide the holistic employee experience employees crave, and the hybrid work needs to provide. The goals-based culture will help employees on their journey to find their vocation horizon and have a sense of fulfilment at the end of the day.

Looking for guidance on the Microsoft Viva suite or want to learn more about Microsoft Viva Goals? Connect with one of our experts today!