13000
Agents can now contribute to the intranet compared to 2000 before.
Toulouse Métropole is a territorial entity located in the Occitanie region, in France. It encompasses over 500,000 inhabitants, reflecting its status as a dynamic and growing metropolis. Toulouse, nicknamed the Pink City, spans 11,830 hectares. It is the second-largest city in the country, offering a spacious and diverse living environment. With over 120,000 higher education students, it has a vibrant and innovative atmosphere. The city is also distinguished by its 833 hectares of green spaces, offering oases of tranquility in an urban setting.
Toulouse Métropole partnered with Exakis Nelite, an expert in Microsoft solutions and a privileged partner of Powell. Exakis Nelite offers smart cloud platforms, innovation, and maximum security, thanks to its high certifications and extensive network. They cover key areas such as Cybersecurity, IoT, and AI, with over 500 consultants spread across 15 agencies to meet the needs of businesses effectively.
Why launch an intranet project?
Toulouse Métropole had to launch a project to modernize its intranet because its existing portal, based on Alfresco, had become obsolete and was technically unstable. With only one administrator, this intranet had several limitations, such as reduced visibility, difficulty in offering varied services to users, and complexity in contributions from different departments.
For the realization of this project, the City of Toulouse and the Communal Center for Social Action (CCAS) worked closely with the digital direction and the internal communication department of Toulouse Métropole.
Project objectives
Improve visibility and access to services for
users.
Improve user experience, particularly on
mobile devices and in the integration of
modern content formats.
Facilitate contributions from different
departments without specific development.
Reorganize content in a logical and
ergonomic manner.
The main goal of this project was to modernize the intranet while avoiding specific development as much as possible, instead focusing on the functionalities offered by SharePoint and Powell. This approach aimed to modernize the intranet while facilitating contributions from different professions.
However, the intranet was in a complex technical situation, with specific developments that had led to instability and a lack of support. Moreover, the mobile version was deficient, and navigation as well as ergonomics had not been reviewed for years.
The primary challenge, therefore, was to modernize the intranet, enabling more than 13,000 agents to participate, compared to the 2,000 to 3,000 visitors who previously consulted it. The content also needed to be transformed from locked administrative information to modern and engaging content. To achieve this ambitious goal, the project team worked closely with all the business units of the organization to understand their needs and expectations.
An in-depth data analysis was conducted to identify areas for improvement and functionalities that needed to be added. Special attention was given to the user experience to ensure intuitive navigation and ergonomics suitable for all types of devices used by the agents.
The final result is a modern and dynamic intranet that allows agents to actively contribute to its content and connect with each other. The mobile version has been optimized for easy use on smartphones, while new features such as collaborative workspaces have been added to encourage participation and collaboration. The project was a success thanks to a collaborative approach and a special focus on the user experience
“The proposal and project management were very satisfactory, with great responsiveness and exceptional attentiveness. The project’s methodology was aligned with expectations, and the iterative work allowed for efficient and significant progress.”
Camille PONS
Internal Communication Manager,
Toulouse Métropole
Strategy and key steps of a successful project
1. Establish a project team
Exakis Nelite formed a dedicated team to successfully carry out the Toulouse Métropole intranet project.
2. Identify key functionalities
The teams followed several key steps to ensure the success of this project. First, they initiated a general framing phase to align the functionalities and solution proposals. Then, they organized a “design sprint” to immerse the Toulouse Métropole team in the functionalities and solutions of Powell and SharePoint. They also held detailed workshops to delve into the uses of Office 365 and demonstrations of Powell Intranet.
3. Share ideas and set goals
The teams also conducted 7 ideation sessions lasting 3 to 4 hours each to share their knowledge and redefine the goals. They co-constructed a target that met all expectations. Each step was documented and evaluated, including the categorization of functionalities to structure the intranet and the creation of the site map, with sections such as practical life and the homepage.
4. Build the intranet
After completing these steps, the teams began the development phase of the intranet using Powell SharePoint tools. They worked closely together to ensure that all functionalities and solution proposals were taken into account. They also implemented a testing strategy to guarantee the intranet’s optimal quality before its deployment.
5. Train users
Once development was completed, they provided training to familiarize users with the intranet’s interface and functionalities. The teams also set up change support to facilitate the transition to this innovative tool.
The deployment of the intranet was a success, offering employees a collaborative and intuitive tool to facilitate exchanges and information management. The teams are proud of their contribution to this project and the collaboration with Toulouse Métropole to provide a quality tool that meets their needs and expectations.
Project implementation
Workshops to understand the existing content and define the intranet structures.
The use of tools like Adobe XD for mockups.
An iterative approach to allow different departments to contribute easily.
Focus on SharePoint and Powell 365 functionalities for efficient content integration and management
How Powell Intranet helped
To meet the specific needs of each team within these entities, a variety of functionalities, templates, models, and content types will be deployed. This approach leverages the full range of tools offered by Powell and SharePoint to create an effective intranet.
In terms of architecture, the overall structure of the Toulouse Métropole SharePoint environment is based on twelve site collections. Navigation throughout the Intranet is made smoother by main sections such as home, live communication, human resources, practical life (consisting of several site collections), and the community.
In addition to these major sections, dedicated areas for training and events have been planned. The training section will allow employees to access online training resources as well as in-person courses and workshops. The events section will focus on the communication and promotion of events organized by the community, including festivals, exhibitions, and citizen meetings.
Each site collection has been designed to specifically meet the needs of different departments and communities. For example, the site collection dedicated to human resources will allow employees to post HR news, offer positions for internal mobility, and access all information related to the daily management of agents. For the City of Toulouse, this collection will be dedicated to communication with citizens, offering information on municipal services, cultural and sporting events, as well as forms for work or parking permits.
Results & impact
The project transformed the Toulouse Métropole intranet into a modern and efficient tool:
- Improved user experience: The intranet has become more intuitive, with simplified navigation and better accessibility on mobile devices.
- Increased engagement: The ability to integrate videos and other interactive media has boosted employee engagement.
- Departmental autonomy: Different departments can now manage and publish their content autonomously, which has energized internal
communication. - Enhanced stability and security: The new platform offers better stability and increased security guarantees.
Conclusion
This project illustrates how a collaborative approach, supported by wise technological choices, can transform communication and information management within a large public organization.
