Case | Green Cargo
Green Cargo creates a digital workplace with the intranet as a hub
Green Cargo is the train company that runs freight trains both in Sweden, various parts of Scandinavia and via partners to the continent. The company is owned by the Swedish state and has approximately 2,000 employees around the country. With a customised and easily accessible intranet, Green Cargo has been able to lay the foundation for a digital workplace where employees can collaborate and access information – wherever they are.
Background and challenge
The previous intranet was old and lacked both support and development opportunities. There were also no social functions, communication was one-way and information was difficult to find.
In addition, the intranet was not accessible to everyone. Green Cargo employees are not only spread out across the country, but many of them are constantly on the move and far from a workstation. Working hours also vary between employees. All of this led Green Cargo to look for another solution.
– Internal communication within Green Cargo is important and crucial to the success of what we do within the company, says Veronica Svahlin, intranet manager at Green Cargo.
"Internal communication within Green Cargo is important and crucial to the success of what we do within the company."
Veronica Svahlin, Intranet Manager Green Cargo
Great functionality - and the ability to integrate
So they decided to review the solutions available and what was needed in the organisation. They decided that the platform should be user-friendly, simple and allow for customisation.
– We wanted our new intranet to be an important part and channel in our work to create a more digital workplace and a work tool in everyday life. We wanted it to become our hub, our communication hub. To achieve this, we needed to create greater accessibility to the intranet for our employees with the opportunity for participation and dialog in order to create engagement and get "everyday communicators" who can contribute with content, says Veronica.
After completing the feasibility study, the choice fell on Sitevision Intranet with the Sitevision Cloud operating solution.
– The platform offers good functionality with pre-made templates and modules that are available in the basic range. We can also combine and integrate the platform with our other tools and platforms, says Veronica.
Solution
Ease of access and responsiveness for staff on the move
For employees who don't work from a workstation, such as the company's own train drivers, the speed and accessibility of the new intranet was crucial. In the field, connectivity and coverage are not always the best, so ensuring that the intranet loaded quickly and could be accessed via mobile was a high priority for Green Cargo. They also made sure that the intranet can be accessed via personal mobile, computer or tablet, for those employees who prefer it.
A welcome feature was also the new search, allowing employees to find relevant information quickly and easily. This means that everyone at Green Cargo – whether they work in the field or in the office – has the same access to information and communication. For those on the move, the intranet means that colleagues and their knowledge and support are never far away.
Users involved from the start
Green Cargo was careful to involve employees and managers in the various phases of the project. In this way, the project could be anchored in the organisation and they continuously found out what the users thought about the functionality.
– It was also important for us to set aside time for practical and hands-on work with our partner once they had the actual shell in place. To understand the platform and functionality, but also to be able to set a good structure and develop the functionality we needed to get as smart solutions as possible. And to offer value-creating content to our employees, says Veronica.
Green Cargo also enlisted the help of test pilots before the launch and received input on structure and functionality.
The result
"The communication hub we were aiming for"
It took just over a year from the initial identification of a need to the launch, thanks in large part to a determined effort and focus on users. As a result, staff have been able to settle in well to the new tool.
– Many managers and departments have replaced emails with information in social groups. We also see that we have received greater commitment, participation and interest from our employees in production, who previously had limited access to the old intranet, says Maria Lindholm, Marketing Communications Officer at Green Cargo.
In order for internal communication to work well and also be able to be adapted to target groups, Green Cargo has a number of different channels and forums, where the new intranet has an important role.
Together with digital solutions such as information screens in the offices and physical workplace meetings, everything works together to support a real exchange of knowledge and help employees in their everyday lives.
– We use the intranet as an everyday work tool and with the new social features and the possibility for more people to contribute content, we are well on our way to creating the hub and communication hub we were aiming for, says Veronica.
"Many managers and departments have replaced emails with information in social groups."
Maria Lindholm, Marketing Communications Officer at Green Cargo