New product launches in the employee experience (EX) segment focus on some of the friction points in an employee’s journey – performance management and goal setting, communication, training, and career growth.

Microsoft deepens the Viva offering with the addition of Goals module

Microsoft has announced an upcoming enhancement to its Viva EX platform, adding in a module focused on objectives and key results (OKRs).  The Goals module will be available as part of the Microsoft Viva subscription later in 3Q 2022, joining the already available Topics, Connections, Learning, and Insights modules. Viva Goals was created leveraging technology from Microsoft’s 2021 acquisition of OKR tool provider Ally.io. The module will help align team to strategic priorities, allowing for regular progress to be viewed via customized dashboards and quick links. In a blog post by Vetri Vellore, Corporate VP, Microsoft Viva Goals (and former CEO and founder of Ally), Vellore offers, “Not only do employees want to feel more connected, more aligned to their company’s purpose and mission, but they also want to grow, make an impact, and make a difference. Organizations, likewise, are at their best when people and teams have clarity and a shared understanding of their goals and can execute in sync to achieve the desired business outcomes. A clear, consistent business goal-setting process is the missing link between employee experience and business outcomes.” Viva Goals will integrate with technologies teams are already using such as Microsoft Teams, AzureDevOps and other work management solutions.

LumApps integrates technology from its HeyAxel acquisition

LumApps finalized its acquisition of HeyAxel and has now leveraged HeyAxel’s onboarding, communication, and HR automation capabilities into its new LumApps Journeys offering. LumApps Journeys is an orchestration engine that helps employees have a more seamless experience across applications and devices, and provides employers with enhanced employee profiles generated from data coming in from various sources. LumApps Journeys will also have functionality in training and development, event planning, and communications campaigns. According to Lionel Moizeau, product manager for Journeys, “Delivering a positive employee journey begins with understanding the unique needs and preferences of each individual. Every journey will look different based on who the person is, what job they do, and where they work. With LumApps Journeys, organizations can put the employee at the center of the paradigm and provide a holistic experience that empowers employees everywhere. In essence, we’re bringing the same comprehensive campaign functionality used in the consumer world to employees to help promote corporate culture, deliver better employee experiences, and ultimately help retain talent.”

Succession planning added into Quantum Workplace offering

Quantum Workplace has launched a new solution that is directly integrated into its Talent Review and Goals tools.The product helps find successors for critical roles within the organization, rate the readiness of potential successors and develop employees who are ready for new roles.“Employees are leaving roles at unprecedented rates due to personal preferences and changes in the ways we work. This shift, coupled with early retirements and career changes, has left many organizations under pressure to find the right leaders for the future of the organization. Our Succession Planning tool makes it easy to plan for unexpected employee departures and proactively identifies talent gaps that can be linked with development plans,” says Quantum Workplace CEO Greg Harris.