Microsoft Introduces Viva Goals; HiBob Integration Focuses on Shift ManagementMicrosoft Introduces Viva Goals; HiBob Integration Focuses on Shift Management

Welcome to the Workspace Connect Wrap, your regular roundup of news and analysis examining the modern workplace. In today's edition: We look at a new module for objectives and key results (OKRs) tracking and an integration between an HR platform and a shift scheduling platform.

Microsoft Adds OKR Tracking with Viva Goals

Microsoft has announced a module for business goal setting and management, Viva Goals. The new module allows employees and managers to enter OKRs either with preformatted templates or from scratch. The goals can be set to the individual, team, or organizational level, linked to OKR dashboards for collaborative monitoring of progress, and connected to specific Teams Projects and Tasks.

Viva Goals can currently be integrated with Microsoft Teams, Azure DevOps, and other work management and data tools. Integration support for Microsoft Viva, Microsoft Power BI, and other Microsoft 365 apps has been announced, with release dates forthcoming. Viva Goals is available in public preview for current Microsoft Viva suite subscribers at no extra cost, with general availability expected later this year.

For over a year, Microsoft has gradually been adding to its employee experience strategy with its Microsoft Viva platform. First revealed last January, Microsoft Viva provides four modules (Connections, Insights, Learning, and Topics) designed to address different aspects of the employee experience. At Microsoft Ignite last fall, the company went generally available with the suite and teed up the Viva Goals module. More recently, Microsoft has added a host of integrations with learning management system providers SAP SuccessFactors, Cornerstone OnDemand, and Saba Cloud for its Viva Learning Module and Workday and Espressive integrations for Viva Connections, as I shared in this post on Microsoft Viva turning one.

HiBob and Deputy Integrate to Reduce Manual HR Processes

HR platform provider HiBob is partnering with workforce management and shift scheduling platform Deputy on an integration. With the integration, HR professionals can sync employee information across the two platforms and create, activate, deactivate, and update employee shifts without the need to manually input the data, therefore eliminating duplicate data entry work.

Deputy also provides HR professionals with timesheet, leave management, and work rota (a schedule of employees who need to work a shift) capabilities, per its HiBob product page.

"With our Deputy partnership, we are pleased to give our customers an enhanced solution for tracking time and attendance for shift work, lifting the administrative burden off of HR professionals. They are relieved of duplicative data entry and can focus their valuable time on retention and hiring," Ronni Zehavi, CEO of HiBob, said. "We believe that modern companies are offering more work flexibility than ever before in regard to when you work, how long you work, and much more — making the Deputy partnership a synergetic solution for increased flexibility."