Key Takeaways
- Microsoft Viva Suite — The 2026 Enterprise Deployment Guide.
- The Eight Modules.
- Phase 1 — Information Architecture + Governance.
- Phase 2 — Viva Connections Pilot.
- Phase 3 — Viva Insights Manager Enablement.
- Phase 4 — Viva Learning Content Curation.
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Microsoft Viva Suite — The 2026 Enterprise Deployment Guide
Microsoft Viva Suite ($12/user/mo standalone) bundles eight employee-experience modules: Viva Connections, Viva Insights, Viva Learning, Viva Goals, Viva Engage, Viva Pulse, Viva Glint, and Viva Amplify. This is EPC Group's working enterprise deployment guide from 70+ Fortune 500 Viva implementations.
The Eight Modules
1. Viva Connections — Intranet + communications hub built on SharePoint Online. Personalized employee home experience inside Microsoft Teams.
2. Viva Insights — Productivity + wellbeing analytics. Personal insights for end users; team insights for managers; organizational insights for executives.
3. Viva Learning — Centralized learning catalog aggregating Microsoft Learn + LinkedIn Learning + Pluralsight + Skillsoft + custom internal content.
4. Viva Goals — OKR management. Cascading objectives + key results across the organization.
5. Viva Engage — Successor to Yammer. Community + storyline + leadership communications inside Teams.
6. Viva Pulse — Lightweight pulse surveys for managers to check in with teams between Glint surveys.
7. Viva Glint — Enterprise employee engagement survey platform. Replaces Glint standalone for Microsoft customers.
8. Viva Amplify — Executive + leadership communications publishing across email + Teams + SharePoint + Engage.
Phase 1 — Information Architecture + Governance
Standard EPC Group Viva deployment starts with information architecture decisions:
- Viva Connections home site design — single home site for whole company, or business-unit home sites? For enterprises over 25K employees, business-unit home sites are typically right.
- Viva Insights privacy + aggregation thresholds — minimum team size for manager insights (typically 5-10 people), data masking rules, Purview sensitivity label integration.
- Viva Learning catalog scope — Microsoft Learn + LinkedIn Learning licensing + custom corporate content sources.
- Viva Goals OKR cadence — quarterly OKRs standard; some enterprises prefer trimester or annual.
- Viva Engage community moderation — community manager roles, moderation policies, leadership storyline editorial calendar.
Phase 2 — Viva Connections Pilot
Viva Connections is the highest-visibility module — it becomes the employee home experience. Pilot it with 100-500 users for 4-6 weeks before broad rollout.
Pilot checklist:
- Home site information architecture validated
- 8-12 dashboard cards configured (announcements, learning recommendations, OKRs, news, links, Power BI tiles)
- Mobile experience tested (Teams mobile + Outlook mobile)
- Branding aligned with corporate identity
- Personalization tested for at least 3 user personas
Phase 3 — Viva Insights Manager Enablement
Viva Insights produces meaningful manager-level analytics that, used badly, damage trust. EPC Group standard rollout:
- 60-90 minute manager training on Viva Insights interpretation
- Documented policy on what managers will + will not use Insights for
- Privacy thresholds locked in (minimum 5-person team aggregation)
- Quarterly Insights health-check with HR business partners
Phase 4 — Viva Learning Content Curation
Default Viva Learning content (Microsoft Learn) is not enough. Standard EPC Group content sourcing:
- Microsoft Learn (free, included) — core Microsoft technology training
- LinkedIn Learning (~$25/user/year) — soft skills + business + technology breadth
- Pluralsight ($30-45/user/month) — deep technical for IT + dev teams
- Skillsoft (enterprise license) — compliance + leadership content
- Custom internal content — recorded all-hands, leadership talks, internal best-practice videos
Phase 5 — Viva Goals Cascade
OKR adoption fails when executives don't use Goals personally. EPC Group standard approach:
- Quarter 1: Executive team OKRs + cascade to senior leadership
- Quarter 2: Senior leadership + their direct reports
- Quarter 3: Department-level cascade
- Quarter 4: Full organization cascade with quarterly review cadence
Phase 6 — Viva Engage Community Activation
Communities need active management or they become ghost towns. Standard EPC Group activation:
- Identify 10-15 community owners across functions
- Provide community owner training (60 min)
- Seed each community with 5-7 anchor posts
- Leadership storyline editorial calendar (1-2 posts per executive per month)
- 30-60-90 day engagement metric checks
Viva Pricing in 2026
- Viva Suite (all 8 modules) — $12/user/mo standalone, included in Microsoft 365 E7 ($99/user/mo)
- Viva Communications + Communities (Connections + Engage + Amplify) — $4/user/mo standalone
- Viva Workplace Analytics + Employee Feedback (Insights + Pulse + Glint) — $6/user/mo standalone
- Individual modules available separately for organizations that don't need full suite
EPC Group Viva Engagement
EPC Group Viva implementations typically run fixed-fee over 12-24 weeks. Includes the 6-phase deployment above. Managed services under the standard managed-services tier model for ongoing community management, content curation, and OKR cadence support.
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Errin O'Connor
Founder & Chief AI Architect
Microsoft Press bestselling author with enterprise consulting experience since 1997.
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