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.
On this page11 sections
Microsoft Viva Suite — The 2026 Enterprise Deployment Guide
Microsoft Viva Suite ($12/user/mo standalone) bundles seven current employee-experience modules: Viva Connections, Viva Insights, Viva Learning, Viva Engage, Viva Pulse, Viva Glint, and Viva Amplify (Viva Goals was retired December 31, 2025). 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 (retired) — Microsoft retired Viva Goals on December 31, 2025 with no successor module; OKR management now runs in a third-party tool connected to Teams.
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.
- OKR cadence (third-party tool; Viva Goals was retired December 31, 2025) — 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 — OKR Cascade (Viva Goals retired December 31, 2025)
Microsoft retired Viva Goals on December 31, 2025 with no successor module, so the cascade runs in a third-party OKR tool connected to Teams. OKR adoption fails when executives do not use the tool 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.
Schedule a discovery call at /contact or call (888) 381-9725.
Related Resources
Errin O'Connor
Founder & Chief AI Architect
Microsoft Press bestselling author with enterprise consulting experience since 1997.
View Full Profile