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The MVP Approach to building Modern Intranets

When creating a new Modern Intranet, it’s essential to consider the approach you take. As a key resource for your organisation to engage with and support employees, you don’t want to spend months or even years planning and building a new solution. At the same time, you don’t want to rush into building a poor-quality solution. It is crucial to ensure you deliver an engaging and intuitive platform from day one.

This is where CPS has found recent success with clients by adopting a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) approach to building Modern Intranets. This method allows for the rapid deployment of an intranet that meets key requirements while providing the flexibility to develop more complex features over time. This is particularly relevant when building a Modern Intranet in Microsoft 365, a cloud-based, ever-evolving SaaS service.

What is the MVP Approach?

When building an intranet, a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) approach delivers a functional solution tailored to meet essential business needs swiftly. Unlike a demo or prototype, an MVP is deployed in a production environment, ensuring it can support real business operations. This method enables gradual development, with regular reviews incorporating user feedback. Future enhancements are planned and agreed upon, ensuring the intranet evolves in line with organisational requirements.

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Key Features of the MVP Approach

  • A fully working solution, not just a demo or prototype.
  • Deployed in a production environment to support real business needs.
  • Developed incrementally with regular user feedback.
  • Additional functionality planned and agreed upon for future phases.

Benefits of the MVP Approach

CPS has identified several benefits of taking the MVP approach when deploying Microsoft 365-based Modern Intranets:

  • Build in a real-life – Microsoft 365 allows development within production environments, eliminating the need for duplicate test or development environments that require feature and content promotion.
  • Meet core requirements – The MVP scope can be tailored to focus on high-priority needs, often guided by MoSCoW prioritisation, ensuring maximum impact with minimal effort.
  • Enable rapid deployment – By focusing on essential requirements, deployment time is significantly reduced.
  • Plan and roadmap future updates – More complex features requiring greater effort can be added to a backlog for future iterations, ensuring continuous intranet improvement and user engagement.
  • Adapt to Microsoft 365 updates – Microsoft frequently releases new features and updates that may fulfil backlog requirements, saving time and effort on custom solutions.

 

MVP Phasing – Example Roadmap Table

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Key Considerations for a Successful MVP Intranet Deployment

Through several successful MVP intranet deployments, CPS has identified key lessons and considerations:

  • Review your existing content – Assess what content needs to be migrated and determine what is essential for day one and what can be added later.
  • Engage the right stakeholders – Involving relevant decision-makers in discovery and design workshops is vital to ensure the best outcomes for your organisation.
  • Do your homework – Capture, discuss, and rank your requirements, ideally using MoSCoW prioritisation. Clients who have done more preparation tend to launch their intranet faster.
  • Monitor Microsoft 365 updates – Regularly check the Microsoft 365 roadmap, as new features may help meet requirements, saving time and money.
  • Engage users early and listen to feedback – Whether through a pilot launch or a feedback form, user input is essential. After all, the intranet is for them!

How CPS Can Help

If you’re looking for a Modern Intranet in Microsoft 365, contact CPS’s Modern Work practice for a demo and discussion. We offer a range of flexible solutions to suit different budgets and timescales.

For insights into one of our recent Modern Intranet deployments using the MVP approach, see what our client, Luminate, has to say.

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