Case Studies
Saatchi & Saatchi X Needed to
Integrate Its Centers for Intelligence
Saatchi & Saatchi X is a rapidly growing
advertising company headquartered in Springdale,
Arkansas. In recent years the agency’s
workforce has grown rapidly. And since many
of the agency’s workforce members are
mobile, the challenge of sharing information,
collaborating on projects, and communicating
about client and company needs became a challenge.
To meet the challenge, S&SX created Centers
for Intelligence. Each Center for Intelligence
is comprised of several knowledge centers,
with each knowledge center led by a guide
who’s responsible for content, updates
and the dissemination of information back
into the organization. The Centers for Intelligence
cover key competencies and capabilities and
are an organic, ever changing set of resources.
During the initial implementation of the Centers
for Intelligence, the guides were given a
great deal of freedom in designing their individual
sites. Due to the creative culture at S&SX
however, it quickly became obvious that a
certain amount of standardization was necessary.
It also became obvious that knowledge center
guides – many of them business unit
managers besides -- needed the assistance
of assigned “publishers” to post
content and maintain consistency across the
enterprise.
Enter Mindbridge and IntraSmart.
Today, Saatchi & Saatchi X's Centers for
Intelligence – as well as the agency’s
overall Intranet -- are built on IntraSmart
and according to Brittney Duke, Project Leader,
this is a good thing. Says Brittney, "The
most important factor we considered in choosing
a product was the flexibility and room for
creative customization. With IntraSmart, we’ve
realized a broad range of benefits, including
improved content management, corporate communications
and management of information. We still have
additional functionality to implement and
we look forward to that.”
Did someone say “implementation”?
Ed Prill, one of S&SX’s Center guides
was a bit trepidatious when asked to initiate
IntraSmart. Says Ed, "When I was first
tasked with developing a Center for Intelligence
I was apprehensive because I had no experience
with HS&SL or web based development. This
opportunity really opened a door for me. I
was able to effectively share my knowledge
with others and it’s been fun learning
how to make information come to life in a
whole new way."
IntraSmart helps employees to locate the correct
resources by providing a consistent environment
where a brief description of each Center for
Intelligence, contact information, and a picture
of the guide are easily accessed. Users who
go to the Centers for Intelligence as the
first step in researching projects and processes
are able to check company standards and procedures.
That’s particularly important when working
on cross client and cross project activities.
Jenn Reynolds, Account Executive, is a frequent
user of the system. Says Jenn, "The Centers
for Intelligence are very helpful in obtaining
relevant background information for projects.
They also allow individuals who have expertise
in a certain area to share their knowledge
with others in an easily accessible format."
Saatchi & Saatchi X continues to see operational
improvement and increased knowledge sharing
as a result of its IntraSmart implementation.
The agency now leverages the expertise of
critical knowledge workers and shares that
knowledge across the enterprise.
The Appalachian Mountain Club
Builds a Trail to Teamwork
America’s oldest conservation and recreation
organization, the Appalachian Mountain Club,
(AMC), needed a system that allowed 250 full-time
employees, 400 seasonal employees, and 4,000
volunteers located across a geographic area
ranging from Maine to New Jersey to effectively
communicate. On top of that, the solution
needed to be user friendly and cost-effective,
while at the same time providing a single
point-of-reference for everyone requiring
information.
After doing some shopping, AMC chose IntraSmart,
our out-of-the-box Intranet solution. From
the moment installation took place, AMC was
sure it had made the right decision when choosing
IntraSmart. Because of the straightforward
customization of the look and feel, the establishment
of standard permissions, and the use of existing
templates, Mindbridge had the base system
up and running in two shakes of a squirrel’s
tail. Functionality proved to be simple as
well -- users who had hands-on knowledge of
the Internet were able to begin working with
some of the features with no training at all,
while those less Internet savvy took advantage
of our hands on demonstrations to get up to
speed. Once everyone became acquainted with
IntraSmart, all were pleased with the system’s
ease-of-use.
The Result?
AMC now provides a single point of reference
for all staff and volunteer information. The
system can be accessed 24/7 from any web-enabled
computer so that staff and volunteers constantly
share knowledge, even though they work at
different times and from various remote locations.
Says Andy Harris, _____, AMC, “Hats
off to you for all the great work."
To learn more about the Appalachian Mountain
Club go to: www.outdoors.org
