A Newbie’s Guide to Building Workplace Communities on Viva Engage

If you’ve ever scrolled past an announcement post on your intranet, wondering if anyone else even saw it, or felt like your company’s internal comms are more of a monologue than a conversation, you’re truly not alone.

Over the past few years, digital workplace tools have transformed the way we communicate. But one challenge still remains: how do we create a real community when we’re not in the same room anymore?

Microsoft’s answer to the question is Viva Engage (formerly known as Yammer), which helps build connections, culture, and conversation in a simple and effective way.

Whether you’re new to Viva Engage or just figuring out where it fits into the Microsoft 365 picture, this article will take it back to basics. What is Viva Engage? Why should your organisation use it? And how can you get started with it?

 

What is Viva Engage?

Viva Engage is Microsoft’s employee engagement platform that lives within Microsoft Teams. It’s designed to foster conversation, connection, and community across an organisation, especially in distributed or hybrid workforces (so basically everyone nowadays).

If that sounds familiar, it’s because Viva Engage evolved from Yammer.

Many of the core features, such as communities, conversations, questions, and praise, all started out in Yammer.

Viva Engage brings those same tools into the Teams environment, making it easier to integrate community-building into the flow of everyday work and its notifications comes through via Teams so there is less apps to check, which is always a blessing

It’s part of the broader Microsoft Viva suite, which includes tools for learning, wellbeing, insights and goal setting.

But Viva Engage focuses squarely on human connection, helping employees feel heard, valued, and part of something bigger.

 

Who is It For?

The short answer, everyone.

Viva Engage works for:

• Internal communications teams looking to reach employees in a more authentic, engaging way.
• Leadership wanting to share strategy, listen to feedback, and be visible across the organisation.
• HR teams hoping to build culture, celebrate people, and drive engagement.
• Employees who want a voice, a place to connect, or a chance to share what matters to them.

It’s not a tool for managers to broadcast updates and tick boxes. It’s designed for conversation. The more it’s used as a place for storytelling, recognition, and discussion, the more powerful it becomes.

 

What Can You Do in Viva Engage?

At its heart, Viva Engage is about conversations. Here are a few key things you can do:

1. Join or Create Communities

Communities are similar to interest groups or departments, think “Marketing Team”, “Wellbeing Champions”, “Sustainability”, or “New Starters”. Anyone in the organisation can join a community to stay up-to-date with discussions and participate.

Communities help flatten hierarchies. Someone in Finance might learn something new from the Engineering team, or a junior employee might feel confident enough to contribute ideas. It’s all about connection.

To give you some ideas we have communities such as, ‘The Pet Café’, ‘The Gym Rats’ and our ‘Wellbeing’ communities! You can’t deny, there’s some good ones there…

2. Start Conversations

You can post text, images, videos, links, whatever helps tell your story. People can reply, react, or @mention others to pull them into the conversation. Think of it like LinkedIn, but internal and more open.

Unlike email, conversations in Viva Engage are transparent by default. Everyone in a community can see them, which helps build trust and visibility.

3. Ask Questions and Post Polls

There’s a built-in format for asking questions and collecting answers. People can vote on the best response or take part in polls for a quick pulse check. It’s a great way to crowdsource ideas or check sentiment on a topic.

4. Recognise and Praise

Celebrating wins, big or small, is easy in Viva Engage.

Use the “Praise” function to shout out a colleague’s hard work or thank a team for going the extra mile. It’s a minor feature with a significant impact, especially in a hybrid workplace where casual recognition often gets lost.

5. Share Stories from Leadership

One of the newer features is “Leadership Corner”, a space for senior leaders to connect with employees in a more human way. It’s not about glossy comms or rehearsed videos.

It’s about showing up authentically, responding to questions, and being part of the conversation.

 

Why Viva Engage Works

Traditional intranets and newsletters are one-way. Viva Engage brings dialogue back into internal communication. And because it’s embedded in Teams, an app most people already use every day, it doesn’t require yet another login or platform switch.

Here’s why it’s working for forward-thinking organisations:

• It breaks silos. People from different locations, departments or levels can share ideas and knowledge openly.
• It humanises leadership. Leaders can post reflections, answer questions, and build trust in a visible, approachable way.
• It promotes culture. From mental health check-ins to social clubs and campaign launches, Viva Engage provides culture with a digital home.
• It boosts inclusion. Everyone gets a voice, not just the people who speak up in meetings.

 

Tips for New Users

If you’re just dipping your toe into Viva Engage, start small. Here’s how to build momentum:

1. Start with One or Two Communities

Don’t try to launch a dozen communities on day one.

Start with something relevant and engaging, like a company-wide “General” space, or a “New Starters” group. Once people get used to how it works, expansion becomes organic.

2. Model the Behaviour You Want to See
   Ask leaders and managers to post updates, ask questions, or share shout-outs. When people see leaders using the platform authentically, they’re more likely to engage too.
3. Tie It to Real Campaigns or Initiatives
   Launching a new policy? Kicking off a wellbeing week? Use Viva Engage as the place for discussion, Q&A, and feedback. People are more likely to engage when there’s a reason and a story to follow.
4. Keep It Human
   The best posts are personal. Share a story, not a statement. Ask a question, not just for input but for connection. Use first names. Show gratitude. And don’t be afraid to show your personality.
5. Promote It Actively
   Include Viva Engage in your onboarding materials. Link to it in newsletters or internal SharePoint sites. Mention it in Teams meetings. Like any platform, it only works when people know it exists, and when they feel invited to be part of it.

 

Final Thoughts

The temptation might be to cut down on “just another comms platform”. But Viva Engage isn’t more noise. It’s not there to replace Teams chats or structured SharePoint pages it’s a communication chain that is more human, and more communal.

At its best, Viva Engage helps your organisation feel more like a community than a collection of teams. It gives people the chance to ask, answer, celebrate and connect,  whether they’re in the office, working from home, or on the go.

So if you’re new to it, start with curiosity. Join a community. Share a post. Ask a question.

You might be surprised how many people are listening.