Challenge
- Steelcase, a global leader in workspace systems and office furniture, was in need of a platform where their employees, distributors, contractors, and dealers could communicate and share information with each other.
- They used a proprietary system called Jive which they wanted to move away from in order to save cost and increase control.
- They wanted a solution that would be similar to a forum but with the added capabilities of private and public groups, social interactions, collaboration, and documentation sharing + storage.
- The main objective was to create a secure platform to protect the information shared on the platform from public access and to make the platform user-friendly and accessible to all stakeholders through single login credentials that could be used to access all their systems.
Proposed Solution
- To meet these objectives, our team built a company portal for Steelcase using the BuddyPress plugin for WordPress. BuddyPress is a powerful plugin that allows organizations to build social networks for their communities.
- We utilized its functionalities to build a company portal for Steelcase, where employees, distributors, contractors, and dealers could connect and share information.
- BuddyPress was heavily extended to create significant additional capabilities that the client needed while maintaining backward compatibility and sanctity of the WordPress application architecture.
- We integrated with One Login to automate user access and provisions across their global organization.
Results
With the implementation of the company portal, Steelcase was able to realize numerous benefits, including:
- Reduced Costs: By moving away from the expensive proprietary solution to WordPress, the client was able to reduce costs.
- More Control: WordPress being an open source platform provided the client increased control over features and the application layer.
- Improved Communication: The platform provided a centralized place for all stakeholders to connect and share information, improving communication and collaboration within the organization.
- User-Friendly Platform: The platform was designed with ease of use in mind, making it accessible and user-friendly for all stakeholders.
- Streamlined Access: By integrating with OneLogin App, the platform became more streamlined, reducing the time and effort required for user authentication and management.