Colleges and universities have a unique challenge when it comes to intranets, in part due to the diversity in content authors and consumers. At a single higher-education institution, the intranet's users can include anyone from faculty (professors, teaching assistants, coaches) to staff (custodians, receptionists, the dean) to students (on campus and online).

So when you think about it, it's pretty unbelievable that Otterbein University was able to build a site that satisfies each of its unique audiences, and is actually easier to maintain than their previous implementation. That's why we feel that Tim Walsh and Tahsha Harmon at Otterbein deserve our recognition as two of this month's Employee Experience Champions. Here are some of the notable features of the Otterbein intranet, My O-Zone.

Mobility

Most technology consumers expect their web content to be accessible on a mobile device. And Tahsha Harmon, director of technical support and training, intended to make that a reality for Otterbein University.

''Mobile web responsiveness was one of the big criteria that we were looking for. The main reason was, from an IT standard, we were noticing a trend that what users want will drive what we provide and support." So you can imagine that being able to access school information on their cell phones was top of list for students, and much of the faculty.

The team worked really hard to make a mobile version of My O-Zone a reality. The result was extremely well-received. As Tim Walsh, web system information manager, said, "Akumina, in conjunction with Office 365 pretty much eliminates the need to sit at a desk... to be chained to any particular device." We'd call that a win, as I'm sure the O-Zone users do as well.

O365 adoption

Five years prior to the launch of My O-Zone, Otterbein migrated to Microsoft Office 365. In 2015, SharePoint was the primary delivery vehicle for their intranet. Upon partnering with Akumina, O365 adoption increased, as more end users could access the O365 tools' functionality within the Akumina system. One of the added benefits was that Walsh's team was able to take more advantage of existing Microsoft Office 365 features, including enhanced content security.

Given the effort and enthusiasm Walsh and Harmon have dedicated thus far to their intranet and its users, we look forward to seeing what's next for My O-Zone at Otterbein University. For now, congratulations on being named an Akumina Employee Experience Champion!