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Interact for G SuiteMaximizing the value of your

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Interact for G Suite

Google’s G Suite offers an integrated package of

cloud-native apps for collaboration, communication

and productivity for business.

Initially launched back in 2006 as

‘Google Apps for Your Domain’, the G

Suite has seen increasing popularity

in the enterprise market in recent

years: entering 2019 with over five

million paying G Suite customers, an

increase of 25% since 2017.

With tools spanning Gmail and

Hangouts for communication, to

core business applications such

as Docs, Sheets, Forms, Calendar

and Google Drive, Google’s

comprehensive business toolbox

is recognized as offering fast, user-

friendly and cloud-focused solutions

for today’s digital workplace.

We believe the intranet should

serve as the center of that digital

workplace, working with your

organization’s technology stack

to provide an exceptional digital

employee experience. That’s why

Interact offers a seamless experience

for the G Suite: bringing your

employees all the tools they need

from one place.

Whether your organization is already

using the G Suite or you’re trying

to determine the right solution to

meet your needs, this guide can help

you understand the features and

functionality available, how Interact

and the G Suite work intuitively

together, and the additional benefits

Interact can offer above and beyond

the G Suite.


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Contents

Your digital workplace 6

The G Suite: an overview 10

Why would I need an intranet? 12

Interact for the G Suite 14

The role and limitations of Google Sites 18

Interact beyond the G Suite 20

Interact for the G Suite: a complementary partnership 26


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Your digital workplace

In today’s digitalized workplaces, technology is at the heart of how

we work. To truly understand how – and why – the G Suite and

Interact work together, it’s worth considering where they fit in this

wider ecosystem of tools, platforms, and applications.

With the rise of cloud-based

technologies, mobile working, and the

rapid pace of innovation, we’ve seen

a digital ‘big bang’ in our workplaces

over the past few decades. Today,

the average enterprise uses over 500

different applications. Each will serve

a distinct, defined purpose: whether

that’s your HR portal, your payroll

system, or your company email.

When choosing a new tool or

partnering with a new vendor, it’s

important to look at where they fit in

this big picture.

Who are your employees and what do

they need to do their jobs well?

How are they connecting to

those tools or information? What

technologies are you already using

and where are there gaps between

staff needs and tools available? How

will this new solution fit alongside

these?

The digital workplace strategically unifies an

organization’s employees and the technologies they

use in an ecosystem that strives to facilitate agile

ways of working, improve employee engagement and

deliver an exceptional experience for its users.

“Simon Dance, CEO at Interact Software

However, the digital landscape is more

than just the tools and applications

we use. To work successfully, it must

consider the people it serves, the tools

they use, and how everything comes

together to deliver a positive digital

employee experience. Together, this

becomes your digital workplace.


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The majority of tools fall into three common categories:

The digital workplace is unique to

each individual organization: no

two toolboxes will look the same.

Each tool within that workplace

is also unique in terms of design,

functionality and purpose.

However, the need to bring them

together to work effectively is a

universal challenge.

Intranet platforms, such as

Interact, are employee-focused

applications designed to

meet this need. A successful

intranet will facilitate corporate

communication, improve the

employee experience, embed

organizational culture and provide

a gateway for the digital workplace

by connecting with other tools.

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Document Management Systems: both personal file

storage and enterprise-wide document storage for shared

and centralized access to information, often with additional

features to facilitate collaborative working, file sharing, and

version control – such as Google Drive

Private, small group communications and ESNs: used to facilitate teams to collaborate or work on projects

quickly and intuitively, with functionality such as real-time

messaging and file sharing – such as Google Hangouts

Business productivity: specialist applications designed

to solve a diverse range of business productivity challenges,

ranging from customer service and human capital

management to project management and more – such as

Google Docs, Sheets, Tasks or Forms


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The G Suite:an overview

Google’s G Suite is a package of more than ten applications, building on its free of charge consumer offering with added features and benefits to meet business needs.

The product list comprises of:

The G Suite now also includes the G

Suite Marketplace, through which

users can install third-party cloud

applications to use as part of their

technology stack. Google’s cloud-

first approach and willingness to

collaborate with external providers

shows their commitment to

championing an integrated, user-

focused digital workplace, while

understanding its core offering can

be built upon to create a better user

experience.

Unlike its free-to-use consumer

offering, the G Suite also offers a

custom email domain, unlimited

cloud storage, advanced admin

controls and 24/7 support for paying

customers, along with an ad-free

experience. Its most commonly

cited competitor is Microsoft’s

Office 365, although some of the

products – such as Hangouts – have

specific challengers, such as Slack.

Its products are compatible with

Microsoft Office.

With three editions available – Basic,

Business, Enterprise – the G Suite is

showing itself as an agile solution

for organizations of any size, while

also continuing to see a large uptake

among the consumer market for its

core Google Apps.


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Why would I need an intranet?

The purpose of the modern intranet is to support

organizations in connecting and informing each

and every employee. “

The unique features of an intranet

play a crucial role in meeting these

needs. This can span the use of

centralized top-down news to connect

staff to the culture and direction

of their organization, through to

two-way communication tools such

as forums, pulse surveys, and social

features to empower staff with a voice

and connect them to their peers.

An intranet does this by connecting

employees to one another, to their

organization, and to the diverse range

of tools, applications and information

they require, all from a centralized

location.

Dispersed or globalized organizations

in particular face a constant

challenge in this regard, with

employees often based in multiple

offices, on the front-line, on the

production line, constantly transient,

or home-based. Distributing

information and connecting those

individuals to the organization

and its goals, vision, culture, and

direction is an acute painpoint with

potentially damaging and long-term

implications for those organizations

who fail to get it right.

In addition, thanks to a user-focused

approach to development, an intranet

can also support and enhance the

employee experience of other tools

they use as part of their digital

workplace, including the G Suite.

Whether that’s Google Forms for

submitting a workflow, or Google

Calendars for booking in meetings,

an Interact intranet builds on the

core, business-focused purpose

of these other tools to provide the

ultimate digital workplace experience

and support the most important asset

we have: our employees.

First, we’ll describe how Interact

integrates with the leading and

most popular G Suite apps, before

exploring the additional features

and functionality offered by Interact

to create an outstanding digital

employee experience.

Historically, intranets have been

regarded as serving a multitude

of purposes; from a content

management system to a team

collaboration or productivity tool.

At Interact, we believe the role of the

intranet has evolved:


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Interact for the G Suite

Interact is designed to serve as the heart of your digital workplace,

supporting your business and employees in getting the best possible

experience from the tools they use.

In today’s information-led

workplaces, organizations have huge

knowledge assets and often host

critical documents across a number

of different locations.

Providing instant access to that

information from one single place

is crucial to the experience your

employees have of work.

Search your G Suite

Surface your organization’s G Suite or

Google Drive documents alongside

information stored on your intranet

and any other connected applications

in a single click. Interact brings

your employees a complete view of

all your organization’s documents,

saving valuable time spent searching

across different platforms, improving

efficiency, and creating a single

version of truth to prevent costly

errors or duplication of effort.

Our out-the-box solution can be

configured to work alongside the

leading and most popular G Suite

applications to create a seamless and

intuitive experience: bringing your

entire digital toolbox together in one

place, while giving your users all the

additional benefits Interact has to offer.


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Embed any Google Calendar into

your intranet and keep employees

up-to-date with what’s happening

across your organization.

Whether it’s specific to a project

or team, or for sharing company-

wide events, your staff can be

confident they only have to come

to one place to stay connected.

Google Calendar

Insert Google Tasks into any

Community or other homepage to

keep projects on track and make

sure deadlines are never missed.

With the addition of social and

collaboration tools through

your intranet, your employees

can come together and work

effectively with everything they

need in one place.

Google Tasks

Today’s digital workplaces use on

average 500 different applications.

Take the pain out of multiple logins

and improve efficiency with Single

Sign-On via your intranet. With

just one set of credentials, your

users can access all their Google

applications, as well as a host of other

digital workplace integrations. Drive

greater adoption, reduce risk posed

by password vulnerabilities and

streamline the experience for your

users via one, single interface.

Multiple applications, one login

Whether you’re creating a staff survey

or building a form for submitting

expenses, add and display all your

Google Forms on your homepage, in

a Community area or on any other

homepage to quickly gather the

information you need.

With the support of Interact’s CMS

and social collaboration features, you

can ensure users understand what

they need to complete the form, are

able to ask questions or feedback,

share, and more.

Google Forms


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This example template

from Google Sites doesn’t

allow for the creation of

anything more than a very

basic interanet.

The role and limitations of Google Sites

One of the less popular tools available as part of the G Suite

offering is its Sites creation application.

Originally an external website build

tool, Google Sites has recently been

positioned as a basic internal team site

builder and is occasionally proposed

as an intranet solution, due to its

capacity to integrate with the key

services of the G Suite.

However, Google Sites is not purpose-

designed as an organization-wide

digital workplace tool, but instead to

support siloed working focused on a

specific team, project or event.

As an addition to the Suite that isn’t

a primary revenue focus for Google,

the Sites tool has limited investment

– and therefore functionality - posing

a number of challenges for those

seeking an intranet solution that will

meet all their requirements.

For those seeking a simple, small-scale

option for presenting and managing a

specific team or project through core

G Suite apps, Sites can offer a quick

solution. However, those looking to

provide a complete experience for

employees and create this connected

digital workplace will find it fails to

provide the necessary features or

functionality.

With no centralized, enterprise-wide

area for sharing of content, news

and information, and no two-way

communication or social tools, a

Google Site can’t truly connect staff

to their organization and its culture.

Customization is restricted, requiring

technical expertise to align sites with

organizational branding or to meet

specific needs. While some basic

templates are offered, those seeking

a digital workplace that aligns with

their mission, goals and identity as an

organization will find that Google Sites

struggles to deliver on their objectives.

Connection to the organization

Drag-and-drop of the Suite’s most

popular tools – such as Calendar,

Drive, Docs – into predefined

templates offers the user a basic

web experience. Each Google Site

is an isolated experience or area,

with its own permissions. Other

than basic document collaboration

capabilities, offered by its Drive and

Docs apps, Sites does not offer any

additional user experience or social

functionality.

Connection to colleagues

Lack of third-party integration into

Sites also limits the ability to create

a true digital workplace. While the

G Suite Marketplace enables third

parties to create enterprise apps that

add features and functionality to

native Google Cloud apps, integration

of other applications into sites is

not offered as standard: requiring

developer resource to be achieved.

Connection to the digital workplace

Without built-in intelligence or the

use of dynamic content areas which

will feed fresh or tailored content to

users, Sites also require considerable

resource and time investment

to keep them fresh and relevant.

Without editorial/approval workflow

processes, there are also risks posed

by the lack of controls over publishing

of content.

Connection to content and information


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Interact beyond the G Suite

As a digital workplace tool, Interact is designed to work both with and

beyond the G Suite to answer some of the critical gaps left by Google and

other technologies. By complementing and supporting other applications,

the intranet plays a critical role in bringing together our people, our tools,

and our culture to deliver an outstanding employee experience.

One of the primary drivers for

employee engagement and

experience of the workplace lies

in how connected and informed

your staff feel to the business, its

strategic direction, their peers, and

the information they need to perform

their roles.

Without that sense of connection,

organizations will see everything from

low morale and high staff turnover

to poor customer service, decreased

productivity, and an impact on

company brand and reputation.

Building those connections –

between people, the business, and its

information – is a distinct challenge

for which an intranet is uniquely

designed. In this way, it builds upon

the core functionality of the G Suite

to create a complete employee

experience of work.

Your connected digital workplace hub

The ability for a central

communications or management

team to push out critical information,

updates and content is essential

to keep staff safe, productive, and

informed about what’s happening in

their organization.

From more formal communication

around policies or compliance to

latest news and events, informal blogs,

or broadcasting critical information

during a crisis situation, Interact

offers a suite of tailored features

designed to facilitate one-to-many

communications for any situation or

requirement. These include:

One-to-many communications: connecting to the business

Broadcasts: a multi-channel alert system for when you need to

communicate important information quickly through SMS, push

notification, email, blocker message and intranet banner; for example,

in times of crisis or emergency

Content areas and pages for example, for the publication of company

news and updates

The ability to surface your Google Drive documents through Search; for

example, your HR or IT policies

Blogs for more informal content

Calendars and events


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Today’s dispersed workplaces need

to find new ways of working and

supporting staff to break out of

department silos. This can be easier

said than done when you have

employees spread across different

locations, timezones, out on the road,

or perhaps working remotely.

Connecting staff to their colleagues

and peers brings a range of benefits,

spanning higher levels of innovation

and problem-solving through to

increased engagement, retention,

and an enhanced employer brand.

However, it’s also critical to connect

staff to those at the top: facilitating

two-way communication and

empowering them with a voice.

When staff feel heard, it not only

provides opportunity for those

individuals to give feedback

and be more involved with their

organization; it also provides a self-

service approach to resolve common

questions or challenges.

Many-to-many communications: connecting to each other

Rich profiles, going

above and beyond the

standard corporate

directory to include

criteria such as expertise,

skills, interests, profile

badges, connectivity to

social profiles, and more

As part of our mission to inform and connect every organization’s greatest

asset – its people – Interact offers a range of features:

A mobile app, to ensure those who are non-desk-based can connect to

others and the organization easily on the go

Discussion, Q&A and ideation forums, to facilitate knowledge sharing,

feedback, innovation and more

Social features that build on recognized functionality from popular social

media channels including @mentioning, sharing, liking, #tagging, the

ability to comment, post to a newsfeed, add a reaction and more, which are

all powerful - yet subtle - ways for users to get involved

Communities that can be created to take users beyond the boundary of

department: built around project, event, interest and more to facilitate

connections throughout your organization

Pulse Surveys provide real time, regular insights into employee sentiment:

empowering them to be heard or feedback when it matters, whether

through an Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS), custom poll, or survey


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In today’s knowledge-based

workplaces, we deal in information.

Ensuring employees can access

and collaborate on information

that is timely, relevant and trusted

is at the foundation of a successful

organization.

In today’s digital workplace, this

information is typically dispersed

across a variety of sources and serves

a multitude of purposes – whether

for compliance, ‘how to’ information,

business policies or more. Due to

the sheer volume, we also require

a means for tailoring access to, or

promotion of, our information to

specific groups or individuals as

required.

Employees also ‘won’t know what

they don’t know’: selectively pushing

information that may prove of value,

but they aren’t proactively seeking

out, requires a level of intelligent

information management beyond the

storage capabilities offered by Google

Drive alone.

Organizational and role communications: connecting to information

Mandatory read functionality enables management or content authors

to highlight critical, compliant or regulatory content that ‘must’ be read or

acknowledged by staff, even using quizzes and pass scores to test knowledge

after it’s read

Personas enable the creation of dynamic groups outside of traditional

organizational structures, so information and communications can be tailored

more effectively – for example, by level of seniority, training, skill and more

Interact offers a variety of features and functionality designed to improve the

employee experience of connecting to information in their organizations:

Enterprise search that explores all the varied

sources of information; not only document or

content management systems integrated and

connected to your intranet, but areas including

skills or interests within individual profiles, forum

questions and answers, and more

Workflow and forms to centralize and streamline

common business processes, embedded into the

intranet for a ‘one stop shop’ experience for users and

retiring paper-based forms

Single sign-on and authentication, providing

seamless integration and access not only to the

G Suite but various business productivity tools,

applications, and identity management providers:

uniting your digital workplace and information

CMS features incl. tagging, keywords, suggests, recommends: by

successfully labelling content uploaded and checking it against a Page Findability

score, content authors can not only ensure their information is found through

search; built-in intelligence can push related, recommended or suggested content

to help users discover content they may otherwise have missed


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Interact for G Suite: a complementary partnership

As the pace of technological innovation continues to speed up,

our organizations are facing a connected digital era that will

fundamentally change how, where, and when we work.

To keep pace with that change,

organizations need to be following

trends occurring in the field of

digital workplace technologies,

and ensuring they futureproof

themselves to continue offering staff

the tools they need, when and where

they need them.

As popularity of the G Suite

offering continues to grow, those

organizations looking to introduce

Google technologies into their

workplace need to consider vendor

partners who will work with,

complement, and enhance the use

of these tools. An Interact intranet

offers out-the-box integration with

those leading Google applications,

while thinking forward to those

additional needs of the employee

that ultimately make for a positive

digital experience of work.

Each platform serves a distinct

purpose in the workplace. However,

by working seamlessly and intuitively

together, they help the organization

maximize the value and potential of

their investment: and create a digital

workplace that meets the needs of its

users, now and in the future.

@IntranetExperts

Interact Software

@IntranetExperts

interactsoftware.com

About Interact

Interact is a global enterprise software company that serves intranet software

to over one million users across more than 850 organizations. We specialize in

solving internal communication and collaboration challenges by combining

our sophisticated intranet software with outstanding professional services,

focusing on developing long-term strategic partnerships with our customers.

Interact has offices in Manchester and New York, and operates across the whole of the US and Canada, EMEA and Australia.

https://twitter.com/IntranetExperts

https://www.linkedin.com/company/1473063/

https://www.facebook.com/Intranetexperts/

https://www.interact-intranet.com/

Interact for G Suite

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Station House,

Stamford New Road, Altrincham,

Cheshire WA14 1EP, UK

+44 (0) 161 927 3222

[email protected]

21 W. 46th St. 16th FL,

New York

NY 10036

+1 (646) 564 5775

[email protected]

www.interactsoftware.com

http://interactsoftware.com

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