If you're considering Workvivo, you're likely focused on improving internal communication and building a more connected, engaged workforce—a critical goal, given that U.S. employee engagement recently fell to its lowest level in a decade, with only 31% of employees feeling engaged. But is it the right platform for your needs? This guide dives into the key features, pros and cons of Workvivo, and how it compares with knowledge-sharing platforms like Guru. By the end, you'll have a clear understanding of whether Workvivo or Guru is the best fit for your organization.

What is Workvivo?

Workvivo is an employee experience platform that combines social media-style communication with internal engagement tools to connect distributed teams. The platform focuses on building workplace community through social feeds, employee recognition, and real-time communication features.

The platform is often used by HR departments and people teams to promote company culture, communicate updates, and monitor employee sentiment through surveys and polls. Workvivo's focus is on creating a connected employee experience, especially for industries with large remote workforces, a growing segment where over 35.5 million people teleworked in the first quarter of 2024 alone.

Who uses Workvivo?

Workvivo serves organizations with distributed workforces that need stronger employee engagement and internal communication. Key user groups include:

• Industries: Technology, healthcare, education, hospitality, and retail

• Team types: Remote, distributed, and frontline workers

• Primary adopters: HR departments and internal communications teams

Key features of Workvivo

Workvivo offers several features designed to promote engagement, recognition, and communication. Below are some of the platform's standout capabilities:

Social feeds that foster community

Workvivo's social media-style feed allows employees to share photos, post updates, comment, and react to content, and research shows such social technologies can raise the productivity of knowledge workers by 20 to 25 percent. This feature mimics the user experience of platforms like Facebook, encouraging team members to engage with company news and peer posts.

Employee recognition tools

With built-in shoutouts, badges, and recognition features, Workvivo helps organizations promote a positive culture, a key driver of engagement, as employees with managers who are great at recognition are reportedly more than 40% more engaged. Employees can celebrate their peers' achievements or milestones publicly, strengthening workplace relationships.

Surveys and feedback collection

The platform includes tools for running surveys, polls, and feedback forms, allowing managers to gather employee sentiment and monitor morale. This data helps companies take proactive steps to address engagement challenges.

Mobile accessibility

Workvivo's mobile app ensures that employees stay connected no matter where they are working. Remote employees can participate in conversations, receive updates, and respond to announcements just as easily as in-office staff.

Pros and cons of Workvivo

While Workvivo offers many advantages, it may not meet the needs of every organization. Here's a breakdown of its pros and cons.

Pros:

• Integration with other tools: Workvivo integrates with Slack, Microsoft Teams, and other collaboration tools to streamline communication across platforms.

• Collaboration features: The platform promotes interaction with social feeds, shoutouts, and announcements, helping to create a more connected team.

• Customization and scalability: Workvivo supports a range of use cases, from small teams to large enterprises with thousands of employees.

Cons:

• Learning curve: Some users report that Workvivo's interface can take time to master, especially for employees unfamiliar with social media platforms.

• Cost: The platform may be expensive for smaller companies, especially when compared with tools that offer similar features. At the time of writing, the minimum cost per month for Workvivo's Business Plan was $20,000.

• Complexity: Workvivo focuses heavily on engagement and recognition, but organizations with more operational needs might require additional tools for project management or knowledge sharing.

Guru vs. Workvivo

Guru and Workvivo serve different organizational needs: Guru focuses on knowledge management and AI-powered information access, while Workvivo prioritizes employee engagement and social communication.

Guru's strengths

• Faster knowledge retrieval: Guru acts as a "single source of truth," ensuring employees quickly access trusted, relevant information right within their workflows, which is crucial when the average worker spends nearly 20 percent looking for internal information.

• Browser extensions and workflow integrations: Guru's Chrome extension and integrations with tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Salesforce provide seamless access to information, minimizing context switching.

• AI-powered knowledge verification: Guru ensures up-to-date knowledge through verification workflows, so employees know the information they use is always accurate and reliable.

• Knowledge Agents: These customizable AI agents offer tailored search experiences for different departments, such as IT, Sales, or HR. This ensures that every team gets the most relevant information at their fingertips—whether it's technical documentation for IT or product details for Sales​.

• Pages: Pages serve as a home base for every employee and team, giving them a central place to start their day, access key resources, and stay connected to the organization. With customizable layouts, Pages help employees feel aligned and informed, reinforcing a sense of community by bringing together everything they need—from important announcements to essential tools—in one easily accessible space​.

Workvivo's strengths

• Engaging employee experience: Workvivo brings a social media-like experience to internal communication, encouraging interaction and participation through posts, comments, and reactions.

• Employee recognition tools: With shoutouts, badges, and celebratory posts, Workvivo fosters a positive work environment by encouraging peer-to-peer recognition.

• Surveys and feedback tools: The platform helps managers stay connected with employee sentiment through quick polls, surveys, and feedback forms.

• Mobile app for remote access: Workvivo's mobile app ensures employees can participate in conversations, receive updates, and stay connected, regardless of their location.

Integration and user experience

Both platforms integrate with Slack and Microsoft Teams but serve different purposes:

• Guru integrations: Surface knowledge directly in workflows for instant access to verified information

• Workvivo integrations: Enhance communication through shared announcements and social features

User experience priorities also differ:

• Guru: Speed and operational efficiency with browser extensions and AI-powered search

• Workvivo: Employee engagement through social interaction and community building

What customers are saying

Hearing what users have to say can provide valuable insight into which platform might suit your team. Here's what customers think about both tools:

A Workvivo user shared this on Capterra:

"I like that it gives us a place to post tons of content in real-time without clogging up people's inboxes. It also allows for more casual content and gives every employee a voice and chance to engage with one another."

A Guru user highlighted the platform's collaborative strengths on G2:

"I love that different teams can collaborate together so that the most accurate info gets shared 100% of the time, and I especially love that it syncs with Chrome and Slack to make things seamless—and it also reminds us to review things regularly to make sure we're giving the most up to date information."

Making the right choice for your team

Choose based on your primary organizational need:

• Choose Workvivo if: Building employee engagement and workplace community is your top priority

• Choose Guru if: Fast access to verified knowledge and operational efficiency are essential

• Consider both if: Your organization needs both community building and robust knowledge management

Ready to improve your team's productivity with easy access to verified knowledge? Try Guru and see how it can transform the way your team works.