Haldex strengthens internal knowledge-sharing and communication
With Omnia and Microsoft 365, Haldex has built a new modern intranet and a new Quality and Document Management System. The new solution has helped Haldex consolidate its global knowledge and strengthen internal communication worldwide.
“We aim to build a learning organization. With Omnia, we can improve knowledge-sharing, collaboration, and communication across our global organization, which will help us transform our learning processes, says Patrik Bergman, Collaboration and Learning Manager at Haldex.
Creating a fluid knowledge and communication platform
Haldex is a leading global supplier of sustainable brake systems and air suspension solutions dedicated to the commercial vehicle industry. The company was founded in Landskrona in 1887 and has since been notable for innovative research and development work that has created groundbreaking technological vehicle solutions. Development today is focused on safety and the future of electrified and connected commercial vehicles. Haldex’s operations are global, with approximately 2,000 employees spread across 19 countries.
With employees spread across the globe, and with roles ranging from designers and product developers to marketing and sales representatives, knowledge management and strong cross-departmental communication have become increasingly important. Haldex's previous intranet platform and Document Management System did not adequately support effective communication across all devices, languages and time zones. Consequently, the management decided to implement a new intranet and document management platform.
“Our old intranet did not meet the quality department's requirements on how to manage the governing documents. Nor did we have a Quality Management System that was globally accessible and adapted for all. The shortcomings were so serious that people could not find the documents they needed in time, which could affect internal and external audits, for example. Consequently, employees could no longer work effectively”, Patrik points out.
It became clear to Haldex that few products are as focused as Omnia's Document Management System on managing governing documents and quality management. Haldex therefore decided to switch its existing solution to Omnia.
After the implementation of Omnia, Haldex quickly started to see the positive effects in the daily work. Employees can now promptly find the information they are looking for on the intranet, and they can collaborate more effectively across units, roles, and time.
After making an inventory of the existing documents before migrating from the previous system, Patrik and his team realized that the metadata classification needed to be redone.
“We then decided to put the restructuring of our metadata classification as a stand-alone quality project, so that it would not hinder the implementation of the new Document Management System. Using a purpose-built interface, we were able to successively review the governing documents and apply the correct metadata or remove obsolete documents, which was necessary for the migration”, Patrik explains.
Since implementing Microsoft 365, Haldex has been using the workspaces extensively. The integration of Omnia's document management has worked particularly well in their R&D projects. In the past, they had to link different types of governing documents, from various libraries, to the workspaces. Now Haldex can leverage the capabilities of Omnia to create a consistent way to share and store information. Omnia has become the hub of the company's collective knowledge, patents, documentation, and key certifications.
Today, Haldex sees that employees can work together more efficiently and without the previous constraints of time zones, languages, departmental and company units. From R&D to sales and IT, employees use Omnia to collaborate seamlessly and innovate globally across the world. When teams in Sweden collaborate with their colleagues in Asia and the rest of Europe in Omnia, they can easily and effectively share knowledge, drive product development, and improve business strategies together.
“Today, we can embed all necessary documents directly on the collaboration spaces. The pages are so intuitive that there is no one in the organization who does not understand how to work in the projects or how to find the right information. The impact has been beyond expectations”, Patrik concludes.
Smooth transition
According to Patrik, the transition to Omnia has been very smooth and many employees have commented on how easy it has been to get started with the new solution. They have found the onboarding process to be efficient and intuitive.
“For example, the fact that Teams is integrated on the intranet homepage is a great advantage and has been praised by many”, says Patrik and adds:
“Omnia's experts have coached us well throughout the implementation process. Their strong support and high level of expertise have helped us get the new solution up and running quickly and successfully.”
As Haldex's business continues to grow, sales and marketing staff will work with new colleagues and customers and in different languages. Omnia's multilingual support makes it easy for them to start communicating with new offices, countries and markets.
