Cowan Intranet

The Client

Cowan Insurance Group provides insurance and risk management products and services to businesses, organizations, and individuals. With over 300 employees, operating out of nine locations in Ontario, Cowan is one of the largest privately-owned insurance brokerage operations in Canada. Cowan helps clients strategically manage their financial and insurance risks, specializing in business and personal insurance. Cowan provides additional services in retirement and group benefits requirements, financial planning, and risk management solutions. Cowan Insurance Group and Frank Cowan Company are affiliated through common ownership and together have been operating in Canada for over 80 years. Wentworth Financial Services is a subsidiary of Cowan Insurance Group.

The Challenge

When Cowan engaged Envision IT, they were looking for an Intranet solution that would provide an organized and centralized repository of information for all of their staff that was relevant to their roles. The Intranet would be easily accessible, promoting collaboration and knowledge sharing through the latest technology and social tools. It would improve the understanding of Cowan's product and service offerings and allow divisions to capitalize on cross-selling opportunities.

The Solution

Envision IT developed a new bilingual SharePoint 2010 Intranet site for Cowan based on a publishing template using SharePoint variations. The site architecture presents a clear structure with six main branches of the site, so that staff can easily find information on the topics they are looking for. Strong social elements to the site make it highly engaging and a one-stop portal that employees are encouraged to visit often. News on the site can also be filtered depending on location to make accessing the information you are looking for incredibly easy. And within the Cowan Community area of the site there are pages with significant information so that users can improve their knowledge base.