Peel Children’s Aid Society Corporate Intranet Redevelopment
The Client
Peel Children's Aid Society is a not-for-profit organization mandated to provide child protection services across the Region of Peel, Ontario. Guided by the Child, Youth & Family Services Act, Peel CAS champions the safety and well-being of children and youth by strengthening families and partnering with community organizations. With nearly 500 full- and part-time staff, including social workers, child and youth workers, lawyers, infant nurses, and administrative personnel, Peel CAS is a large, diverse organization in which effective internal communication is critical to delivering services every day.
The Challenge: A Platform That Couldn't Keep Up
Like many organizations that built their digital infrastructure in the early 2010s, Peel CAS was running its staff intranet on SharePoint 2013, a platform that had served its purpose but was nearing the end of Microsoft support. However, the urgency went beyond software lifecycle issues; the intranet had become a barrier to communication.
Their current communication process was managed solely by the Communications team, which was responsible for publishing all content across the site. Any department wishing to share news, post updates, or celebrate wins had to submit a request to Communications and wait, sometimes for days, sometimes for weeks, before the content was published. The team was overwhelmed, and the volume of requests continued to grow.
Meanwhile, the intranet was not built for storytelling. Peel CAS is a dynamic, people-centred organization with many departments and services, yet there was no straightforward way for staff to access their stories. The platform was difficult to navigate, search functions were limited, and the way information was organized made it hard for staff to find what they needed quickly.
As a result, the priorities became clear:
- Migrate from an aging, unsupported platform
- Distribute content authoring so Communications wasn't the sole voice
- Give every department a place to tell its story
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Deliver a responsive experience across desktop, tablet, and mobile for a 500-person workforce, including field-based social workers and youth workers.
The Solution
Envision IT developed a modern intranet for Peel CAS, providing an essential resource for staff as they begin and end their day, whether they access it from their PC, tablet, or mobile device. This modern platform has become the central hub for all communications to staff. Although the initial plan was to use an intranet acceleration product, Peel CAS created an out-of-the-box Modern SharePoint Intranet. Building on SharePoint Online leveraged their initial investment in the technology and offered a familiar platform for administrative staff to support. This decision enabled a quick design and build of an attractive, functional intranet with intuitive navigation, a home page, and custom web parts that enable staff to access the information they need when they need it.
We started the project with a staff survey and requirements-gathering sessions to define the information architecture for the new site. One of the critical points was determining what would increase user adoption and drive users to the home page. Representatives from various departments helped establish the most important and frequently accessed information and what should be rolled up on the home page. From there, we organized and labelled shared information to group content most appropriately.
Keeping with a modern intranet scheme, the new site offers a simple, clear, uncluttered design built around a Communication Site and Hub Site. The focus is on minimal customizations and out-of-the-box web parts. Incorporating built-in news functionality, the home page features a Communications-curated carousel, department news, photo galleries, and the ‘Peel Reel.’ A web part displaying milestones and achievements rolls up from a simple Microsoft Form that staff can submit to recognize fellow employees. A Power Automate workflow converts the form data into a web page and publishes it to the site. Staff 365 allows users to find and connect with staff across the organization efficiently. Quick links draw from a SharePoint list and provide easy access to commonly used applications, forms, and intranet and external site areas.
The Results
The Peel CAS intranet is now the central hub for internal communications, accessible on PCs, tablets, and mobile devices, and actively used by staff across the organization.
The homepage consistently features 5 to 10 new articles each week, contributed by departments across the organization, including the Trailblazers Youth Centre, People and Culture, and DEI initiatives. For an organization of 450–500 people, engagement levels clearly show that the platform has become part of how people work.
The distributed authoring model has had a transformative effect on the Communications team. Staff who previously spent their days managing an inbox of content requests now focus on higher-value communications work, and every department has found its voice.
Key Outcomes at a Glance
| Outcome | Details |
|---|---|
|
Migrated from SharePoint 2013 to SharePoint Online |
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Distributed authoring across all departments |
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5–10 new news articles published weekly |
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Automated kudos workflow via Forms + Power Automate |
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Searchable staff directory with title and department |
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Modern authoring removes the need for developer intervention |
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Hub-and-spoke model supports ongoing growth |
Testimonial
We had the pleasure of partnering with Envision IT to redevelop our agency’s intranet, and we were extremely happy with the results. Envision IT brought a blend of technical expertise and user-centred design that truly transformed our platform into a highly functional and intuitive resource. Their team took the time to understand our specific needs and delivered a solution that enhanced our internal communication and fostered better collaboration across departments. I would not hesitate to recommend Envision IT to any organization looking to modernize and optimize its digital infrastructure. Thank you, Envision IT, for your outstanding work and dedication to our project.
Why Envision IT
Envision IT's approach to modern intranet projects is grounded in a core belief: the best digital workplaces are built with input from people, not just for them. The Peel CAS engagement began with listening surveys, workshops, and steering committees. This investment in discovery has led to increased adoption, engagement, and long-term success. The result is an intranet that staff genuinely use, and that provides every team with a platform to communicate, celebrate, and connect, while allowing the Communications team to focus on what they do best.
Interested in modernizing your organization's intranet? Contact us to learn how we can help, or click here to explore our Modern Intranet solutions.