We meet the business leaders who are helping shape the future of work. We ask them to tell us about their Workplace launch. We share examples of how the platform is helping them find new ways of working. And we gain real-life insights into the Workplace experience…

The Hoxton – a series of open-house hotels in unique global locations. The iconic and glorious Gleneagles playground in the Scottish Highlands. The hotel brand NoCo which is busy reimagining the budget model, and many more.

Why did you choose Workplace?

A few years back, I asked our tech team at Ennismore to develop an app that would allow us to connect with the entire team – a modern intranet. Then Workplace came along.

We wanted to break down the silos and create an online community for the team. Workplace ticks all of those boxes

Workplace pretty much did everything we wanted our app to do and more. I knew that creating our own app would need constant development and budget, so I thought why not let Facebook do all the work. You can't compete with 5,000 developers, right?

Our plan was to create a space which would bring the team together, to break down the silos and create an online community for the team. Workplace has helped us tick every one of those boxes – and we've only just got going.

We're using Workplace to collaborate, share ideas and exchange information far more efficiently. It helps us work smarter and quicker, and I want to drive a strong culture of open communication and innovation, which is exactly what Ennismore is about.

How did the launch go?

For me, the launch went down really well. We created a fun campaign that was true to our brand. We started the launch campaign in early January, announcing to the team that Workplace was on its way and built a lot of excitement around the launch.

You can use Workplace to connect to something much bigger than just your local site

The official launch of Workplace was on 25 January, and I hosted my first live chat at the Facebook offices. The following Monday, we had 40% activation rate. Our Workplace Champions were key to getting the message out there and people signed up.

Our biggest challenge is the non-email workforce. We are still working on those getting those guys signed up, but we hope and expect to reach 80% sign-up by end of the year.

How has it changed the way you work?

In four months, we've noticed an awesome change. No matter who you are, your location, your position or whether you have an email address or not. You can use Workplace to connect to something much bigger than just your local site.

I'm more visible and accessible now than I ever was before

I'm able to stay in touch with the team a whole lot more now. I'm more visible and accessible now than I ever was before – and that's important to me. I never wanted to be a CEO sitting behind a closed door. I always knew the team worked hard, but now they can share their feedback with me directly.

We know that deploying Workplace can be an evolution. Right now, we're at the connecting and sharing stage – and our global team is busy doing that. We're using Workplace to join together and sharing the things that they need to better collaborate.

What's next? Using bots to automate more of our processes and work even smarter. Watch this space!

But we're already finding and developing ways to use Workplace in more sophisticated ways. We've moved several of our processes onto Workplace.

Things such as our reporting, booking rooms for work travel, sharing important and relevant company news via News Feed.

Housekeeping teams no longer use personal mobiles to connect – they now use Workplace Chat for IM or voice calls

Teams now share customer reviews and feedback in open forums. The housekeeping team no longer need to use their personal mobiles to call each other – they can use Workplace Chat.

And what's next? Using bots to automate more of our processes and work even smarter. We're excited about this – watch this space!

How can we make Workplace better?

Reporting. We're looking forward to getting more detailed information about usage. We want to know what's working and what people are using workplace for the most – so that we can use it to guide our future efforts and to get the best out of Workplace.

We're also excited to see the news about the Integrations Directory

Like many businesses, we already use several other pieces of software to get work done. So we're keeping a close eye on this development and looking into making one integration in particular work for us as soon as possible!

Huge thanks to Sharan Pasricha, Founder and CEO of Ennismore.