Edu- Vision 2020 is a small not-for-profit organization whose goal is to provide a computer based educational solution "school in a box" to primary teachers and their students who live in remote communities around the world. Igloo is a cost effective, budget friendly, collaboration solution for us - we are 10 to 15 people geographically dispersed.
Pros
Igloo is “up and open” always, no matter the time or the time zone.
Team members can collaborate and work on projects together, communicate in real time, and solve problems quickly and easily, even if they’re located on the other side of the world from one another and in different time zones.
Streamline and organize - better work flow and less time spent of juggling multiple applications in different places.
Multiple ways to communicate – Write it once and send it once, and distribute it to a select few or the many, easily, easy to follow visual email thread, Wikis, Forum. Broadcasts
Saving time and productivity has increased, easy and fast to get started, tools we already know how to use, our knowledge repository is in one place, and searching and retrieving content is properly filed and organized.
Real Time communication anytime to team members in Dubai or in Toronto
Great Customer Service, very responsive company, easy to use product
Cons
Hoping they include "the ability to communicate and have face time" with our team within your own space in the near future.
Thank you very much for this wonderful review of our product. We are glad to hear you are enjoying your Igloo experience.
As for the ability to communicate and FaceTime with your team, while we do not offer videochats, you can most definitely set up "microblogs" (or dedicated social newsfeed) per team space where members of the same team can interact with each other. These feeds also allow for rich media (pictures, embedded videos, links, etc.). Hope this helps. Feel free to contact us for more information or to get help setting it up.
Rating breakdown
I routinely use Igloo to view company announcements that are broadcast across multiple sites within our Intranet, and I also use it to access and upload files that are used across multiple departments within our organization.
Pros
It typically doesn't require many steps to perform the most common operations. It is also helpful that Igloo supports a variety of file types.
Cons
Some of this comes with working with the application I realize, but I wish you could find a way to make versioning more transparent. I recently received some helpful instruction from a fellow employee about uploading a more recent version of a document without having to delete the prior document and running the risk of messing up the path/location of the document (important because other departments link to that document from their own Igloo pages). After right-clicking, I realized how obvious the step was, but I wish there had been a way to show this on the page; I'll keep working with Igloo on this.
Rating breakdown
Likelihood to recommend: 8/10
I am excited about the idea of this site and use it daily but I am sure that there are many features that I could be utilizing more than the few I use currently.
Pros
The availability of information from all departments for our company.
Cons
There are no ntaifications when new posts are added for the different departments. I am also frustrated with the search feature and the non-existant date/time stamps. When researching past posts, I try to do keyward searches but nothing populates to suit my purpose. Also, when scrolling to "view more" I find it inconvenient notto see the actual date a post was made but rather "2 weeks ago" or "13 days ago". I am not liking the fact that I have to hunt through the different
Rating breakdown
Likelihood to recommend: 5/10
We are so thankful for Igloo helping us to create our staff portal! It's revolutionized how we conduct global interview events and how we resource multiple locations across the nation.
Pros
The personal consulting from Igloo and customization were key to helping our organization scale our intranet/portal. The app is super simple to use, and integrates our global calendars, events planning tools, and other resources so perfectly for our fast-paced environment!
Cons
The people directory feature is not quite as nimble as I imagined it'd be for an organization of 700+ employees. We have a somewhat unique structure and it's been challenging to figure out how to look up teams, leaders and locations effectively. It would also be great to be able to add contact cards directly to my mobile device from the directory feature.
Rating breakdown
Likelihood to recommend: 10/10
As someone who switched from SharePoint to Igloo, I was AMAZED by how user friendly it was. Not only for administrators, but for our employees using the intranet as well. Have a file you need to move? No problem. Need to edit the file but don't have time to re-download the latest version? Easy! Igloo makes collaboration on an intranet fun, easy and stress free...what more could you ask for?
Pros
We have a large department that continually collaborates on certain files and folders in Igloo, so the fact that we can reserve or archive old material or versions is extremely helpful. I also really enjoy the fact that you can edit a document in word, powerpoint, or excel without the hassle of downloading a new version; you can simply open a document and save in one motion.
Cons
As easy as it is to use, sometimes it is too simple. Would like it to be more complex when designing pages, but it still looks great.
Rating breakdown
Likelihood to recommend: 10/10
Please see Igloo's pricing page https://www.igloosoftware.com/pricing/
Built to foster collaboration inside and outside a company, Igloo is a feature-packed intranet software that allows users to share files, provide real-time status updates, coordinate tasks and calendars, search for subject matter experts, and manage projects and processes. More than just a repository for downloadable HR policy documentations and leave request or expense approval forms, Igloo enables teams to work better together through improved communication and more efficient collaboration.
A web-based solution with responsive design, Igloo combines support tools like blogs, forums, calendars, and wikis in a single platform to provide a fun way for colleagues to share knowledge, collaborate, and stay updated on business-critical concepts. Igloo also works outside the company and can be used to actively engage with customers and business partners through community building, information sharing, and feedback gathering.
Some of Igloo’s notable features are customization, file sharing, employee directory, global calendars, and corporate communication management.
With the goal of allowing executives to more easily cascade information to everyone while providing each employee with a voice within their company community, Igloo offers features specifically created to make collaboration easier. Such features include contacts, status updates, direct messages, file sharing, global calendars, bookmarks, and microblogs so users don’t have to switch between disparate applications to successfully complete their tasks and assignments.
Managed and hosted at a price that’s budget-friendly, Igloo enables users to focus on collaboratively getting things done. Aside from the time and effort saved, plus the seamless flow of information between Igloo and other business apps, IT departments only have to secure and maintain one platform.
Igloo is extremely customizable. You can perform simple changes like updating the background, logo, icons, and fonts for a more branded look and feel. While the platform is remarkably malleable, Igloo also has an in-house team of designers and experts to help you customize your community to fit your work processes. They can rearrange spaces, modify the platform appearance and layout, set up different sets of permissions, update widgets, and reorganize your blogs, wikis, or forums.
Igloo also offers add-ons such as custom profiles and reports, multilingual user interface and content, and authentication. Quotes can be requested for each customization or upgrade you deem necessary.
File sharing is a staple for most collaborative endeavors. With Igloo, file sharing within and outside the company is made easier, as you only need to drag and drop files from your computer to their destination folders in the Igloo database. Virtually any file type can be securely uploaded, viewed, and downloaded.
Igloo’s document management system also has added capabilities such as version tracking, permissions, ratings, commenting, and archiving. Files can be structured any way you want, and Igloo can be used as a shared drive.
Igloo offers a searchable people directory where users have detailed profiles about themselves and their expertise. As a result, matching tasks with employees with the right set of skills is no longer a time-consuming exercise. Experts are easily identified, and connecting with colleagues is done in a few clicks, regardless of their departments or locations around the world.
Global calendars can be set up and shared in Igloo so everyone is apprised of important company events. Users can also create group-specific calendars to be displayed within a dedicated workspace for each department, project, or community. Such calendars can contain dates like project delivery due dates, scheduled meetings or brainstorming sessions, post-project assessments, and so on.
Events from Google or Outlook can be directly published to your Igloo calendars. Similarly, events from your Igloo calendar can be exported to your personal calendar.
Team collaboration is founded on effective communication, and Igloo offers numerous options for companies to better manage their corporate communications. Microblogging lets users ask questions and share ideas or information in real time. Discussion threads can be created, which can later be referenced for clarification.
The blogging tool enables companies to post longer updates, and direct messages can be sent to other users, whether to a single user or an entire distribution list.
Aside from its native API client which makes Igloo configurable and integrable with other business applications, Igloo has ready-made integrations with SharePoint, Active Directory, [Salesforce] (http://www.getapp.com/customer-management-software/a/salesforce/), Google Drive, Google Analytics, and more.
Subscription to Igloo is dependent on how you intend to use the platform: up to $12 per user per month for the intranet and $3 per person per month for the extranet, with prices decreasing as the number of users increases. Volume and nonprofit discounts are offered as well.