Passive organizational network analysis (ONA) has become the gold standard for understanding how work actually gets done in modern enterprises. Unlike traditional surveys that capture snapshots in time, passive ONA platforms continuously analyze digital collaboration patterns to reveal insights about team dynamics, manager effectiveness, and organizational health. (Worklytics)
For HR analytics leaders evaluating passive ONA solutions in 2025, two platforms consistently emerge as top contenders: Worklytics and Microsoft Viva Insights. Both leverage existing corporate data streams to deliver real-time intelligence, but their approaches to data privacy, integration capabilities, and analytical depth differ significantly. (Microsoft Viva)
This comprehensive comparison examines 15 critical evaluation criteria across data connectors, update frequency, privacy models, cost structures, AI-powered insights, and export capabilities. We'll analyze the total cost of ownership (TCO) for a 1,000-employee enterprise and provide decision matrices to help you choose the optimal passive ONA platform for your organization.
| Feature Category | Worklytics | Microsoft Viva Insights |
|---|---|---|
| Data Connectors | 15+ native integrations | Microsoft 365 ecosystem focus |
| Privacy Model | Pseudonymization proxy | Aggregated insights only |
| Update Frequency | Real-time to daily | Weekly to monthly |
| AI Capabilities | Custom analytics engine | GPT-powered copilots |
| Export Options | Full data export | Limited dashboard exports |
| Starting Price (1K employees) | Custom enterprise pricing | $4-12 per user/month |
Passive organizational network analysis represents a paradigm shift from traditional employee surveys to continuous, unobtrusive monitoring of digital collaboration patterns. This approach analyzes metadata from communication tools, calendars, and productivity applications to understand how information flows through an organization. (Worklytics)
The rise of hybrid work has made passive ONA even more critical, as over 58% of the workforce now engages in remote work, fundamentally changing how teams collaborate and communicate. (Worklytics) Traditional observation methods that worked in physical offices are no longer viable, making digital collaboration data the primary window into organizational dynamics.
Both Worklytics and Microsoft Viva Insights recognize this shift, but they approach passive ONA with different philosophies and technical architectures that impact their suitability for different enterprise contexts.
Worklytics offers comprehensive integration capabilities across multiple productivity and collaboration platforms. The platform integrates with common applications to analyze team productivity and collaboration patterns, both in remote and office environments. (Worklytics)
Key integrations include:
The platform's Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Proxy provides full field-level control over data processing, ensuring that sensitive information is properly transformed or pseudonymized before analysis. (Worklytics)
Microsoft Viva Insights takes a more focused approach, primarily leveraging the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. The platform is designed to work seamlessly within organizations already committed to Microsoft's productivity suite. (EasyLife 365)
Viva Insights provides data-driven solutions that aid in making informed decisions about work patterns and organizational culture, with the Teams app available through standard Microsoft 365 subscriptions without requiring investment in the full Viva Insights suite. (EasyLife 365)
Winner: Worklytics for integration breadth, Viva Insights for Microsoft-centric organizations
Worklytics has built privacy protection into its core architecture through multiple layers of data protection. The platform uses data anonymization and aggregation to ensure compliance with GDPR, CCPA, and other data protection standards. (Worklytics)
Key privacy features include:
The Tenant API requires JWT ID Token authentication with specific claims, including the DataConnectionAdmin role and proper tenant identification, ensuring secure access control. (Worklytics)
Viva Insights focuses on aggregated insights and personal productivity recommendations while maintaining Microsoft's enterprise security standards. The platform provides personalized feedback on work habits and productivity through features like Work Pattern Analysis, Wellbeing Recommendations, and Mindfulness and Focus tools. (EasyLife 365)
However, the platform's privacy model is less granular than Worklytics, relying primarily on Microsoft's broader data governance framework rather than purpose-built privacy controls for ONA use cases.
Winner: Worklytics for granular privacy controls and compliance flexibility
Worklytics emphasizes real-time intelligence delivery, processing collaboration data as it's generated to provide current insights into organizational dynamics. This approach is particularly valuable for understanding rapidly changing work patterns in hybrid environments. (Worklytics)
The platform's focus on workday intensity measurement - time spent on digital work as a percentage of the overall workday span - requires frequent data updates to capture the elongated but variable nature of hybrid work patterns. (Worklytics)
Microsoft Viva Insights typically processes data in batches, with most insights updated weekly or monthly. While this approach may be sufficient for strategic planning, it can limit the platform's utility for real-time operational decisions.
Winner: Worklytics for real-time insights and operational agility
Worklytics has developed specialized models for understanding modern work patterns, focusing on three key areas: Workday Intensity, Work-Life Balance, and Manager Effectiveness. (Worklytics) These models recognize that hybrid work has fundamentally changed the shape of the workday, elongating the span while changing work intensity patterns.
The platform's analytics engine is purpose-built for organizational network analysis, providing insights that traditional productivity metrics miss. This specialized focus allows for deeper understanding of collaboration patterns and their impact on organizational outcomes.
Microsoft Viva Insights leverages the broader Microsoft AI ecosystem, including GPT-powered capabilities and integration with the company's Copilot platform. While this provides access to cutting-edge AI technology, the insights may be more generalized rather than specifically optimized for ONA use cases.
Winner: Worklytics for specialized ONA analytics, Viva Insights for general AI capabilities
Worklytics provides comprehensive data export capabilities, supporting various cloud storage providers for data extraction and further analysis. (Worklytics) This flexibility is crucial for organizations that need to integrate ONA insights with existing business intelligence platforms or conduct custom analyses.
The platform's export capabilities extend beyond simple dashboard screenshots to include raw data exports that can be processed by external analytics tools, providing maximum flexibility for advanced users.
Microsoft Viva Insights primarily focuses on in-platform insights and dashboards, with more limited export capabilities. While this approach simplifies the user experience, it can constrain organizations that need to integrate ONA data with broader analytics ecosystems.
Winner: Worklytics for data export flexibility and integration options
Microsoft's Viva suite offers different licensing tiers with varying feature sets. (Microsoft Viva) Key pricing considerations include:
For a 1,000-employee enterprise, Viva Insights pricing typically ranges from $4-12 per user per month, depending on the feature set and existing Microsoft licensing.
Worklytics uses custom enterprise pricing based on organization size, integration requirements, and feature needs. For a 1,000-employee deployment, pricing considerations include:
| Cost Component | Worklytics (Annual) | Viva Insights (Annual) |
|---|---|---|
| Base Licensing | $80,000-120,000 | $48,000-144,000 |
| Implementation | $25,000-50,000 | $10,000-25,000 |
| Training | $5,000-15,000 | $5,000-10,000 |
| Ongoing Support | $15,000-25,000 | Included |
| Total Year 1 | $125,000-210,000 | $63,000-179,000 |
Winner: Viva Insights for lower initial costs, Worklytics for specialized value
Worklytics implementation involves several technical components, including the setup of the Pseudonymization Proxy and configuration of data connections. The Tenant API, currently available as a beta feature, is designed to streamline the creation and management of data connections when using the Worklytics Pseudonymization Proxy. (Worklytics)
The authentication process for the Tenant API depends on the cloud provider where the Proxy instance is deployed, requiring proper JWT ID Token configuration with specific claims and headers. (Worklytics)
Viva Insights benefits from tight integration with the Microsoft ecosystem, providing a more seamless user experience for organizations already using Microsoft 365. The platform's interface feels native within the Microsoft environment, reducing training requirements and user adoption barriers.
Winner: Viva Insights for ease of implementation in Microsoft environments
With 86% of employees believing it should be a legal requirement for employers to disclose monitoring tool usage, compliance transparency has become crucial for passive ONA implementations. (Worklytics)
Employee monitoring in remote work environments involves tracking various data points, including application usage, communication patterns, and collaboration metrics. Both platforms must navigate complex regulatory requirements while providing valuable insights.
Worklytics addresses compliance through its privacy-first architecture, with built-in GDPR and CCPA compliance features. The platform's field-level control and pseudonymization capabilities provide granular compliance management that can be tailored to specific regulatory requirements.
Microsoft Viva Insights leverages Microsoft's enterprise compliance framework, which includes comprehensive data governance and regulatory compliance features. However, the platform's compliance approach is less specialized for ONA-specific requirements.
Winner: Worklytics for specialized ONA compliance features
The passive ONA market continues to evolve rapidly, with new data sources, analytical techniques, and privacy regulations emerging regularly. When evaluating platforms, consider their ability to adapt to future requirements:
Both Worklytics and Microsoft represent different approaches to vendor ecosystem health. Microsoft offers the stability and resources of a large technology company, while Worklytics provides specialized focus and agility in the ONA space. (PeerSpot)
The choice between Worklytics and Microsoft Viva Insights ultimately depends on your organization's specific requirements, existing technology stack, and strategic priorities. Both platforms offer valuable passive ONA capabilities, but they excel in different areas.
Choose Worklytics if you need:
Choose Microsoft Viva Insights if you prefer:
For most 1,000-employee enterprises, the decision will hinge on the balance between specialized ONA capabilities and ecosystem integration. Organizations with diverse technology stacks and advanced analytics requirements will likely benefit more from Worklytics' specialized approach, while Microsoft-centric organizations may find Viva Insights provides sufficient capabilities with better integration and lower costs.
Regardless of your choice, successful passive ONA implementation requires careful attention to privacy, compliance, and change management. Both platforms can deliver significant value when properly implemented and aligned with organizational objectives. The key is selecting the platform that best matches your specific requirements and long-term strategic direction.
This comprehensive comparison provides the foundation for making an informed decision about your passive ONA platform investment. Both Worklytics and Microsoft Viva Insights offer compelling capabilities, and the right choice depends on your organization's unique requirements and strategic priorities.
Passive ONA continuously analyzes digital collaboration patterns from workplace tools to reveal insights about team dynamics and organizational health without requiring employee surveys. Worklytics focuses on comprehensive data integration across multiple platforms, while Microsoft Viva Insights leverages Microsoft 365 ecosystem data to provide productivity and wellbeing insights through automated analysis of communication patterns.
Worklytics offers extensive integrations with platforms like Google Calendar, Atlassian Jira Cloud, Entra ID, Asana, and Bitbucket, providing comprehensive cross-platform analysis capabilities. Microsoft Viva Insights primarily integrates with Microsoft 365 applications (Teams, Outlook, SharePoint) and requires additional licensing for advanced features, making it more suitable for Microsoft-centric organizations.
Both platforms emphasize privacy protection, but with different approaches. Worklytics provides sanitized data processing for sources like Google Calendar and Entra ID, ensuring compliance with regulations while maintaining analytical value. Microsoft Viva Insights leverages Microsoft's enterprise-grade security infrastructure and GDPR compliance, with 86% of employees believing monitoring tool disclosure should be legally required.
Microsoft Viva Insights offers tiered pricing with basic features available through standard Microsoft 365 subscriptions, while advanced analytics require Viva suite licensing. Worklytics typically uses per-employee pricing models with costs varying based on data connectors and feature requirements. For 1,000-employee enterprises, total cost of ownership calculations should include implementation, training, and ongoing support costs.
Worklytics focuses on modeling work patterns including workday intensity, work-life balance metrics, and manager effectiveness through digital work analysis. Microsoft Viva Insights provides AI-driven personalized feedback through Work Pattern Analysis, Wellbeing Recommendations, and Mindfulness features, with 100% user recommendation rates according to PeerSpot reviews.
Both platforms address hybrid work challenges but with different strengths. Worklytics excels at measuring workday intensity as a percentage of overall workday span and analyzing collaboration patterns across diverse tool ecosystems. Microsoft Viva Insights provides integrated Teams app functionality and wellbeing insights that help organizations adapt to the elongated workday spans characteristic of hybrid work environments.
