FINEECFrom PDFs to smooth digital transformation
FINEEC | Website renewal
FINEEC old website operated on the WordPress platform in multiple subdomains, catering to over 80,000 users annually. Like many organizations that have grown and evolved over time, FINEEC faced digital challenges that needed modern solutions.
- CX consulting
- Transformation consulting
- Content management solutions
Finnish Education Evaluation Centre FINEEC, an independent authority in the educational sector, has been a cornerstone in providing evaluation-based information crucial for educational policy decision-making and development in education and early childhood education and care domains. Their digital home, karvi.fi, operated on the WordPress platform in multiple subdomains, catering to over 80,000 users annually. Yet, like many organizations that have grown and evolved over time, FINEEC faced digital challenges that needed modern solutions.
The goal was to unify FINEEC's various sites for a cohesive user experience. The value of FINEEC's digital content lies in its evaluation reports. Previously, these were mostly shared as printed copies or downloadable PDFs on their website. This method posed challenges in data accessibility, usability, and cross-referencing.
Roadmap to modern digital platform
The base
To address these challenges, it was decided to transition from the WordPress ecosystem to the Drupal publishing system. This wasn't just a migration; it was a digital transformation aimed at:
Empowering Content Publishing: A new publishing section for karvi.fi was envisioned to give content creators more control and flexibility.
Seamless Integration: Merging separate sites under the karvi.fi umbrella would provide users with an uninterrupted browsing experience.
Boosting Data Accessibility & Impact: By taking evaluation reports online in the near future they’re not only more accessible but also enriched with metadata, keywords, categories, and hyperlinks. This enriched data structure allows stakeholders to weave different evaluation narratives together, crafting a holistic educational view.
Transitioning away from the Wordpress platform, we embraced the robust, agile, and secure capabilities of the Drupal CMS. But why such a transformative leap? The answer lies in FINEEC's commitment to progress. The result? A visually captivating website that harmoniously blends functionality with aesthetics.
The solution
Here are some important steps that were taken to create new service:
Design and Strategy: Before diving into the design, we investigated the old website's architecture with a microscope. Multiple iterations with the client ensured that the new design would serve both functional and aesthetic purposes. A deep dive into the myriad of subsites and a separate blog led to a decision to streamline all content under one domain: www.karvi.fi.
Stakeholder Involvement: To ensure that the new site resonated with its users, interviews were conducted with both the client and the broader range of stakeholders. This collaborative approach provided insights that significantly influenced the project's trajectory.
Building a Solid Foundation: Architecture planning was a collaborative effort. By working closely with FINEEC, we ensured the site's structure would meet both current and future needs.
Prioritizing Accessibility: In line with FINEEC's commitment to serve a diverse audience, a special emphasis was placed on website accessibility, ensuring all users have a seamless browsing experience.
Overall, the project went well: our content goals were achieved, we stayed within our financial framework, and cooperation went smoothly. The project was work-intensive, but the development was interesting from beginning to end. We learned a lot about the Drupal platform and scrum development.
The feedback has been very positive, and the visual appearance of the site has been praised. Updating the pages has also been found to be easy.
Our approach to modern karvi.fi
Migrating from WordPress to Drupal
While the initial aspiration was to automate the content migration process, during the Discovery phase we recognized the challenges that such transition would present, both in terms of workload and budget. Instead of risking the project's budgetary constraints, the client stepped up admirably. FINEEC undertook the labor-intensive task of manual content creation, allowing for an effective content cleanup and restructuring. This hands-on approach ensured a successful migration while also eliminating outdated legacy content.
Frontend Development with Storybook
To ensure a unified and scalable frontend design, we utilized Storybook for component development. This approach streamlined the design process and ensured consistency across the platform and supports development team to catch accessibility issues already on the development phase.
Sleek and smooth digital service
The success of the Karvi.fi transformation lies not just in the technical execution, but in the strong partnership forged between our teams. The site's seamless launch, facilitated by our platform.sh tooling, and enhanced performance via Drupal caching mechanisms, speaks to our joint technical prowess. As our collaboration deepened, so did our understanding of one another's working styles, leading to a harmonized and productive workflow.
FINEEC's appreciation for our adaptability, especially during times of immediate need, echoes our commitment to prompt service. With the site's launch being a resounding success and garnering positive feedback, our journey doesn't end here. We're now in a continuous development phase, committed to refining and enhancing the platform collaboratively.
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