Answers in Viva: Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions

What license is required to use Answers?

To use Answers, you need a license for the Viva Engage Knowledge service plan. This service plan is available as part of purchasing the Viva Suite. 

Can users who aren't assigned the Viva Engage Knowledge service plan still use Answers?

Users that aren't assigned the Viva Engage Knowledge service plan get notifications to questions or answers they're mentioned in, and can visit that question or answer, but can't navigate to the rest of the Answers experience.

Will posted questions be visible to everyone in my company?

Answers is open to anyone in your organization with the Viva Suite license. Answers posts can be routed to anyone in your organization with a Microsoft 365 license. However, those employees can only access the individual thread, not other parts of Answers.  

Does the Answers feature allow guest access?

Answers doesn't support guest access. 

Can our organization use Answers without topics?

Yes, Answers works with or without topics for users with the Viva Engage Knowledge Service plan. Note that this experience and feature set differs from the original Viva Topics.

The Viva Topics feature is deprecated, but Viva Engage supports a simplified topics model. For details about the Viva Topics retirement, see Changes coming to Topics.

What license do I need to earn Answers badges? 

As for the Answers feature, the license to Viva Engage Knowledge service plan is required to start earning Answers badges, as long as the admin has enabled them for you. This service plan is available as part of purchasing Viva Suite. 

Can I turn off my Answers badges? 

If your admin enables User Preferences, you can turn off Answers badges by navigating to your Achievements and awards page and selecting the More menu in the upper right corner. 

What happens to my badges if I turn them off? 

If you decide to turn your Answers badges off, badges you've earned are deleted and no one will be able to see them anymore. If you decide to turn badges back on again, your previously earned badges will be gone and you'll need to start earning your badges back again. You can earn badges as long as the admin control and your user control (if available) are enabled.  

How can I earn Answers  badges ? 

First, you need to contribute in Answers by answering and asking questions. Your colleagues can then upvote your questions and answers or mark them as Best question or Best answer. 

You can earn badges through the following user inputs:

• Best Answer badge: your answer is marked as the Best Answer

• Seeker badge

  • level 1: your question receives three upvotes

  • level 2: your question receives 10 upvotes

• Scholar badge

  • level 1: your answer receives three upvotes

  • level 2: your answer receives 10 upvotes

Can other people see my badges?

Yes, they can! Badges are public to the rest of the organization. You can see the badges of your colleagues and they can see yours. If your admin has enabled User Preferences, you can choose to turn off Answers badges, which will completely delete your badges.

Learn more

Answers in Viva: Get started

Answers in Viva: Answer questions and earn badges

Answers in Viva: View and follow topics  

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