Company intranet portal software has been a mainstay of organization’s toolkits for decades. However, the modern intranet has come a long way since the early days and is now mission-critical in 2024’s digital workplace.
Outdated, clunky, slow are some criticisms you hear from users of a traditional company intranet. Indeed, a 2012 study from Prescient Digital Media found that just 13 percent of workers used the intranet daily.
However, it’s an entirely different story with today’s user-friendly, dynamic, and flexible platforms. According to the latest data from Forbes, 74 percent of employees use the corporate intranet daily to communicate, collaborate, and find information.
Today’s post explores some of the long-standing myths about intranet software. We bring you up to speed with the latest company intranet developments, driving digital transformation in organizations worldwide. Here are some of the topics we’ll explore:
- What is a company intranet portal?
- What’s the difference between a portal and an intranet?
- Why does my company need a corporate intranet?
- How do I create an employee intranet portal?
What Is A Company Intranet Portal?
Think of your intranet site as a secure private network exclusively for employees.
It provides gateway access to the essential features and tools employees need to drive business operations. Everything from internal communications and knowledge management to company news is just a few clicks away.
The right intranet software also offers single sign-on integration to the enterprise apps your company uses daily. It could be CRM or HR platforms, even Microsoft Office, Microsoft Teams, and Google Workspace. An intranet portal means users access third-party software directly from the intranet homepage. No more multiple logins or switching between different screens and tabs.
In essence, a company intranet is your organization’s home base. It connects the entire company, including remote workers, ensuring everyone is on the same page.
What’s The Difference Between A Portal And An Intranet?
A traditional intranet is focused on internal communication and productivity. The aim is to improve productivity with self-service, centralized access to company information, document management, collaboration tools, and more.
A portal is different. This web-based tool also serves as a communication and content management hub. However, the crucial difference is that it integrates with external systems and platforms.
A company intranet portal offers the best of both worlds. It supports internal communications and productivity and also provides a gateway to external services and third-party tools.
Today’s intranet solution supercharges the digital employee experience, making it a must-have for the digital workplace.
What Are The Benefits Of Intranet Portals?
The comprehensive, flexible company intranet portal offers wide-ranging benefits that are just not possible with a traditional intranet. Even better, the modern intranet comes as a dedicated mobile app. Your workers have the company’s collective knowledge, expertise, and resources in their pockets.
Here are the headline advantages you need to know.
Streamlined Internal Communication
Company intranets are the perfect platform for sharing news, updates, and essential information. Use the intranet to simultaneously reach all employees across the entire organization, including frontline workers. You can also target content to specific teams with departmental pages and personalized notifications.
Improved Collaboration
Features like the company calendar, instant messaging, employee directory, and project management tools simplify collaboration. Teams can work efficiently and effectively together, regardless of their location.
Enhanced Knowledge Management
Nowadays, employees are bombarded with information, making it hard to source data when you need it. A user-friendly intranet offers the perfect platform for sharing and managing knowledge. Keep all your company knowledge in a searchable, central hub for easy anytime, anywhere access.
Increased Employee Engagement
Company intranets can take employee engagement to a new level. On the intranet site, share success stories, celebrate achievements, and recognize top-performing workers. Use the software to collect employee feedback and monitor progress with surveys and polls.
Use social intranet features to keep employees engaged. Your people will love using interactive employee profiles, # channels, @ mentions, likes, and shares. Furthermore, enabling employee content creation gives workers a voice within an organization. It could be an employee blog post or activity wall update.
Integration With Other Tools
Modern intranet software seamlessly integrates with external apps and enterprise systems, like Salesforce or Microsoft Power BI. Save time and resources by creating a unified platform for all your data and information needs.
Positive, Inclusive Company Culture
Corporate culture isn’t just an issue for large companies. Even small businesses with a handful of employees need to nurture the company culture.
Use the intranet to showcase your culture and get employees to buy into the company mission and values. Create a sense of belonging and community and level the communication playing field for all workers, including new employees and seasoned veterans.
Does My Company Need An Intranet Portal?
The short answer is a definite yes. And here are some compelling reasons why:
- A portal offers a centralized hub and single point of access to all corporate information and data
- Employees can self-serve and access information without having to rely on others
- A company intranet portal streamlines business processes with automated workflows and approvals
- Intranets ensure your data is secure with robust security measures
- Intranet portals are easily scalable and can grow alongside your organization
The bottom line? An intranet portal will pay dividends in improved efficiencies and a more productive and engaged workforce.
How Do I Create An Employee Intranet Portal?
Developing company intranets has never been easier. Intranet software like MyHub uses customizable pre-built templates. The basic intranet design has already been created, and all you need to do is insert your own content and branding.
Here’s how to create a business intranet in five simple steps.
5 Steps To Creating A Company Intranet Portal
- Plan for success
- Select the right company intranet software
- Configure your site and create intranet pages
- Launch with a bang!
- Measure your success
Let’s take a deep dive into each step of the process.
1. Plan For Success
As with most business projects, thorough planning is the foundation for success. Set clear objectives, a budget, and a time frame for delivery.
For most companies, there’s a driving force behind the company intranet. It could be internal communications, collaboration, or productivity. Make sure you clearly understand what you want to achieve with your intranet. This will shape its organization, structure, and focus.
Remember to involve employees across the entire company in this critical stage. And collect feedback from workers on the must-have features.
2. Select The Right Company Intranet Software
Next, it’s time to select an intranet software provider that can meet your objectives. There is no shortage of options, so spend time researching the contenders.
Here are some tips to help with your search:
- Take advantage of free demos or trial offers
- Check out customer testimonials and independent review sites
- Ask about file storage and how many users are allowed under each pricing option
- Encourage employees’ input when evaluating the options. You want a user-friendly platform that will engage employees and meet their needs
At the end of the day, you want a responsive, cost-effective provider with whom you can build a long-lasting relationship.
3. Configure Your Site And Create Intranet Pages
Nowadays, most intranet portals come with a basic structure and pre-set user interface. However, the intranet design is also flexible, with lots of customizable options.
Decide on the number of pages and the essential tools and features needed to meet your objectives. You may want to go for a department-based approach or a project one. Ultimately, the choice depends on your intranet goals and objectives.
The intranet homepage is critical as the window into your entire site. First impressions matter, so keep it visual and easy to navigate to encourage adoption. Furthermore, employees should be able to access the must-haves directly from the homepage.
Using drag-and-drop page-building tools, create the content. You might upload content from other sources, rewrite existing systems, or start afresh with entirely new material. Remember, bite-sized chunks are best. You can always give users the option to click for additional information. And don’t forget those all-important visuals.
The final step in the page creation stage is to set your intranet website permissions. Think about which employees are responsible for editing and updating content. Your intranet must have the latest information to be successful. Therefore, assigning responsibility to an individual employee or departmental team is vital.
Furthermore, not all employees need access to every page. You will want to safeguard sensitive information with access controls.
4. Launch With A Bang!
Creating a bit of hoopla around launch day generates excited anticipation. It also helps ensure your company intranet gets off to a flying start.
Here are some launch ideas to inspire you:
- Have a countdown clock prominently on display in the workplace
- Boost employee engagement and set up a naming competition for the new intranet
- Encourage adoption with an intranet training program
- Offer company swag or host a launch party
- Recognize and reward super users.
5. Measure Your Success
Launch day is just the start of the journey. Your company intranet software needs to keep on delivering. And the only way to guarantee that is to set some performance measures.
Employee surveys, polls, and focus groups are excellent ways to harvest direct feedback from as many employees as possible. Find out what employees really think of the intranet and ask them how you can continue improving.
Furthermore, keep an eye on what your intranet analytics are telling you. The data provides a wealth of insights into which content is working and which pages could be improved.
The Modern Company Intranet: Main Takeaways
Today’s intranets are a world away from earlier versions. Under one virtual roof, employees have all the tools they need to connect, communicate, collaborate, and much more.
Even better, they provide seamless access to the external enterprise systems that also power your business.
So, if you are looking for a new intranet or want to revamp an existing one, the modern version has much to offer. Improved communication, enhanced productivity, and streamlined processes are within reach with a company intranet digital HQ.
About MyHub
We are a leading provider of intranet portals. Our beautifully designed, easy-to-use platforms power the digital workplace in organizations worldwide. Packed full of the daily essential tools, MyHub integrates seamlessly with popular third-party apps and productivity suites. Our company intranet is also available as a dedicated mobile app.
Find out why we are rated highly on independent review sites with a free demo or 14-day trial.
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