Maximizing the Benefits of an Enterprise Intranet

Maximizing the Benefits of an Enterprise Intranet

Blog Article

An enterprise intranet is an internal communication platform that serves as a digital workplace hub. These platforms can be used for many purposes, but they often serve as a repository for information that is easily accessible for employees and that is organized by department or business unit.

Modern intranets are also designed as social spaces to foster connections between team members and increase employee engagement. This type of community approach is important because research shows that fully engaged workers are more productive and more likely to be happy in their jobs, especially when working remotely.

In the post-pandemic era, employee engagement has taken a hit due to uncertainty and disconnection from colleagues and leadership. For companies, this has created a sense of urgency to deliver on employee needs around access to company information, open communication channels and two-way feedback loops.

For many organizations, this means ramping up the use of their enterprise intranets. However, in the past, these platforms have largely fallen into the trap of being a one-way communication vehicle with C-level executives shoveling company updates down to their teams. This type of one-sided approach results in an uninspired workforce and a platform that has no return on investment for the organization.

The key to maximizing the benefits of an enterprise intranet is to create an internal communications strategy that is centered on the needs of your remote and distributed workforce. This requires getting senior leaders involved in the planning and implementation process. It also means developing clear goals and identifying specific metrics that will drive success for the platform.

One of the best ways to get your Enterprise intranet employees excited about a new enterprise intranet is to build buzz through a launch campaign. This can include a welcome video that showcases how the platform works, explainer content on key features and interactive challenges like an intranet scavenger hunt to encourage employee participation.

Once your platform is live, it's critical to have the right governance in place to keep your people engaged. This includes choosing the right content management model and implementing freshness dating to avoid stale messaging. It's also important to consider how your company will manage product and service information because it will be a big driver of employee engagement.

One of the most underutilized features of a corporate intranet is its internal social networking functionality. With the right platform, employees can connect with one another through chat and discussion forums, share content on user profiles and even give public endorsements to their colleagues to show appreciation or offer encouragement. To make the most of this feature, it's a good idea to create a community manager role that can manage the development and growth of the network while ensuring that appropriate governance policies are in place. This will help to prevent the platform from becoming a space for gossip and inappropriate conversations. It will also help to ensure that your employees can trust that the platform is a safe and secure environment to collaborate and share information with their colleagues.

 

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