Cast your mind back a decade and if you worked in internal communications for a medium or large business, an intranet was a must-have internal communications tool.
It changed the way you could communicate and connect with frontline teams and was seen as essential for driving engagement. I remember working on a huge intranet project with multiple stakeholders, dedicated project teams from across the business, and a decent budget for rolling it out to thousands of geographically dispersed employees.
But as technology, particularly social media, has changed the way we connect and interact, it’s also changing how we communicate with our teams.
Social collaboration tools – be it Yammer, Workplace by Facebook or the myriad of other applications and platforms on offer – provide instant engagement, much more interactive content, and multiple opportunities for connection. People are familiar with this type of platform, they use it every day, and so for many, it seems natural to use it at work too.
And when businesses had to adapt their communications approach during the pandemic, the way they used platforms such as Microsoft Teams to chat and collaborate as well as virtually meet, provided another forum for engagement that people have become accustomed to.
Is it all over for the old-school intranet?
For those fans of an intranet I don’t think this is a simple yes or no answer. Yes, perhaps the days of massively complex intranet projects which need loads of resource and content will soon become a thing of the past. But, people’s needs and communication preferences are different so what is right for one organisation may well not be right for another.
At business one an intranet is no longer be required. The nature of their business means people are accessing the information and resources they need in a different way. They’ve changed the way they’re connecting and collaborating and the intranet is now left redundant on the side lines.
At business two they’ve realised that most of the stuff on their intranet is no longer relevant but they need a light-touch version that has some of the features without the faff.
And at business three they still need a central place for all their policies and documents, a platform that provides a gateway to their online apps and a home for people access key news and information.
Whichever business type you fall into (and of course there are variations within these), what’s key is that people digest and engage with content in different ways.
So if you have a sizeable workforce with a rich demographic, it’s important to consider your options carefully before drastically changing your approach or putting all of your eggs in one communications basket.
How do you know if an intranet is right for your business?
If your business is thinking about introducing or getting rid of its intranet, the following steps will help to identify what you need. As well as what you don’t.
Do some ground work
For those scoping out establishing an intranet, before you do anything, understand what you already have in place. How are people communicating at the moment? How are they accessing the policies and documents they need to do their jobs effectively. What tools are they using to collaborate with colleagues and teams? What role will an intranet play within your business.
And if you planning to ditch your intranet because it’s become a bit of a headache, make sure you’ve looked at the analytics and are clear about what people are using the intranet for, who is using it and how you’ll fill these gaps when the intranet has gone.
Test the mood
If you want to avoid people complaining because you’ve taken away a valuable source or information, or not engaging because you’ve introduced a platform that isn’t wanted, it’s best to check with your people first.
Use this as an opportunity to ask them about how they like to be communicated with, what communications channels they like and dislike and consult them on your plans for removing, refreshing or introducing an intranet.
Be open minded
If you’re confident an intranet is right for your business, avoid choosing a platform that looks great and fits the budget and then try shoe-horning it into your current ways of working.
Be clear on the needs of your business and your people. Develop the specifications around these requirements and then consider the solution you need based on this information. It may well mean you need something different or less than you think you need; saving valuable time and money as well as delivering a better result.
If you’ve decided to call time on your intranet but you know it’s going to cause an issue, check if there’s a stripped back, cheaper version that could do the job - perhaps linked to an existing system you have in place - and will keep your people and those holding the purse strings happy.
If this still won’t work, plan out what is going to happen, when, and how and be ready to actively communicate this to your teams.
Communicate clearly and regularly
Whether you’re introducing, changing or ditching an intranet, make sure your people know what’s happening and why. Involve teams from the outset in the process. Build advocacy around the change and develop a communications plan that provides multiple opportunities for teams to understand what is being introduced, ask questions and voice concerns.
Make sure there are set points within the project to tweak the planned approach based on this feedback or at the very least, reassure people about the approach being taken and anticipated outcomes.
By giving people plenty of time to get used to new ways of working and taking on board their feedback, they’re more likely to feel involved in the project and be supportive of the end result.