A company intranet can be an extremely powerful communication and collaboration tool. More and more companies are searching for ways to improve internal communication, boost employee engagement, increase productivity and build an enduring workplace culture. And an intranet can help to meet all these objectives.
If you're struggling to define the purpose of your intranet, start with our aptly named blog: The True Purpose of an intranet.
However, even if you’re you’re clear on the purpose and benefits that an intranet can bring to you, you may still be unsure about how to go about procuring one. With so many intranet vendors to choose from, how do you know which intranet is right for you and what intranet discovery questions you need to ask your intranet supplier to make an informed and financially sound decision?
In the latest Clearbox report, 21 intranet solutions exist for SharePoint and Microsoft 365 alone – and those are just the ones that are reviewed. There are huge numbers of other intranet vendor solutions that exist both within and outside of the Microsoft 365 technology stack.
So, with a market this competitive, how should you draw up your shortlist?
If you’re struggling with your research and would like some advice, please get in touch with us at Information EXP. We are experts in intranet and digital workspace solutions and can help you make sense of your intranet options.
As with any significant financial investment, often asking the right people the right questions is key to making a successful decision.
So let's cover the all-important intranet discovery questions you need to ask before making your investment.
SharePoint Online, part of Microsoft 365, is a platform that can be configured to create an intranet that meets the needs of most organisations. Many features that were once unique to intranet solution providers are now part of SharePoint Online.
The “packaged solution” uses custom code to create user-friendly intranets that once configured, generally require little input from your IT department. They may sit outside of SharePoint or share some resources. They are typically reliant on a third-party both for support and the technology, and will require an on-going licence fee.
The other is using an “out-of-the-box” SharePoint solution approach. This takes advantage of the toolset that SharePoint gives you to create an intranet solution on a platform most users are already familiar with.
When researching an intranet supplier, otherwise known as an intranet vendor, it’s worth taking the time to dig a little deeper into the company.
If considering packaged solution intranet vendors, often the company that implements the solution is not the one that built it and so you need to establish the relationship between the intranet implementor and the vendor. It’s therefore worth asking the following:
If you’re relying on a packaged solution, it can be difficult to understand how reliable the vendor is in terms of up-time and secure there platform is in regards to protecting your intranet data.
So, before investing in a solution, make sure that it both meets your data security requirements and your availability needs – which for a global organisation might be 24/7.
Content is king, so it’s vital that all staff are able to access, add and edit content quickly and easily. It’s worth considering the following:
It’s important, as with all investments, to be able to monitor its rate of return. To this end, it’s worth considering whether the intranet has a dashboard that can track its usage and performance.
In order to justify your investment and determine whether you wish to continue with it, you need to know what’s working well with your intranet and what isn’t. It’s also worth considering how well your intranet supplier is performing and what your long-term relationship with them might look like.
In today’s globalised, fast-paced world, companies around the world are striving to ensure that their technology is available to all their employees at all times. Consider those who working offsite, employees restricted to mobile devices and offline working requirements for those who travel.
It's also important to consider accessibility requirements, (the UK Government has published advice here), they say “It means making your content and design clear and simple enough so that most people can use it without needing to adapt it, while supporting those who do need to adapt things.”
It’s worth confirming the following with your intranet vendor:
Whilst it’s vital to ensure the security of your company’s data, how it’s accessed and what security measures are in place to protect it. For many organisations a tight integration into Microsoft’s Active Directory, along with a tight approach to data protection, is a must.
The best intranets don’t interrupt the flow of work, they enhance it. By pulling together information from a key sources, they provide employees with a single view of what’s happening within your organisation. Whether it’s the publication of KPI data, breaking company news or an important policy update from HR, intranets exist to enhance collaboration amongst employees and optimise their productivity and performance.
To ensure this occurs, intranets need to work seamlessly with other applications. It's therefore worth checking which intranet integrations your intranet supplier supports:
Introducing an intranet into an organisation is no easy task. Design, content population and roll-out is time-consuming. The effort involved in configuring the intranet, identifying and securing the resources required to implement it and meeting the project plan can be incredibly challenging.
In our experience organisations typically underestimate the effort and duration required for implementation. It’s therefore worth drawing on the experience of the intranet supplier to understand how much time will be required and how many people will need to be involved to ensure that implementation is a success. Questions you may wish to ask your intranet supplier include:
The costs of intranet implementation often play a key role in deciding which solution to invest in.
Some intranet vendors offer different pricing models depending on the duration of your commitment, whether you hold charitable status and what intranet features you require.
It’s worth asking your intranet vendor the following to ensure you are getting the best value for money:
The most successful intranet projects are the ones where the company purchasing the intranet solution and the intranet supplier nurture the same long-term strategic vision from the outset and are prepared to build an open and collaborative partnership.
Whilst it is tempting to confront any issue that may arise with a ‘if it’s broken, we can fix it’ attitude, such a reactive approach will not foster good relations or long-term success. It’s therefore vital, before investing in any solution to explore your intranet supplier’s ongoing support offer. Questions you may wish to ask include:
The cost of your intranet solution is likely to play a key part in your decision making and as such it’s important to try and understand the full lifecycle of costs over a typical investment period, which is normally 3 years. Once you’ve gained a full understanding of all the costs involved including any hidden costs and add on fees, you’ll be able to determine whether your solution offers you the best value for money.
The intranet market is densely packed and with so many options available and so many different intranet vendors to choose from, knowing how to select the one that best meets the needs of your company, can feel overwhelming.
Most solutions are industry agnostic, so let say you’re on the hunt for an intranet vendor for financial services – you are probably better looking for an intranet solution provider with financial services experience.
If having read the intranet discovery questions within this blog, you have more questions or need some additional support and advice, please get in touch by either booking a free discovery call or set a meeting up with us. We’re here to help.
Ensure that your questions focus on the experience, knowledge and capability of your intranet supplier. Ask them about their data protection measures and intranet integrations capability as well as their post-implementation support offer. And be sure to verify the total cost of ownership including licencing, implementation and on-going support.
Intranet costs generally depend on what you want your intranet to do, whether it’ll be packaged add-on solution or out-of-the-box intranet leveraging a platform like SharePoint. You’ll also need to consider ongoing support costs. A company of 200 people typically invests around £25k-£30k in an intranet solution for the first year..
If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, SharePoint is the easy choice for an intranet. With no additional costs and seamless integration with other Microsoft tools, it’s a great place to start. It also has strong functionality including document management and content publishing capabilities and is highly customisable and scalable.
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There are any number of reasons why you might need an intranet. It might be that your current intranet isn’t working. Or maybe you’re considering a first-time investment. In defining the purpose of an intranet, you can gain clarity on your project expectations; both in relation to your internal audience and any intranet solution supplier being considered.
A company intranet can be an extremely powerful communication and collaboration tool. More and more companies are searching for ways to improve internal communication, boost employee engagement, increase productivity and build an enduring workplace culture.
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