The Right Way to Intranet – 3 Leadership Keys to a Successful Intranet
In the intranets business, we work with clients of all shapes and sizes. And with all our engagements, our objective is simple — to help our clients launch vibrant and successful intranets that support and connect their employees daily.
We use an intranet building methodology honed over the years on project after project to help clients move from defining their intranet requirements to launching their site and everything in between.
And while these intranets are created with a fair amount of planning, time, and effort, the reality is not all intranets succeed over time. But why?
The reasons are not surprising. What we see out in the field is that like any successful long-term project, an intranet project must be owned, championed, and improved over time to keep it relevant, fresh, and bring value to the organization.
Key to a Successful Intranet #1: Own Your Intranet
Every project needs an executive sponsor. The role of the executive sponsor is to provide direction, secure a project budget, and most importantly use the sponsor’s executive influence to drive the adoption of the intranet within the organization. The executive sponsor serves as the muscle behind the intranet project.
The reality we’ve observed, is that without an executive sponsor an intranet is often ignored after launch. People are creatures of habit, and they may not have an incentive to change their behaviors or adopt a new communication platform without guidance and pressure from an executive sponsor to move and continue to move in a specific direction.
Key to a Successful Intranet #2: Champion Your Intranet
In addition to an executive sponsor, successful intranet projects require champions. These are individuals who push the intranet forward with their active participation. They execute changes on the intranet, teach others, answer questions, provide guidance, and rally others to participate. They help drive change and act as intermediaries between content creators and those leading the project as well as the IT team.
Depending on the organization, champions may establish working sessions to assist others, they may create written instructions or videos to help others create content, or they may assist others on a one-on-one basis. They may advocate for specific features or technologies on behalf of content creators based on what they see in the field.
Champions inspire and help others to adopt the company intranet. They serve as project ambassadors to the various groups and departments wanting to take advantage of the intranet’s capabilities.
Key to a Successful Intranet #3: Roadmap Your Intranet
An intranet site is never finished or complete but should continue to evolve, change, and grow with the business. Anything short of that is a recipe for failure.
Post-launch, intranet owners must think beyond day 1. There should be periodic checkpoints to determine how the organization is evolving and how the intranet, a communication platform, could be used to support the evolution. Project owners should maintain a log of upcoming product features and/or enhancements and plan their release or integration to keep the intranet fresh and relevant. In other words, an intranet needs a roadmap that the project sponsor shares with the organization to create interest and maintain accountability.
And of course, the roadmap should include a content creation schedule to ensure the platform is up to date. New content encourages continued adoption and engagement by the organization. It emphasizes that the intranet is the source of truth for the latest content within the organization.
Need Help?
Launch a successful intranet with the help of the experts at Compass365. We’ll help you define and create a modern and dynamic intranet that meets your employees’ expectations and needs as they navigate the changes in today’s modern workplace.
Help is just an email away – please reach out to us at any time for a free, no-commitment consultation.
Compass365, a Microsoft Gold Partner, delivers SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, and Power Platform solutions that help IT, and Business leaders improve the way their organizations operate and how their employees work.
