Nine Mistakes That Turn Your Corporate Intranet into a Ghost Town
You want an intranet that helps staff collaborate and share information. But, advises Martin Amm, there are several process errors that can keep your intranet from success.
Tue, February 26, 2008
CIO — Organizations look to CIOs for help making sense out of the massive information they collect, and for innovative solutions to everyday challenges that result from working in a large, globally-dispersed company. In response, CIOs turn to the corporate intranet: a platform that can safeguard the company's prized assets, connect disparate teams and improve process workflows.
Whether you're looking to launch a corporate intranet, or simply have plans to improve an existing one, here are some words of wisdom from others who have traveled this road before you.
Mistake #1: Assuming a one-size-fits-all home page will meet everyone's needs.
The idea is noble: One universal home page that gives everyone a bird's eye view of the company. But practically speaking, it just doesn't work. Ultimately there will be some content that is relevant for most, but not all users. And each department will be at odds, vying for limited real estate on the home page where they can display department-specific information.
Don't force users to mentally filter content displayed on the corporate welcome page. A product that lets them create personalized pages—with optional, irrelevant content already filtered out—keeps everyone focused on "what's new for me," not "what's new for everybody."
Mistake #2: Creating a one-way communication platform.
Intuitively, it doesn't make sense. Tight controls around who can publish, and strict policies and heavy approval processes only stop people dead in their tracks. If you make it easy for people to contribute and publish information, they'll gravitate towards the intranet, not away.
And while you're at it, be sure to ask people for feedback. Use questionnaires and polls to solicit suggestions for improvement, or new ways to leverage the intranet's power. When you ask, you send the message that the intranet project is an ongoing process, and that the company is committed to continuous improvements.
Lastly, it's another way to keep users engaged. And active, engaged users will foster ongoing improvements and guarantee long-term intranet success.
Mistake #3: Delaying deployment until absolutely every department's requirements are met.
A phased approach-starting small and expanding the user base over time-will help ensure your intranet community continues to grow, not shrink.
"Start small" doesn't imply a small number of users, though. Your first phase should be simple and should demonstrate the power of the tool, but it should also have a big impact on a large user community.
