A few decades ago, companies spent huge amounts of money on intranet development. But the world of work and technology has changed radically, and these systems are now largely obsolete. They are slow and costly to maintain and upgrade and still do not meet the requirements of the times. There is a need to have your internal corporate system, but it is much more than just 'shared hosting'. Access to employees, collaboration, and ease of administration are key, especially in the age of hybrid working. In addition to the need for dynamic, multi-directional communication and workplace efficiency, one area has not been as much of a focus in the development of traditional intranets: the employee experience.
Many old intranets store masses of outdated information. Employees often search in vain and find it difficult to make use of such an internal system. The mere fact that "it's out there somewhere, find it" is not in itself a motivation to use it. It is cumbersome and time-consuming. Digital transformation is more than just storing or searching for documents on a common platform. Directories, executive communications, and corporate news have also been moved to a more static form in old-style intranets.
Office jobs often involve dozens of software applications used simultaneously by workers, from project management to messaging and document editing. Integrating all of these cannot be done by an older system design, leaving you with multichannel working. The story of blue-collar workers and the usefulness of the intranet is a very short one with few positive results. Indeed, intranets have typically been able to improve efficiency in the areas of clerical, computer and administrative work. They do not reach physical workers in any meaningful way.
The uploading of management briefings to the intranet has helped to ensure that colleagues are not looking for posters in the workplace or hearing about new company news from stories. However, this type of workplace communication is no longer sufficient; the one-way flow of information is outdated and ineffective. Such a system is totally inadequate for successful employee engagement.
In the design of old-school corporate intranets, function usually took over and the user experience was less pronounced. The design and layout in general no longer really met the needs of employees who use social media easily and intuitively. Moreover, it is particularly resource- and time-intensive to train new colleagues to use the intranet. But a complete overhaul would also be very expensive and slow.
Replacing the traditional intranet with a modern digital platform is a game changer. One of the most important of these is the possibility of two-way communication. By giving employees access to the platform from their mobile phones, a lot of walls come down. Employees can access the system, respond and ask questions directly, regardless of time or place. And it's no longer just those who work in front of a computer, but physical workers too. This can improve not only worker activity, but also engagement. With digital transformation, workplaces are no longer using their systems just as a repository, but as a complex internal communication platform. They can share breaking news, make professional materials available, share entertainment, community building and engagement content, etc.
Teamwork, especially remote working, is now unthinkable without real-time access. Having all the materials needed for work available on one platform, instant messaging, project management, remote administration, etc., can help the team to get rid of a lot of logistical problems. As messages can be very well segmented in such a system, information can be better targeted to specific groups. The important shift is that the employee is not looking for information, but receives the message directly.
Presenting your company's unique image on the digital platform is not just a matter of design. It helps employees to better connect to the shared system. They can see it not as just another software/interface, but as a common platform that is their partner in all important matters of the company. Unlike the old intranets, user experience is now a priority. Employees are happy to use modern digital platforms because the interface is user-friendly and intuitive. No extra training is needed to use them.
More effective communication, real-time access and up-to-date information will increase employee engagement from the pre- and onboarding phase. On a dedicated digital platform, you can post galleries, videos of company events, create hobby groups, challenges, quizzes and games to enrich your social life at work. Employees will get to know each other and their superiors better, and there will be a stronger sense of belonging to the group, which is very positive for employee well-being and engagement.
The new internal communication platforms used as modern intranets can also make a spectacular difference to training. With e-learning options and flexible access, everyone can learn, repeat and develop at their own pace. Much more practice and playful methods can be incorporated into training.
In the past, employers could only hope that important information would reach their employees. Digital communication interfaces have jumped eras, providing direct data on how many people have seen a post, downloaded the necessary materials, onboarding progress, etc. In addition to traceability, there is also a lot of valuable data on activity: what content is most popular, what types of news are most interesting to employees, and what they are most likely to be activated by. From emoji reactions to text feedback to questionnaires, there are countless ways for a company to understand employee needs and opinions better.
