Searching for the perfect intranet
Searching for the perfect intranet
Does the perfect intranet exist? Leigh Moyle and James Dellow consider the challenges of building the 'ultimate' intranet and discuss what skills would be needed to bring it together.
Anyone involved with intranet development will confirm that they are very much a product of their environment. Every organisation leaves a distinct fingerprint on the design, implementation and management of their internal web space. This reflects the unique way in which an organisation is structured and how it does business. On the other hand, we also know that there are many intranet features that reflect tasks common to most organisations that often make up intranets, features such as phone directories, policies, procedures and search.
So is there a perfect intranet for your organisation?
When we put this question to colleagues involved in intranet development, the consensus was, in theory, a successful intranet should represent a perfect match with the needs of the organisation. In fact, most intranet projects operate on this principal and organisations strive towards this perfection while they have the budget and the CEO's attention.
But in reality organisations are in a constant state of motion, so the catch is that the perfect intranet will only be perfect at that one point in time. The common reaction is to lock them down, never to be changed again until a renewed management emphasis demands the need to do another total overhaul. Naturally, over time it becomes increasingly difficult to secure funding for yet another more 'perfect' intranet.
Does intranet development have to be like this? If an intranet is to remain pertinent, if not perfect, it needs be treated as a living thing, adapting symbiotically as the organisation changes. What is required for this to happen is a change in approach to intranet development that focuses on continuous improvement and the application of skills and resources in a flexible and consistent way.
Now that we are being realistic and aiming for pertinence rather than perfection-how do we get to there and what amazing person/group of people will get us there?
Intranet managers often share something in common-a feeling of being overwhelmed by three forces-technology changes, stakeholder expectation and resource constraint. Our knowledge of where organisations place responsibility for intranets indicates that areas as diverse as HR, IT and Corporate Communications are often wholly responsible for development and maintenance of the intranet.
The intranet managers we have encountered come from secretarial, librarian, web development, HR and knowledge management backgrounds.
However, over recent years the concept of an intranet has evolved rapidly from the idea of just an online information source to an enterprise work platform that allows data access, information sharing and collaboration to take place. Intranets have therefore been transformed into a class of information technology that is really best described as "application-nets".
Intranet managers now find themselves involved with:
• Programming and scripting;
• Content management;
• Database management;
• Helpdesk;
• Graphic design;
• Business analysis;
• Change management;
• Communication;
• Training;
• Server and network administration;
• User management and information security;
In fact, what this current generation of intranets really requires is a team of specialists that can plan, manage, design, develop, implement and manage a complex mix of systems, process, and of course, people. The Intranet manager/team needs the ability to liase with and influence internal parties such as IT, HR, Corporate Communications, Senior Management and users. And as justifying and securing funding for intranets is also a major issue, business case and financial analysis is also key to the skill set.
These diverse skills will very rarely be held by one person. If an intranet is to keep pace with organisational development, a flexible team approach is needed to ensure that the right skills are available as they are needed. For example, an information architect may only be required for a two week period to structure the site, a business analyst just for the time required to define the user requirements.
So what is the role of a next generation intranet manager? The intranet manager is really the leader or champion who understands what needs to be achieved. They should have a broad understanding of both the organisational and technology issues involved with managing an intranet, but they do not need to be an expert in SQL, usability or instructional design. The role of the intranet manager has evolved to be more of a project manager, coordinating all the resources and ensuring a continued source of funding by managing stakeholder expectations.
Having forgotten about perfection, the focus for the next-generation intranet is on survival and adaptation. In order to keep pace with organisational change, the intranet needs to be able to adapt quickly and in order to survive the intranet needs to be able to demonstrate its value. Flexibility and the ability to prioritise are key to success.
• Flexibility in intranet team resources, so that you can bring the best skills to the team as and when they are required.
• Flexibility with funding, so that in times of financial hardship you can maximise what you can do on the smell of an oily rag and in times of funding use it wisely• Focus on the quick wins and small changes that continually move the intranet towards the moving goal.
• Focus on those aspects of the intranet that have demonstrable cost savings for the organisation.
• Use cross functional teams to involve your organisation in the intranet development.• And last but not least, publicise and celebrate the successes.
Organisations should stop searching for intranet perfection and adopt a next-generation intranet approach. We believe this approach will ultimately create greater satisfaction for management, end-users and intranet managers alike.
(c)2004 James Dellow and Leigh Moyle
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