Are Intranets Still Relevant in the Age of Social Media?

Spoiler alert – intranets are more valuable than ever in today’s highly distributed work environment.

There’s little denying the popularity of social media. Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, or any other platform, millions of people are spending countless hours each day on some type of social media medium. If so many people are on social media, does this mean that a company intranet is no longer necessary or relevant? At MessageOps, we’d like to think that corporate intranets are still valuable for a variety of different reasons.

Why are intranets still relevant today?

Below are just a few of the reasons why intranets are still necessary and valuable, regardless of the fact that employees may be connecting and engaging with each other via social media.

Place to streamline processes

If you find a business that’s extremely successful, chances are it’s due in part to having developed a unique set of processes that are easily repeatable and are used by most everyone within a company. The problem with processes is that they can often change, and it’s important that they’re constantly updated as a company morphs. Posting a company’s processes on a corporate intranet gives everyone access to them, while also allowing for one central location where they can be changed as needed.

Boost Collaboration

Many modern intranet tools such as SharePoint have communication and social tools built into them, which makes collaboration among coworkers much more streamlined. Users can not only work together but also share their strengths and learn from others who may be more proficient in certain tasks, creating a symbiotic environment where more work can get done.

Central knowledge management

One of the central goals of any intranet is to facilitate the dissemination of resources, whether that’s processes, documents, or any other type of information. While there’s no doubt that we all have access to more information than ever from a variety of disparate sources, there still is always a need for a central location where a company can post relevant information and resources. A corporate intranet serves this role well, regardless of changing technologies related to how we all converse via social networks.

Place to disseminate corporate communications

Because a corporate intranet is a central location where employees gain access to important corporate information, it can serve as an area where important announcements are provided. Think of your corporate intranet as a virtual bulletin board where company announcements can be made, but also where certain employees can be recognized for their work for all to see. This in itself can create an environment where employees feel more valued and in turn work harder to receive these accolades.

Improve productivity

In today’s world of distributed working environments, intranets are more relevant than ever before. With many employees not interacting with their coworkers in person very often, an intranet offers a central location where tasks can be assigned, tracked and reallocated.

Are you convinced that your organization could benefit from a corporate intranet?

You likely understand the value of a corporate intranet but may not be sure where to start in terms of rolling one out across your organization. The experts at MessageOps have a variety of solutions, including the SharePoint intranet portal, which is a ready-made portal that can allow you to roll out an intranet in a matter of hours, as opposed to months. Regardless of where your team is located, ROOT offers a responsive design that can be accessed on all devices including tablets and smartphones. Schedule a demo with one of our team members today.