Everybody’s intranet is different. However, there are functions that are common in successful intranets and we will highlight these with a simple intranet anatomy example.
Firstly, the most popular elements of an intranet provide value to the end-users. Secondly, and more importantly, getting the right information will promote efficiency and productivity.
Moreover, it is important to aggregate information onto an intranet landing page from various sources. Therefore, an information architecture should be implemented to support this.
So let’s take a look at the anatomy of a common intranet and explain the various functions you might consider when implementing an intranet for your organisation.
Intranet Landing Page
Ideally, the intranet should be simple, uncluttered and easy to read. The value of an intranet is determined by the end-users, after all, they are your primary stakeholders.
News Banner
News headlines communicate important news to everybody in your organisation. Therefore, the intranet should show them in a concise, easy to read manner. Similarly, images will help to convey the type of information and its importance.
Launch Pad
The launch pad or quick links provides links to applications and systems that users commonly access on a daily basis. These may be web sites, external systems or legacy applications.
Personlised News
Within larger organisations your intranet will serve different groups. Providing the audience with relevant and personalised topics allows them to keep up to date. Targeted news promotes adoption and collaboration.
Departmental News
Aggregating departmental news onto the landing page will update users on activity across the business. For instance, using short names associates information with departments. Most importantly, it provides information in a clear and concise way.
Events
Showing upcoming events is an important aspect of any intranet. Rather than showing an empty calendar, consider displaying events in the same way as you do news items
Discussions
Firstly, discussions are a great means of collaboration and feedback. Secondly, consider aggregating a summary of your discussion forums from across your organisation. Moreover, display the summary into a single display that is clear and succinct.
Latest Documents
Many organisations are document-centric in the way they operate. So it makes sense to display the latest published documents.
Subsequently, users subscribe to documents that affect their own operations. And, as a result, users are more engaged in the intranet.
Similarly, surfacing vital information allows users to quickly discover those documents are important to them.
Hopefully, this provides insight into the functions that work well on intranet landing pages.
If you would like to learn a little more on how to implement a successful intranet, please feel free to reach out to us