Intranets' Tangled Webs
I am writing a piece on intranets right now and it has been an eye-opener. I’ve always found working on intranets a bit of a challenge. It’s not like a company’s Web site that is generally handed over to the marketing department. An intranet is entangled in much more internal politics. So, what’s wrong with most intranets today?
Most corporate communications people can answer this question almost instinctively. The intranet has traditionally been not a single system working to benefit the organization, but a collection of information operated by independent groups with varying priorities, politics or predisposition to posting information. As a result, intranets have become sprawling networks of data that often frustrate employees rather than making their jobs easier.
Says corporate communications consultant Gerry McGovern, “I used to think that the Web was this great big wonderful library. Some intranets are indeed like libraries, except that all the books are on the floor and the lights are turned out.”
Another fault lies with many communications departments themselves. Traditionally, internal communications were top-down and the communications department’s job was to deliver the message. With interactive media, however, communications can flow in many directions. The communications department must learn to facilitate and organize the messaging, rather than always controlling it. That’s a hard lesson for most.
Read up on IBM if you want to know about intranets done well. Of course, this is another challenge for marketers. You’ can’t really see good examples on the Web … only read about them. No wonder marketers are frustrated.
