Do you feel like you can never find that document you are searching for? Like your team never talks to one another, whether you are in the office or separated by a whole ocean? Like you might know your team quite well, but you don’t know your colleagues in other departments, let alone what their email addresses and internal contact information might be?
If it sometimes feels like you are all out on a raft by yourself, with other teams and various processes and documents resembling other boats and islands in a wide ocean, you need change. A modern intranet is one solution that brings everyone together onto one platform.
Are you considering whether intranet could be a solution that works for you? Let us outline some of the benefits of intranet software that can really make all the difference in how a company and its workforce function.
What is an intranet platform?
An intranet is a private and secure online network. Unlike the internet, which anyone can access with the right web address, only members of your company will be able to access your intranet platform. You may even decide to add extra levels of permission so that only certain employees have access to particular areas of your intranet.
When set up correctly, it should form the central hub for all information and communication channels in your business. It is a powerful and versatile platform that can transform the way your workforce interacts with each other.
And what exactly can this platform do for you? Modern intranets are as flexible as you need them to be, packed with all the intranet features your team needs for success. We’ve organized all of the benefits of an intranet platform into different categories below so you can gain a clear idea of just how versatile this software can be!
Internal communications
1. Improves internal communication
Internal communications is the heartbeat of any business. If employees can’t stay connected and communicate with one another, there can soon be a major breakdown in operations. Intranet provides the communication channels through which information is passed in the team and can really cut down on confusion and a lack of clarity.
2. Streamlines communications in a crisis
Times of crisis can be difficult to manage. Panic and misinformation can spread faster than we can anticipate, and it often falls to the internal communication team to spread updates, required actions, and good news. Since every employee has access to the intranet, not just on computers but also potentially on their phones via mobile intranet, they can quickly get updates in real time.
3. Removes reliance on email and meetings
No one wants to be stuck in endless meetings that could have been emails and left searching for email threads that are far too long and rambling. Intranet solutions allow for the quick passing of messages and documents, all in one easy-to-access place. If you do need to talk it out, you can still arrange a meeting or hop on a call. The intranet just makes quick messages easier to share!
4. Centralizes communication, even on a global scale
Centralizing communication this way means that everyone can share information and stay connected easily. Time zones don’t matter; you don’t have to crawl through a million different apps to find the right message, and even language barriers aren’t an issue thanks to dynamic content translation.
5. Provides targeted and consistent messaging
Internal comms teams need to be able to spread consistent messaging. They also need to send targeted messages to specific departments. Rather than needing to create email lists and a thousand and one different rules, an intranet platform can take all that data and make it easy for the comms team to get a message out. Add a Required Reading tag, and the comms team will be able to monitor who is reading their messages — and send reminders to those who aren’t!
Information and knowledge management
6. Enables global collaboration
A company intranet can be considered a shared virtual workspace. Though everyone may be scattered across different cities and countries, they can all come to the intranet and see exactly the same information—a single source of truth. It provides channels through which documents can be passed quickly and securely. This ensures that no one is left out of a brief or process, even if they aren’t physically in the office or meeting room with the rest of their team.
7. Connects the frontline with the rest of the company
If you have frontline workers, there is a strong chance that they won’t interact with some departments. After all, why would a frontline team member need to speak to someone from, say, marketing on a regular basis? An intranet can help to break down these silos to ensure that everyone is on the same page and knowledgeable about the latest news from the company.
8. Improves access to information
Organize and centralize all information across your company’s consciousness so that knowledge sharing is easy. If employees want to find a specific document or piece of knowledge, they should be able to access company resources via the intranet system. Creating a central repository is only the start; AI search tools like Axero’s very own Copilot can significantly improve knowledge management and make it even easier to find exactly the piece of information needed.
9. One hub for self-service functionalities such as pay stubs, benefits management, PTO requests
Every company must manage important employee functions like PTO requests, pay stubs, and benefits management. It is easiest if employees can just handle this themselves, to a certain extent, rather than having to submit everything to HR. Why funnel these functions through several tools when you could just centralize it all on your employee intranet? Managers can update and share information as required, and employees have it all at their fingertips.
10. Allows for easy sharing of HR policies, resources, and compliance requirements
Some documents need to be circulated across the team, the employee handbook being a great example, but HR also needs to be able to access and update these documents whenever possible. A modern intranet solution is the perfect solution for this. If a policy changes, HR can quietly update the relevant information without disrupting anyone and can then send around some company news with an update.
Remember that Required Reading tag? HR can attach it to compliance updates and other important changes. This ensures that no one misses any vital company information that they need to know.
11. Provides advanced security and permission settings
Intranets like Axero are built from the ground up to be secure by design, delivering a great user experience without ever compromising compliance or data security. By integrating single sign-on for example, employees only have to log in once but can access multiple applications. Even if employees need to access the system via their mobile devices, it can be done securely through a white-label Android or iOS app customized with your branding.
With all information stored on the intranet, inevitably some of it will be confidential and not for all eyes to see. Management can introduce permission settings so that only those with relevant clearance can access these sensitive documents. Even if they try to search for it with the help of an AI tool, those without won’t be able to open them.
Productivity and efficiency
12. Reduces regular queries to IT, HR, etc.
Are your HR and/or IT departments getting overwhelmed with lots of small, regular inquiries? Are they typically requests that employees could handle themselves with a bit of guidance? Let the intranet help! Departments can create their own FAQs packed with information and how-tos that will help employees in a bind and hopefully cut down on the number of tickets created, allowing them to focus on the tasks and issues that really need their attention.
13. Streamlines workflows
With all information in one place and everyone able to coordinate across tasks regardless of their location or department, workflows will naturally become streamlined. Automation can be brought in to help take care of the more menial tasks, and with consistency and support, productivity can be supported.
14. Improves project management
Project management can be a bit of a headache. One thread might be updated, but then something is said in a meeting that is not recorded properly, and someone else accidentally works on the same part of the project as someone else. Sound familiar? Since intranet platforms are designed to bring everything together into one place, all project updates are available to everyone the second they are uploaded.
15. Improves document management solutions
Document sharing and management are always going to be big issues for companies, but an intranet makes managing internal processes like these so much simpler. You can easily organize and share knowledge across teams.
16. Simplifies employee onboarding
Employee onboarding can sometimes feel like a big stack of documents is just being flung in the poor new employee’s direction. An intranet can be used to lay out all the steps needed for a successful onboarding experience, and it can be updated at any time. Employees then can access company information like the handbook easily, rather than having to dig back in their inbox for an email sent in their first few days!
17. Provides organizational clarity
Though not everyone needs to know the precise details of a company’s business, everyone should be able to understand the organization’s structure and overall goals. An intranet can bring this much-needed organizational clarity to everyone. Creating individual employee profiles not only helps to identify employees for fun and personal reasons (more on that later). It also helps everyone to understand each other’s roles and responsibilities at every level.
Team engagement and collaboration
18. Improves employee engagement
When people have a clear idea of what is expected of them, they can operate without any confusion. This clarity allows them to be more actively engaged. Employee engagement can be a major issue for managers, but a lot of it can often be fixed by ensuring that processes are solid and everything is organized and available in one central location. Sounds like an intranet to us!
19. Improves employee satisfaction
When employees have everything they need to get on with their work, they will be able to tackle anything that comes their way. When they complete their tasks, their sense of self-worth and motivation naturally increases. Give them ways to structure and organize their work while remaining connected and able to visualize the bigger picture, and you should see employee satisfaction begin to rise.
An intranet can also be used to supply quizzes, polls, and other forms of feedback. Employees have a chance to voice their grievances to the company if they have any. They can also get a say in any changes that are made, whether they vote on them or even suggest them themselves. This can deliver a massive sense of self-worth and satisfaction as they know the company truly listens to and values their opinions.
20. Strengthens hybrid culture and connects remote workers
Post-pandemic, many companies have adopted a hybrid culture with workers only coming into the office for a few days each week. On top of this, many workers are now fully remote. They may visit the office only for quarterly meetings, or potentially even not at all! By making an effort to streamline communication and place the company knowledge in an organized repository, employees stay connected no matter where they are located around the world.
21. Improves employee recognition and reward
22. Improves social selling
Social selling is a great tactic that your sales and marketing team likely already uses as part of their strategies to build customer relationships. Though this is a client-facing process, the intranet can still play its role here.
Collaboratively, the team can create a hub of knowledge about your products and services, as well as specific strategies and perhaps secret deals that need to be used to push them. Sales team can then take those up-to-date guides and resources and put them to good use. Since they are collaboratively updated via the intranet software, there is no need to keep chasing team members for key updates!
23. Improves employee retention
When employee engagement levels are high, we typically see reduced levels of employee turnover. In fact, engaged employees are 87% less likely to leave their jobs compared to their disengaged colleagues*. With all information in one place, employees will not feel frustrated due to a lack of processes. While friction will always occur between personalities, and no intranet can fix that, intranet can help build collaborative bridges and remove other blockers. When you give employees the tools they need to succeed and learning opportunities to help them grow, they are more likely to want to stay with you.
24. Builds a transparent company culture
No one likes feeling like they are being left out of conversations or decisions. A company’s intranet is designed to be a platform where everyone can come together as one connected workforce. When the higher-ups take the time to ensure that effective communication levels are in place and true dialogue and conversation crop up between colleagues, everyone feels valued. Be honest with employees, give them a chance to collaborate, and provide aid on issues when they arise.
Workplace culture
25. Makes meeting colleagues easy
A company’s culture is everything, but it can be difficult to connect employees and make introductions when everyone is so spread out (both geographically and departmentally!). Employee profiles are a crucial part of any company intranet. Everyone should get one, from the CEO down to the newest intern. They can fill out a little information, provide contact info like an email address, and even add a fun bio. It allows employees to find out more about the real human people they work with, even if the closest they ever get is in a video call.
26. Creates space for DEI
Employees want to work in diverse companies, and this is a major must for Gen Z. In fact, 75% of Gen Z would reconsider applying to a company that they deemed to not be diverse or inclusive enough—and that can alienate quite a large part of your future workforce! An intranet allows you to carve out specific spaces for employee content, and that includes plenty of chances to celebrate the diversity throughout your organization.
27. Reinforces company brand and values
Every company has a voice and distinct brand messaging that they want their employees to embody. To do so, they need to reinforce it through their own internal communication. An intranet is as customizable as possible. The designers can place a widget with your brand values right there on the homepage for everyone to read right as they log on if you so wish!
It also serves as a place where you can share and enjoy the fun aspects of your company. Hold a worst joke competition, encourage everyone to share pictures of their dogs, or do anything else you can think of to bring people together and virtually socialize.
28. Strengthens HR management
An intranet centralizes HR resources, policies, and procedures and makes them easily accessible to all employees. When everything is in one place, it is so much easier to find (and, no, we will never stop saying this!). HR can also support training and development initiatives with accessible learning resources, enhancing employee growth and satisfaction. The amount of admin on their plates can also get cut down thanks to the intranet’s automation capabilities.
29. Boosts internal recruitment
If you allow internal applicants for vacancies, they should never be going through the same portal as external candidates. Create a dedicated job board for internal recruitment and make sure it is visible on the intranet homepage. If you send around an internal newsletter for employees, highlight the internal vacancies and point interested employees to the job board. You get more visibility on those vacancies, and you widen up the talent pool to include employees who might be looking for a new adventure without leaving your company.
30. Provides a personalized experience
Every employee deserves to feel like they are truly part of the company and not just another cog in the corporate machine. An intranet helps to create that truly personalized experience that shows they are welcome to create their own space in the company. The profiles are a start, but custom emojis, fun badges, and other little details can help you take things to the next level.
31. Brings your workplace culture to a new level
If you want a collaborative workplace culture that celebrates the entire organization and truly brings people together, you will have to do it with an intranet. It is the place to share company values, enhance employee experience, and just create a space where you can all gather for both the serious times and the fun. You might have a physical office that celebrates everything to do with your business, and a modern intranet can do the same thing virtually.
Transform your workplace with Axero
Are you ready to transform your workplace with an intranet? In case we didn’t make it clear enough with all the benefits of an intranet that we laid out above, let’s just say it one more time!
📢 The intranet is a completely customizable centralized platform for anything your employees might need!
From document sharing and knowledge management to internal communications and team collaboration, if you can think of it, a good company intranet (like ours!) should have the capabilities to support you. Whether you are in the office or working remotely from a sunny beach (we wish), a modern intranet will keep you in the loop with not just your team but everyone in the company. There is no better platform to bring everyone together and keep them together.
And the best platform for doing so? We think it is Axero, of course! We’ve worked hard to create a hub for your staff that you can switch and change to your heart’s desire to ensure it is just what your employees need.
Don’t take our word for it! Check out some of our happy customer stories to find out how we have helped them transform their businesses.
Or just dive in and book a demo to find out how Axero can help transform yours!
