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Intranet sites? Is that a spelling mistake?

There's no spelling mistake. Savvy companies are making the most of internet type technology to gather information, communicate and do business with the inside world via intranet sites.

An intranet site has the power to completely transform the experience of business for everyone involved, from the owners and staff, to the suppliers and customers.

What is an intranet site?
It's an internal website that is only accessible by company employees and/or other authorised people.

Why would my business need one?
Internal communication and centralised document access have always been critical components of running a good business. An intranet site provides the following tools and benefits:

•    An area for live updates on company announcements and the latest industry news.  Organisations can dispense with internal newsletters as the intranet site can be updated daily to keep staff well informed.
•    Centralised document control. This makes it easy for people to access the network remotely; from home or while traveling. Logging into an intranet in this way is much like connecting to the Internet, except that you're connecting to a private network instead of to a publicly accessible internet site.
•    A repository where corporate knowledge and documentation can be maintained, controlled and easily accessed by employees. Examples of the types of information that can be published include employee manuals, company policies, and even training materials. Because each authorised business unit can update the online copy of the document, the most recent version can always be available to employees.
•    Printing, storage and distribution costs of hard copy material can be reduced.
•    Employee self sufficiency is promoted and productivity increases as people are able to quickly access information without needing to rely on others.
•    A range of systems software and services can be distributed to employees such as time sheets, facilities booking, order tracking, central address books and calendars.
•    The ability to host forums where multiple groups can collaborate on projects, share information, video-conference or discuss issues in a secure, structured environment particularly those on geographically separated locations.
•    When employees leave the organisation the knowledge stays. An intranet allows an organisation to collect and cache knowledge and expertise.
•    A company's intranet is protected by firewalls -hardware and software combinations that allow only certain people to access the intranet for specific purposes.

Improved employee satisfaction, better communication and increased productivity are key benefits of an intranet site that result in a far more effective organisation. A properly built and well managed intranet has long-term benefits that will positively affect the company and its culture as a whole.