As companies continue to invest in their digital workplace, a company intranet is an instrumental component in an effective internal communications strategy. But what is a company intranet exactly?

Here's a high-level overview...

An intranet is an internal, private company website that can only be accessed by the company's employees and is only available on the company network. The intranet serves as a network for employees to access corporate communications, and internal resources, share documents and other information, and communicate and collaborate with one another.

What are the Goals of a Company Intranet?

Depending on the organization, the typical goals of an intranet include:

• Keeping employees up to date on corporate news and information

• Creating a single source of truth for important information

• Providing staff with the information they need to do their jobs

• Efficiently disseminating accurate information in a timely manner

• Connecting employees and enabling employee collaboration

What is the Difference Between a Traditional Company Intranet and a Modern Intranet?

While traditional company intranets are only used as repositories for files, company updates, and corporate blogs, a properly designed modern intranet delivers personalized, tailored, contextual experiences - from corporate communications and team collaboration to seamless access to core information from enterprise systems.

There are other key differences between traditional and modern intranets:

• A modern intranet should serve as part of the overall digital workplace experience, whether it's positioned as the front door, like a digital headquarters, or as a side door, with the intranet being one entry path among other popular channels, such as mobile, collaboration sites like MSTeams and Slack or other enterprise software.

• A modern intranet must consume and produce services, not serve as just a website. It should integrate with enterprise systems to abstract and deliver information (HR data, benefit information, etc.) and also offer services to employees, such as the ability to submit requests, find people, approve workflows, etc.

Company intranets are a valuable tool in the digital workplace, with the power to deliver a variety of features and functionality to employees, such as personalized communications and centralized access to core enterprise systems.

To see the benefits of a modern intranet in action, check out this brief on-demand demo.