Good communication is key to making any business run smoothly. Keeping employees up to date with all the latest information can be a mammoth task. With so many companies in need of effective solutions to their communication problems, we have put together a quick walk through of the advantages of intranet in an organization.

 

What is Intranet?

Intranet is a network based on the Internet that is accessed by the employees of an organization. An Intranet provides easy access to internal files and documents to the various employees of the organization, from their individual workstations. Sharing of data, made possible through the Intranet, not only helps in saving time of employees, but also allows employees from various levels to access data. It also contributes to a paperless office.

 

1. Easy Access to Company Information

Communication: Intranet is extremely useful for communication and collaboration between the employees for successful functioning of any business organization. Intranet provides this to businesses in the form of tools like discussion groups, Intranet forms, and bulletin boards. Using intranet tools help in conveying and distributing necessary information or documents among the employees of an organization. This results in easy communication and sound relationship between the employees and top level management.

 

2. Organization of Information

Rather than sorting through numerous files in numerous drives, keep all your company information in one easy to access place. Intranet benefits employees and managers a like. You can even give limited access to certain roles. For example, it’s doubtful that you want junior office staff to be able to access all of your financial reports and forecasts for the year, so these are just given permissions to access certain areas of the intranet which is relevant to their job.

 

3. Quick Consistent Communication

By building an intranet, employees and bosses alike can share information across the board; not only is it easier to set up and share appointments and information, but as a part of an intranet, employees can communicate better, leading to less confusion following meetings, when everyone has to take notes and remember everything afterwards. Discussion boards on an intranet can also help staff to come up with collaborative ideas before meetings or when working on a project, cutting down the time needed for physical meetings as everyone is aware of their position on a project.

Not only that but intranets have evolved dramatically over the past decade as CMS and social are added and the introduction of cloud computing often means that an intranet can be accessed from anywhere. This is ideal in these days of BYOD and telecommuting, as it makes for a more flexible workforce and again, ups productivity.

 

Developing an Intranet for Business

It’s a good idea to carry out sound planning before implementing an Intranet; whilst they can and will benefit a business of any size, needs vary and so it’s worth investing primarily in a decent consultancy firm. These will be able to carry out an audit of your company and recommend what will benefit your business the most.

A modern intranet should be well organized and easy for users to navigate, especially if you don’t want to spend a fortune training your staff; again, this is something that can be discussed with a consultant.

A well planned business infrastructure is much more likely to be a successful one and one that your company can see clear benefits from. The ability to share internal information across the whole of your staff often does away with the need to constantly send internal memos and emails.

“When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” – Simon Sinek

 

The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us many things. First, it has taught us that empathy and kindness goes a long way. We’ve learned that as individuals, communities, and as a nation, that we can do hard things when we work together. Finally, this pandemic has taught us that the relationship between employer and employee is a valuable one. How much the employee feels valued by their employer is called “engagement.” And this feeling of value is one that more and more companies are investing in in a post-COVID environment.

 

Employee engagement is when an employee feels “high levels of involvement (passion and absorption) in the work and the organization (pride and identity) as well as affective energy (enthusiasm and alertness) and a sense of self-presence.” Let’s dive in and look at some fast facts on this subject and how to increase engagement in this new workspace we have found our world occupying.

 

BY THE NUMBERS

• 34% of employees and 35% of employers stated they felt engaged in their work in a 2019 Gallup poll.
• 38% of employees now say they are “highly involved in, enthusiastic about and committed to their work and workplace” via a May 2020 Gallup poll.
• This is the highest reported engagement since Gallup began measuring this topic in 2000.

 

BOTTOM LINE

• Unengaged employees lower productivity, innovation, and the bottom line.
• Engaged employees have lower absenteeism and lower turnover.
• When an employee believes that they are being heard and seen as a valued investment, they feel empowered to do their best work.
• Teams that report being engaged in the workplace have 21% higher profitability than those who report being unengaged.

 

HOMESCHOOL

• One way to create engagement in the workplace is to promote learning opportunities at home for employees. This can be done in virtual workshops for remote workers.
• If a company’s investment is in learning and development, this shows the employee that their employer sees their future as important.
• Positive results of investing in workforce education include increased employee engagement, more innovation, and increased understanding of the company’s goals.
• Remote employees who participate in a company’s virtual training report that beyond the educational benefit they receive, they also feel as though they are being equipped with new skills for handling stressful situations once they are able to return to work.

 

RESOURCES

There are numerous blogs and articles and creative educational interaction sites to keep employees engaged and learning while remote. Below are some fun and creative sites to help you create your own engagement campaign for your organization.

 

• Care packages for remote employees
• Ideas and Activities for Employee Engagement
• Work from Home Engagement Ideas
• 37 Best Virtual Team Building Activities
• Teambuilding.com has EVERYTHING you need for boosting morale and engagement

Post shared from: Scouts Benefits Group