Nov 3, 2016
After organizational communication and work instructions, the third most important task for an intranet is “creating communality” (Intranet Services in Finland 2016 survey). In practice, this happens in two ways. Continue reading “Sustainable communality grows from the community itself – supported by the intranet”
Sep 14, 2016
Intranet renewals typically involve pondering whether or not workspaces are part of the intranet, and should collaboration in the workspaces be implemented on the same technology platform as the communicational intranet . Yes and no – both are possible.
When we look at the intranet from the perspective of its communicational nature and communicational features, its functions within the organization fall into three main categories: Continue reading “The three functions of an intranet”
Apr 6, 2016
There are several potential needs for intranet renewal. The technology platform may be rotting away, the intranet in its present form does not meet today’s needs, the organization has changed in mergers and acquisitions, a new strategy combines formerly independent units into one global actor with the resultant intranet needs, or the intranet has just become so stale that the best solution is to start again from scratch and launch it under a new “brand” to make it useful to the organization. Continue reading “How to start intranet renewal”
Mar 7, 2016
I held a two-part presentation at a conference in Oslo last year, the first part of which discussed typical intranet concepts and technologies in the Nordic countries. The second part was about intranet conceptualization methods and things like various workshop techniques. In this story, I’ll summarize the topics of the first presentation through five assertions.
Continue reading “Office 365, Slack and other intranet technology trends”
Nov 25, 2015
An intranet is able to replace many traditional communications channels inside an organiozation: bulletin boards, weekly newsletters, email lists, and staff magazines. It may function as a channel for personnel briefings, or it can be a unofficial meeting place like a real-life lunchroom. An intranet harmoniously conveys employer’s strategies and instructions regarding off-duty periods, procedures for different processes and information on changes and successes in all levels, as well as offers a platform for the whole organization to discuss these. Continue reading “The role of the intranet in the internal communications channel mix”
Oct 13, 2015
Genuinely large corporations constitute their own special group in the field of intranet technology. With thousands of employees working in many different countries and business functions, designing an intranet concept is not entirely straightforward.For such complex organizations, intranets are essential business systems – often in many ways. Continue reading “Intranets in large enterprises”
Sept 20, 2015
The internet is already accessed more by mobile devices than desktop computers. The increasing use of the internet is based on modern mobile service subscription plans. Continue reading “The future is mobile – a mobile strategy for the intranet”
Jan 26, 2015
As a result of the intranet concept design phase, a specifications document is created. This document is attached as a part of the request for proposals (RFP) for possible vendors. Carefully prepared requirement specifications function as a general guideline throughout the whole intranet implementation.
These tips will lead you to even better results when drawing up your own specifications
Continue reading “Intranet requirement specification – 10 tips for good results”
Jan 12, 2015
There is a lot of variation in the prices of setting up an intranet. The differences are dependent on the size of the organization and the intranet service itself—its purpose and its role. At North Patrol, we assist our clients in finding a vendor for their intranets through a competitive bidding process. We went through all the proposals from the tendering processes we have been facilitating in 2013–2014. We compared the prices and estimated workloads, and calculated the averages. So here are the prices of building an intranet!
Continue reading “How much does it cost to build an intranet? Prices compared”
Nov 4, 2014
Finland and Sweden often arrange playful competitions between each other. We challenged both countries to an “intranet open” comparing the freshly published results of the Intranets in Finland 2014 survey with the corresponding survey in Sweden. The topics include intranet platforms, access to intranets, usage activity, content and functionality, and intranet governance models.
Continue reading “International intranet competition—What are the differences between Finland and Sweden?”
Sep 17, 2014
Intranets are rising in importance but still lack strategic management, the first comprehensive study on Finnish intranets finds.
The study, Intranets in Finland 2014, gathered responses from Finnish intranet managers. In addition to mapping the intranet technology, the survey studied the role and use of intranets and how intranets are managed, the typical content and features, as well as the role of the intranet managers and the emerging trends in the field.
The study found six emerging megatrends in Finnish intranets: Continue reading “First-ever intranet study in Finland reveals six megatrends”
May 28, 2014
Buying an intranet project may sometimes be a nightmarish experience. After all that labor you have put into documenting your requirements and creating an effective request for tender, you get a truckload of paper from the tenderers, and they all seem to have completely different views on your needs. How can you compare the tenders and what should you be looking for?
Continue reading “Discover the true differences between intranet tenders”
May 19, 2014
In my presentation at a Social Intranet seminar I asked the participants to share their experiences in deploying and implementing your intranet. The following is a summary of the hints they shared on how to motivate users and carry through a successful intranet project. Continue reading “Intranet deployment – hints on how to successfully complete an intranet project and get it working”
Oct 16, 2012
The quality of proposals from vendors varies significantly depending on the quality of the request for proposal they were sent. Preparing a request for proposal with care increases the likelihood of receiving suitable proposals on which to base a dependable project agreement and achieve a successful end result.
Continue reading “An effective RFP for an intranet project”
Buyer’s Guide to Intranet Projects
Our blog provides market information and customer case stories about intranets and digital workplaces in the Nordics.
The blog is maintained by North Patrol, a digital communications and business consulting company based in Helsinki, Finland.
Planning a website, an intranet, an extranet or e-commerce? If you are in doubt where to start from, just ask us!
Buyer's Guide to Intranet Projects 
Confluence Challenges SharePoint as an Intranet Platform
Sep 8, 2014
It’s cheaper, it’s simpler, it’s more user-friendly. And its content editor might be the best on the market. It’s Atlassian Confluence.
Confluence is truly challenging Microsoft SharePoint, the market leader, as an intranet platform in Finland. SharePoint is still the king of the hill based on our latest survey on Finnish intranets: 51 % of intranets are running on SharePoint (version 2007 or greater), and only 7 % on Atlassian Confluence. Continue reading “Confluence Challenges SharePoint as an Intranet Platform” →