Why every company needs a Social Intranet software in 2022

There are many reasons for a company to use an intranet software. The most common include:

1. Increased productivity
2. Employee Retention
3. To create one portal to access everything 

Increased productivity

Increased productivity in most cases is associated with a positive ROI. It is a tangible measurement for everyone. This alone can justify an investment in a new intranet, but what is driving the increased productivity and the ROI? In order to fulfil the intention, there are some pitfalls you need to consider before buying/implementing a new intranet. 

Technology

Everyone is familiar with native apps such as Facebook, Messenger and Dropbox. The private usage is creating a direct benchmark and expectation to professional services. Never consider picking a service provider offering a browser-based product. Arguments such as ‘it takes no installation’ etc. are hypothetical. 

Relevance

In order to make your employees use your intranet on a regular basis, you need to make sure that there is no information overload. This is one of the most common reasons and excuses for not checking in! Make sure that the service provider can match your organisation 1:1 when it comes to organisational hierarchy and roles. Bear in mind that a high level of complexity is another pitfall and make sure that not only tech-savvy employees can configure basic settings.

Employee engagement

Engagement is king. How do you make sure that everyone will use your new intranet? When decision makers are looking for a new intranet, they tend to make the assessment based on the requirements and pains defined by managers. But how do you get your employees to use your new intranet on a daily basis? Make sure that it becomes an asset for the employees as well. Based on our market research, communication is the most natural way to engage everyone. Communication is for everyone and will contribute to a consistent, high level of engagement for everyone. If you combine communication with having access to the right information whenever you need it, you will see results overnight. 

Retention

Or lack of, is associated with a competitive advantage or high cost. On top of that, it is time consuming to onboard new employees. This topic is huge and really popular especially for the HR department. We are not going to touch on it other than looking at the means to reach the end goal. Some of the basics to drive employee happiness is to make sure that all employees are having the right information whenever they need it. Another vital part is to feel included and being a part of something bigger. This can be done by having a mobile-first intranet. As written above, this is not going to drive employee retention, but it will definitely make it a lot easier. 

To create one portal to access everything 

With the impact of best-of-breed, it is quite common that companies are using multiple softwares in their daily operations. Depending on the industry the ‘suite’ will differentiate. For Retail we often see workforce management and E-Learning. For the more conservative segments such as construction or transportation & logistics the suite consists of legacy in combination with AD and ERP.

But what do they have in common? Master data spread over multiple systems is difficult to maintain and takes a lot of administrative labour. Secondly the journey from an end user perspective is messy, resulting in a lack of overview and inefficiency. Today a new intranet must, as a bare minimum, contain the option to gather all service providers under one roof. Look after providers with an open REST API to secure your future needs. We have great examples on how companies such as McDonald's and 7-Eleven (or read all case studies > ) have used Ziik as a launchpad to all their other services.

About Ziik

While there are a number of social intranet software providers on the market, Ziik has been the go-to platform for hundreds of smaller and bigger companies. From world-famous McDonald's or Subway brands, to local transportation and retail businesses, all finding their needs met with Ziik. You can read more about how Ziik can help your business here, or sign up for a free demo.