Modern Intranet Solutions with Microsoft SharePoint: Guide Part 2 – Architecture and Content

This is the continuation of Part 1 of our guide on how modern intranet solutions improve communication and collaboration in organizations. Microsoft SharePoint provides a flexible platform that adapts to employee needs and business goals. Benefits include centralized information management and real-time collaboration. Extensions such as Omnia or Mozzaik365 increase the performance of SharePoint despite certain customization limits.

Designing an Effective Information Architecture

The design of an effective information architecture is crucial to the success of a modern intranet. It determines how content is organized, tagged and presented to allow users to interact with the information efficiently. A well-designed information architecture includes elements such as navigation, search, site hierarchy, taxonomy and security ¹².

Navigation and menu structure

Intelligent navigation is the backbone of a user-friendly intranet. It should include various elements to provide users with intuitive orientation:

1. Horizontal main navigation (top-level navigation)
2. Area navigation on individual pages
3. Quicklinks navigation bar for mobile devices
4. Utility navigation for important links and settings
5. Dynamic navigation elements for personalized content
6. Showcase navigation with links and buttons on pages
7. Breadcrumbs for displaying navigation paths ¹³

When designing the menu structure, it is important to decide between a flat and a deep hierarchy. A flat hierarchy is characterized by many categories with few sub-levels, while a deep hierarchy has few upper categories but many sub-levels ¹³.

To develop an effective menu structure, the use of methods such as card sorting and tree testing is recommended. In card sorting, intranet content is grouped into different categories, while tree testing checks the user-friendliness of the developed structure ¹³.

Use of hubs and sites

SharePoint hubs are a powerful tool for organizing related sites based on project, department, region or concept. They make it easy to find related content, apply common navigation and branding, and search across all related sites ¹².

When planning hubs, organizations should think about key functions that their users need to do their jobs, such as human resources, finance, communications or IT ¹⁴. Hub websites provide two primary organizational experiences:

1. Shared navigation: The hub website owner determines which websites are reflected in the navigation.
2. Rollup of content: News and other activities from associated websites can be summarized in the hub ¹⁴.

It is important to carefully plan the number of websites assigned to a hub in order to achieve the optimal advantage for the information architecture ¹⁴.

Implementation of a clear taxonomy

A clear taxonomy is crucial for the user-friendliness of an intranet. It helps to organize information and content into clear and logical categories, allowing employees to access the information they need quickly and easily ¹⁵.

To implement an effective taxonomy, companies should consider the following steps:

1. Development of clear categories and subcategories
2. Use of consistent terms
3. Compliance with a uniform hierarchy
4. Consideration of user-friendliness in the category structure ¹⁵

In SharePoint, metadata can be organized on several levels, although it is recommended not to go beyond the third level. The first level refers to the type of content, the second to the type of tags and the third to the individual category tags ¹⁶.

Modern intranet solutions such as Omnia intranet and Mozzaik365 offer advanced options for implementing an effective taxonomy and information architecture. These tools enable organizations to transform their SharePoint intranets into true digital workplaces, with more functional and design-oriented communication, collaboration and knowledge management areas ¹¹.

By carefully designing the information architecture, including navigation, hubs and taxonomy, companies can create an intranet that increases the efficiency and productivity of their employees and optimizes workflows.

Promoting Employee Engagement

Social functions in SharePoint

SharePoint offers a variety of features that promote employee engagement and improve collaboration within the organization. The social networking and collaboration features on My Sites, Team Sites and Community Sites make it easier for users to find and connect with people and content they care about to share information and ideas ¹⁷.

An interactive newsfeed on "My Website" and team websites allows users to stay in touch with colleagues via real-time microblog messages and status updates and keep up to date with the latest news ¹⁷. This promotes an open communication culture and increases transparency within the company.

Community sites in SharePoint provide a rich, forum-like experience where users can find and share information and ideas, search for people with similar interests and make a name for themselves ¹⁷. This encourages knowledge sharing and the formation of expert communities within the organization.

Modern intranet solutions such as Omnia intranet and Mozzaik365 extend these functions and offer additional opportunities to promote employee engagement. They enable companies to transform their SharePoint intranet into a true digital workplace, with more functional and design-oriented communication, collaboration and knowledge management areas.

Integrate gamification elements

Integrating gamification elements into SharePoint has proven to be an effective way to increase employee motivation, engagement and productivity ¹⁸. By introducing gamified elements, companies can increase employee engagement with the intranet while supporting key business objectives.

Some effective gamification strategies for SharePoint include:

1. Points systems and awards: By awarding points, badges or virtual awards for certain activities such as sharing knowledge, creating content or participating in discussions, users can be motivated to actively participate in the intranet ¹⁸.
2. Competitions and leaderboards: Setting up competitions and leaderboards can encourage users to do their best and compete with others. This can take the form of leaderboards showing the most active or best users, or time-limited competitions where employees can collect points to win prizes or recognition ¹⁸.
3. Storytelling and quests: By integrating stories and quests, users can experience a virtual journey through various departments or projects. They have to solve certain tasks in order to progress and receive rewards ¹⁸.

Many intranet providers, such as Omnia, have already integrated gamification functions, such as quiz creation, profile completion or activity recording ¹⁹.

Implement feedback mechanisms

The implementation of feedback mechanisms is an important aspect of promoting employee engagement in SharePoint. By involving users in the continuous optimization process of the intranet, acceptance and use of the platform can be significantly increased ⁶.

Effective feedback mechanisms can include the following elements:

1. Comment functions: Employees should have the opportunity to comment on content such as blog posts, news or announcements. This promotes an interactive exchange and improves collaboration within the company ²⁰.
2. Surveys and polls: Regular user satisfaction surveys and polls on specific topics can provide valuable insights into the needs and wishes of employees.
3. Ideas management: A system in which employees can submit and discuss suggestions for improvement promotes innovation and a sense of co-determination.

By implementing these feedback mechanisms, companies can ensure that their SharePoint intranet is continuously improved and meets the needs of their employees. This leads to greater satisfaction with internal communication and ultimately to increased employee productivity.

Implementation of Self-Service Functions

The introduction of self-service functions in a modern intranet enables employees to achieve satisfaction independently and more quickly without having to contact the helpdesk ²¹. These functions increase efficiency and productivity in the company by giving employees the opportunity to complete everyday tasks independently

Set up employee portal

A well-structured employee portal forms the basis for effective self-service functions. Microsoft SharePoint is ideally suited as the basis for an internal company intranet. Employees can find relevant information, news and documents on a personalized start page ²². The integration of various communication tools such as discussion forums, blogs and wikis facilitates the exchange of information and improves internal communication ²².

To increase the acceptance of the new portal, it is advisable to involve a group of test users in the development and elaboration of the functionalities ²³. This ensures that the functions offered meet the actual needs of employees and are anchored in everyday working life.

Forms and workflows for HR processes

Implementing workflows in SharePoint enables organizations to enforce consistent business processes and improve operational efficiency ^24. Special forms and workflows can be developed for HR processes to make work easier for employees ²³.

Microsoft Flow (now Power Automate) offers the opportunity to reduce the time spent on repetitive tasks. For example, a workflow can be set up that automatically enters the required information into an onboarding list when a new employee is hired and sends emails to the relevant departments ²⁵.

Microsoft Forms is suitable for creating surveys and polls. This online survey application allows employees to access surveys at any time and from any device ²⁵. This is particularly useful for obtaining feedback on current processes and identifying potential for improvement.

Obtain read receipts

In modern intranets, it is often necessary to ensure that important information is read and understood by the right people. Read receipts offer an effective way of checking this.

The following points are essential:

1. Proof of acknowledgement: Read receipts provide clear feedback on who has read which information. This is particularly important for compliance documents or security-relevant instructions.
2. Increased accountability: When employees know that they are expected to read the content, they take it more seriously and are more inclined to engage with the information.
3. Efficient communication: Read receipts help to ensure that important messages are not overlooked and make it possible to follow up specifically if someone has not yet read the information
4. Obligation to provide evidence for instruction documents / information

IT helpdesk and knowledge database

An effective knowledge database is a central component of the self-service approach. It enables employees to find answers to their questions or solutions to problems on their own. Mozzaik365 offers a knowledge management module that allows users to access the knowledge bases set up by the company. A powerful semantic search engine and keyword management facilitate efficient and fast searches for relevant information ²¹.

Automation tools such as Power Automate can be used for more complex requests. These enable the automation of company processes by connecting with all Microsoft tools. For example, requests can be recorded, dashboards updated and alerts generated by email or via a Teams channel ²¹.

The identification of experts on specific topics is another important aspect of the self-service approach. This enables access to more information and at the same time promotes recognition of the expertise of individual employees ²¹.

By implementing these self-service functions, companies can significantly increase the efficiency of their internal processes and at the same time improve the satisfaction and productivity of their employees.

Measurement and Optimization of Intranet Usage

The systematic collection and evaluation of usage data is crucial for the success of a modern intranet. By analyzing user behavior, companies can increase the efficiency of their internal communication and continuously improve the user-friendliness of their platform.

Important KPIs for intranets

In order to measure the effectiveness of an intranet, it is important to define and monitor relevant key performance indicators (KPIs). The direct KPIs include:

1. Number of page views
2. Number of individual users
3. Number and duration of sessions
4. Amount of content posted, searched for and viewed
5. Interactions with corporate communications (likes, comments)

Indirect KPIs that can provide information about the efficiency of the intranet include:

• Number of requests received by the helpdesk
• Number of emails to colleagues requesting information ²⁶

These KPIs help to quantify the use and impact of the intranet on the company's productivity.

Analysis tools in SharePoint

SharePoint offers integrated tools for measuring intranet usage. As a site owner, you can view detailed information about how users interact with your site. This includes:

• Unique callers: Total number of unique visitors
• Website visits: Number of visits in the last 7, 30 and 90 days
• Average time per user: Trend of actual activity on pages
• Popular content: Most visited pages, news articles and documents
• Website traffic: Hourly trend of visits
• Popular platforms: Distribution of visits by device type ²⁷

This data can be viewed via the "Analytics" option next to the page details.

Modern intranet solutions such as Omnia intranet and Mozzaik365 offer extended analysis options. They make it possible to view data beyond the standard 90-day limit of SharePoint and to filter information by location and department ²⁸.

Continuous improvement based on data

The data collected forms the basis for continuous optimization of the intranet. By analyzing usage patterns, companies can:

1. Identify bottlenecks and performance problems
2. Improve the user experience
3. Allocate resources in a more targeted manner
4. Create personalized user experiences
5. Clean up content and organize it better
6. Saving costs through more efficient use of resources ²⁹

To promote acceptance of the intranet, it is advisable to integrate the performance data directly into SharePoint. This increases visibility and motivates collaboration ³⁰. In addition, involving colleagues in analyzing the data can promote understanding of the system and lead to greater acceptance.

It is important to note that data protection must be guaranteed when collecting and analyzing data. Modern analytics solutions such as Intranet Analytics collect information anonymously and without storing personal data to ensure compliance with GDPR ²⁸.

Conclusion

Implementing modern intranet solutions with Microsoft SharePoint has a profound impact on internal communication and collaboration within organizations. By carefully designing the information architecture, encouraging employee engagement and introducing self-service capabilities, organizations can create a digital work environment that boosts productivity and increases employee satisfaction. Solutions such as Omnia intranet and Mozzaik365 offer additional ways to transform SharePoint intranets into powerful digital workplaces.

To ensure the long-term success of an intranet, it is important to continuously measure and optimize its use. By analyzing relevant KPIs and using integrated analytics tools, companies can make data-based decisions to continuously improve their intranet. This results in a platform that adapts to the changing needs of employees and creates real added value for the company.

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References

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