Intranet 2.0 (social media on the corporate intranet) has not only become a collection of mainstream technologies, it has become a necessity for organizations that want to be an employer of choice.
Employees want the opportunity to be heard and to express their opinions and needs more frequently than the annual employee survey. As powerful as the traditional intranet can be, the next generation of intranet, Intranet 2.0, best represented by powerful Web 2.0 tools such as blogs, wikis and social networking that have migrated behind the firewall, have the opportunity to be even more powerful and more engaging.
In fact, social networking and other 2.0 tools have become so popular that an organization without a 2.0 strategy risks being left behind, or outright failure (though death may be slow). Employees want to work for progressive and innovative organizations, and expect 2.0 environments from employers of choice. So much so that a recent survey of 1,000 workers found that 39% of 18 to 24 year-old employees would consider leaving their employer if they were not allowed to access sites like Facebook and YouTube; a further 21% indicated that they would feel ‘annoyed’ by such a ban (Telindus study of 1,000 European employees).
Once a nice-to-have or a scribble on a wish list, Intranet 2.0 tools are present in nearly 50% of organizations (regardless of size) in North America, Europe, and Australia and New Zealand, according to Intranet 2.0: Social Media Becomes Mainstream on the Corporate Intranet. The report reveals the findings of the Intranet 2.0 Global Survey of 561 organizations of all sizes from across the planet.
Among the findings, intranet blogs, wikis and discussion forums are quite pervasive, while other less common tools such as podcasts and mashups remain an after-thought at most organizations:
- 47% have intranet wikis (17% enterprise deployment); 10% have no plans or interest
- 45% have intranet blogs (13% enterprise deployment); 11% have no plans or interest
- 46% have intranet discussion forums (19% enterprise use); 9% have no plans or interest
- 46% have intranet instant messaging (29% enterprise use); 21% have no plans or interest
- 19% have intranet social networking (6% enterprise use); 20% have no plans or interest
Intranet 2.0 Tool Adoption – Intranet 2.0 Global Survey
Many couldn’t define a blog or wiki 3 or 4 years ago – now these tools are present in nearly 50% of organizations, regardless of their size or location. One of the reasons for this rapid adoption is the popularity of these tools on the public Internet: 4 of the top 8 most frequented websites on the planet are web 2.0 (YouTube, Facebook, Wikipedia, and Blogger). Another reason is the low cost of entry and implementation of these tools. According to the Intranet 2.0 Global Survey, of those organizations that have implemented 2.0 tools, almost half have spent $10,000 or less on these tools:
- 46% have spent $10,000 or less
- 35% have spent between $10,000 and $100,00; 19% have spent $100,000 or more
Other findings:
- Only 29% of organizations rate the tool functionality as good or very good; 24% rate them as poor or very poor
- Satisfaction rates with executives is dangerously low: only 23% of executives rate the 2.0 tools as good or very good; 38% rate them as poor or very poor
- For those organizations that have deployed 2.0 tools inside the firewall, about half of all organizations have SharePoint (in some shape or form) (47%)
- Only 15% of organizations have had Intranet 2.0 tools for more than 2 years; 35% of organizations have had their Intranet 2.0 tools for less than 1 year
Ironically, while many executives want to become an employer of choice, it is executives themselves that are the biggest barrier to Intranet 2.0 adoption. Of those organizations that don’t have intranet 2.0 tools, executive support is cited as the biggest barrier blocking the deployment of these tools. Close behind, 30% cite “lack of a business plan” as the biggest barrier to Intranet 2.0 adoption.
Without a proper plan and business case, many organizations will fail to properly implement Intranet 2.0 technologies. Those organizations that don’t have 2.0 tools are not getting executive approval to proceed as they don’t have a proper plan or business case that convinces senior management of the need. If senior management doesn’t wake up to the promise and revolution represented by social media they risk being left behind the competition that actively pursue status as an employer of choice.
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To learn more about Intranet 2.0, download a free, summarized version of the Intranet 2.0 Global Survey findings and analysis report:
