Intranets: When ‘push’ comes to shove

Launch your intranet to deliver important information to your work force

Whether you’re launching a brand-new intranet or revamping an existing one, one crucial decision is how — and when — to “push” important information out to your workforce.

Paula Cassin, director of Cut Through Communications, helps companies improve employee communications with high-tech solutions that bypass overloaded e-mail inboxes. In a recent interview with Ragan.com, Cassin shared some tips for building an intranet that will let you push key messages effectively:

• Don’t be a perfectionist. You can wait until everything is “complete,” but then you’re missing the point of an intranet — interactivity. “Invite them to rate it, invite them to comment, invite them for feedback,” Cassin says. “Use your employees to fix it.” Launch your intranet as a work in progress, expect both positive and negative feedback, and adjust your sights accordingly.