A company’s intranet environment, at its very essence, serves to improve and enhance its digital employee communication needs to foster the pitch-perfect combination of employee engagement and a customers-first culture.
When your employees are working together, creating meaningful content, communicating and collaborating for your business’s benefit, you can bet that you are well on your way to providing peak satisfaction for your customers.
Take Some Cues from These 5 Companies That Are Taking Their Customers-First Culture to the Next Level
Although you have likely done your homework, as far as best practices and training strategies, when it comes to getting the most out of your business’s intranet, it never hurts to take a closer look at companies that are already reaping the rewards of investing in intranets to foster a strong customers-first culture.
1. Salini Impregilo
Salini Impreglio is a global giant focusing on complex infrastructure projects, including dams and hydroelectric plants, hydraulic works, railways, metros, airports and motorways. With a 110 year history in an industry that is fearless in its pioneering spirit, it is clear that Salini Impregilo understands the value of embracing new concepts to enhance its brand.
In May of 2015, Salini Impregilo was recognized by @Work as one of the best intranet sites in the world. The judges made their decision based on the global scope of the company’s intranet, along with its look, feel and multimedia functionality. This finely tuned environment allowed employees to collaborate on a global scale while still maintaining a sense of familiarity, whether in the same building or thousands of miles away.
2. Cisco
Cisco, a global leader in IT and networking, has greatly increased its innovation, dexterity and speed by embracing intranet capabilities with gusto. The company managed to accelerate its time-to-market by 12-18 months through global collaboration in engineering, according to a user-generated LinkedIn article.
Such an uptick in productivity, which translates to availability for customers, definitely demonstrates a customers-first strategy and result.
3. Mayo Clinic
The world-renowned Mayo Clinic was the 2014 winner of the Intranet Design Annuals 2007-2016, selected by the Nielsen Norman Group (NNG). NNG chooses winners based on factors that include design and usability.
What is better than a medically-based website that features employee-generated content on common health issues? The intranet allows for current Mayo Clinic staff, students, researchers and visiting scholars to perform the following tasks:
- Order articles, journals and book chapters for electronic document delivery
- Request expert literature searches
- Use the “Ask a Librarian” feature
- Learn more about library tutorials and workshops
4. IBM
Called the “Employee Experience Suite,” IBM’s intranet was one of the world’s top 10 as of 2006, leading the charge as a pioneer. The multinational technology firm’s leaders were quick to see the power of the intranet and used personalization to make sure the right information reached the right people.
- Features that IBM used back in the 2000s include:
- Personalization of news
- Employee directory
- Blogging
- Accessibility for users with disabilities
5. Duke Energy
Duke Energy dubbed its intranet platform “The Portal,” focusing on helping workers do their jobs and communicate with one another for greater creativity and problem-solving opportunities. According to Duke Energy Portal Program Manager Martha Brown, the Portal was intended to “spark interaction and innovation on the job” and create a virtual workplace of the future.
The Portal engages and connects with thousands of employees to provide the tools and information they need. It supports Duke Energy’s corporate communication strategies and provides valuable insights into the company’s goals, news, and more. After a complete redesign in 2011, the Portal was named one of the 10 best intranet designs by Nielsen Norman Group.
Are You Ready to Leverage Your Company’s Intranet to Develop a Strong Customers-First Culture?
Hopefully, with such an expansive variety of high-profile employee intranet success stories, you feel ready to launch your own intranet strategies that are unique to your organization and employees and are sure to let your customers know they always come first.
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