Did you know that more than half of organizations (60%) don’t have a long-term internal communications strategy according to a study by Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.? Another study conducted by Hollinger Scott revealed that 41% of businesses don’t know whether employees are viewing internal content. One key to managing an intranet successfully is monitoring its usage effectively through analytics and tracking key metrics to understand its performance and ensure success.

What is an Intranet?

An intranet is a private network that allows employees to access information limited to the workforce. It is also used to manage workflow in the organization through specialized software. An example of an intranet is an internal site used by a bank specifically for employee updates and information, facilitating easy search and access to reports and analytics..

Benefits of an Intranet in the Digital Workplace :

An intranet can be integrated with various online platforms, such as SharePoint and social media, as well as with analytics software. The result is a powerful internal communications tool capable of providing multiple benefits, including tracking usage metrics and gaining valuable insights into employee engagement:

1. Useful for employee communication and collaboration

Employees can often waste considerable time during the workday searching for information they need to complete tasks. The intranet usually includes a robust search feature powered by analytics to track usage patterns, along with a section of user profiles that display employees’ credentials, interests, and areas of expertise, along with their job title, photo, and contact information. Additionally, having an integrated app allows workers to easily find and report on projects, helping a worker who is looking for help to connect with colleagues and message them directly.

2. A convenient way to manage information and files

The company intranet centralizes information and files in one location, enhanced by search analytics that track usage and access patterns. This allows employees to focus on collaboration and productive tasks, rather than spending time searching inefficiently.

3. Easy way to set up a content management system (CMS)

Employees can now utilize the intranet as a source for blogs, social features, discussion forums, and integrated apps. By leveraging content management software, it serves as a key component to increase employee engagement and allows workers to have a voice, for instance, through employee satisfaction surveys, which can be tracked and reported on to gain insights.

4. Ensuring Data Security and Ownership

While integrating an intranet with various platforms like SharePoint and other software, it's crucial to prioritize data security and ownership. Instead of risking sensitive information with third-party providers, setting up on-premise analytics tools allows companies to track and report on data usage, offering full control over collected data, compliance with privacy regulations, and assurance that sensitive internal data remains secure.

• Employee Engagement

Time to start or overhaul an engagement strategy? Capitalize on Employee Engagement Opportunities by setting clear goals and utilizing analytics to gain insights into employee behavior.

• Leading Intranet Metrics and KPIs to Track for Internal Communications

How can companies know whether an intranet is garnering the best results? Often, they measure an intranet’s effectiveness using analytics and tracking specific metrics. These key performance indicators (KPIs) can generate detailed reports and provide insights, giving a clear indication of how well the intranet is working for the company.

 5. Enhanced Marketing Reach

Intranet analytics also extend beyond internal metrics. An effective intranet can amplify marketing initiatives as employees share company content on social media and platforms like Google, driving both internal and external engagement. By tracking these shares and analyzing their impact, companies gain insights into consumer behavior through employee advocacy, which can lead to increased brand awareness and customer engagement.

— Employee Engagement KPIs

Employee engagement KPIs are analytics tools used to track whether employees feel emotionally committed to their employer and whether their engagement helps the company reach its goals. By regularly reporting on these metrics, companies can understand how emotional connections to work influence performance and retention rates.

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1. Number of Active Intranet Users and Usage Time

This intranet metric reveals whether employees find the system relevant, if they are actually using it, and how frequently they are accessing it. By tracking the usage time through analytics software, companies can generate reports that provide valuable data on how long employees stay logged in, offering insights into the system’s effectiveness and contributing to the overall success of the intranet.

Using a tracking feature for mobile apps to determine where employees are logging into the company intranet can also be helpful. Not all workers will be accessing it from the office, and it is beneficial to track whether intranet usage varies among those who are based remotely or staff who work from offices. This data helps in understanding usage patterns and optimizing the intranet site accordingly.

The analysis can be tracked from the intranet software or an external performance analysis tool. Google Analytics is one tool that may be used for this purpose, providing comprehensive reports to understand user behavior and track the success of intranet initiatives.

2. Number of Clicks, Comments, and Shares

Tracking the number of intranet users only reveals that employees are getting into the system. A more accurate way to determine how effectively an intranet is performing is to count the number of clicks and comments staff are generating after they enter the platform. This tracking provides detailed reports on engagement levels and helps measure the intranet’s overall performance based on the increase in internal communication levels.

The following metrics can be instructive:

• Reaction clicks, such as “likes”, “loves”, and even “dislikes”
• Tagging of coworkers
• Employee comments on blogs, news stories, and other types of content
• Intranet users creating new content
• Article click-through rates

→ Read more: The HR Guide to Effective Employee Engagement Metrics

3. Employee Reach

With previous versions of intranet platforms, not all employees could participate on the platform. Remote workers or those who spend a good part of their time out of the office, such as outside sales or service representatives, likely spent less time on the intranet than inside employees. Mobile apps and a shift to secure remote authentication and the cloud allow users to log in easily from anywhere, which should lead to higher employee reachability and better usage tracking.

To determine the reach percentage, track the number of registered users or, if unavailable, unique visitors using the intranet platform during a certain time. Then divide this figure by the total number of employees working for the company. The sum should roughly equal the total reach percentage. Next, it’s important to always compare against a baseline of previous numbers to find the increase in employee reach for the period, ensuring that goals are being met through effective usage tracking.

4. Number of Pages of User-Generated Content

What does user-generated content have to do with a successful intranet launch? As it turns out, it has plenty to do with how well employees are feeling about the intranet and whether they are engaged at work. Tracking user-generated content through analytics helps understand engagement levels and the types of content that drive success.

Are several employees responsible for the majority of the content being generated or are many people taking part? Are they producing quality content that will attract readers? Which topics are most popular on the intranet platform and social media? Begin to measure the internal influence of user-generated content by tracking these intranet KPIs:

• All employee-generated content on the intranet platform
• Where employees are contributing most
• The amount of time employees spend on content creation
• Which topics are trending
• Number of times employee-generated content is clicked on, read, or shared with fellow employees

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5. Identities of Top Intranet Users

Top intranet users are the employees who spend the most time on the platform. They include the employees who have been selected as intranet ambassadors (the company “super users” or influencers), as well as employees who naturally use the company intranet frequently. Tracking these top users through analytics helps understand usage patterns and areas for improvement.

It’s worthwhile to keep track of which employees are most engaged with the intranet. This group of workers can report exactly what they like about the platform, what works for them, and what features they find challenging to navigate. Asking them if there is anything they would like to see changed or improved, since these are the team members who know the platform best, can provide valuable insights for achieving intranet success.

These experienced intranet users can also play a role in training new hires on the company intranet. A new employee may feel more comfortable sharing concerns with a peer, as opposed to contacting IT or HR for assistance. Utilizing top users ensures that training is effective and helps in understanding common user issues.

To find top users, look at who is participating most often in discussions on the intranet. They are frequently the people who are spending the most time on the platform. Run a user report to confirm who is visiting the most pages in your company’s departments. These analytics help identify the people who are spending the most time on the intranet.

6. Most-Viewed Items

A communications manager wants to know whether the company news posted on the intranet is being read and digested by employees. It is an important part of the company’s overall communication strategy, supported by analytics reports to track readership and engagement.

The intranet is used for much more than workgroups communicating with each other. It is a powerful tool for sharing all types of content with employees. When intranet users are confident they will find high-quality and informative content as well as access to key company platforms there, they will turn to the intranet for information and as a resource to help them with their work repeatedly, ensuring ongoing engagement and success.

To determine which pieces of content have been viewed most often, go to a section of the intranet to see which pieces of content have the most page views over a set time (a week or a month, for example). Make note of whether the most popular items are on similar topics, are in the same format (blog posts, PDF documents, PowerPoint presentations), and if they share a similar voice (formal vs. casual).

7. Least-Viewed Items

Along with the most popular items on the company intranet, keeping track of what did not resonate with employees can be instructive. This data is just as important as tracking the most-viewed items. The items that aren’t capturing page views may be ones that are out of date or that contain information that is no longer relevant to team members based on recent upgrades or changes.

It’s important to identify these items which are no longer relevant and understand why that is the case. Inactive items also take up space on the platform and are searchable, muddying results. It makes sense to either delete them (if certain they are no longer relevant) or archive them (in case someone may need to reference them at a later time).

To find the least-viewed items, identify the items with the fewest page views over a set time. It is best to use a longer period than when trying to identify the least popular items (three or six months), ensuring accurate tracking of engagement trends.

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