An Empirical Roadmap for Intranet Evolution

One of the most frequent causes of partial or total failure of an Intranet project is certainly the undervaluation of the importance of the organizational aspects. In fact, most of the companies manage the implementation project in a purely technical perspective without systematically facing the organizational and the change management aspects. Particularly critical is the definition of governance-the organizational choices that determine the division of the responsibilities and the key criteria to be followed in the planning and management of an Intranet initiative. Inadequate decisions regarding governance are often difficult to be modified and can jeopardize the development possibilities and the Intranet effectiveness. Basing on the results of the Permanent Observatory on Intranets in the period 2003-2007, and a multiple case studies methodology, this article aims at analyzing and interpreting the choices of governance carried out in the several phases of the evolution path. 110 cases were developed and analysed using a retrospective logic, in order to verify the evolution of the observed variables; some are also longitudinal cases. For each phase it has been identified the typical approaches, the main criticalities and some guidelines emerging from the analysis of the best practices and the cases of failure. The management guidelines have been systematized in the "Intranet roadmap" that offers actionable knowledge to effectively govern the evolution of the Intranet towards an advanced Virtual Workspace.