Reviews and feedback
“The Intranet Roadmap was our Lonely Planet guide to a part of the world we had just started to explore and its flexibility enabled us to explain our approach to stakeholders who had never done anything like this before. The five streams (Strategy, Design, Content, Change and Communications and Technology) helped us manage linkages and communicate priorities with IT, marketing and business colleagues.
“Throughout the project we displayed the Roadmap prominently in the project office, ticking tasks off and demonstrating to people how we were tracking. It was a powerful visual tool and part of our communication strategy. It helped keep us honest and to deliver on time against our plan. Even though we have now successfully launched the site, we revisit the roadmap to make sure our plans for the future are on track and that the business truly gains value from the intranet.”
Jeanette Bourke, QBE Insurance Australia
“James Robertson wants to arm intranet teams with the proven techniques needed for building intranets. His Intranet Roadmap identifies the core activities that generate key designs and deliverables. A wall chart with five vertical timelines James calls “streams” of concurrent activities, the Roadmap provides an excellent starting template if you use project planning software. An accompanying booklet describes all the activities and their supporting techniques, with further online references to learn about each one.”
Bob Doyle, Editor In Chief, CMS Review
“There are no current books on intranet development, so this very concise handbook from James Robertson and his colleagues at Step Two Designs is very welcome indeed. The 54 page book sets out with great clarity the way in which an intranet should be set up, and will be especially useful to intranet managers in smaller companies, but in fact all intranet managers would do well to have a copy of this booklet to hand.”
“The main sections of the book deal with strategy, design, content, change and communications and technology. The final section deals with techniques such as card-sorting, design patterns, paper prototyping, process mapping and usability testing. For all the sections there are hyperlinks to additional content on either the Step Two Designs site, or on other web sites. The book comes with a large wall chart that summarizes the steps that need to be taken, and would be very useful in project meetings and also pinned to the wall of the intranet team office.”
“Although this is quite a short book the amount of practical expertise contained within is very high indeed. This is clearly a book written by someone who has considerable personal experience of intranet development, and the writing style is very clear and concise.”
Martin White, review in Intranets
“The folks at Step Two Designs have released an excellent resource for those involved in the planning, creation, maintenance, and implementation of corporate intranets. It’s called the Intranet Roadmap and includes a brief, quick-read 54-page guide to developing an intranet strategy, designing a framework, developing content, managing change, evaluating technology and tools, and selecting techniques that will address your organizational issues. It’s one of the best resources available for intranet professionals to date!
“While the topics included in the guide are quite impressive, the four-color wall chart brings everything together, helping make sense of the key activities that should be completed during each phase of an intranet project. It also makes clear, through its excellent design, how each phase and its activities relate to one another.”
Scott Abel, Content Management Strategist
“Many so called how-to guides are written by theoreticians, not practitioners. James Robertson and the Step Two Designs team — while up on the latest in technology and business theory — write how-to from a hands-on perspective. Like a native taking you through an unfamiliar (and sometimes perilous) landscape, ultimately leading you to a truly rewarding place, the Intranet Roadmap is just as its name implies. Intranets are among the most promising and least understood enterprise initiatives and, with its practical, comprehensive, and comprehendible approach, the Intranet Roadmap will help organizations find the way to successful Intranet deployments.”
“Just as you wouldn’t attempt to drive to Burke without a roadmap, you shouldn’t attempt to build, review or modify your intranet without first looking at the Intranet Roadmap and included booklet. It’s full of no nonsense practical advice that’s easy to read and guarantees you won’t miss a thing.”
Neil Douglas, National Museum of Australia
“Step Two Designs take a common sense, practical approach to intranet design. Over the years, I have certainly found their ideas enlightening. The Intranet Roadmap will help you think about your intranet strategy in a logical and comprehensive manner.”
Gerry McGovern, September 2004
