Intranet governance can be a daunting subject, so daunting that it is rarely addressed comprehensively, and often even the core aspects shied away from. This can leave intranets and their teams dangerously adrift.

To be sure, complete governance is far from trivial, embracing design, architecture, visual aesthetics, function, roles, responsibilities, content types, training, resources, stakeholder engagement, senior sponsorship, policies and procedures, and more. Trying to corral all of these aspects can seem like an impossible undertaking, and will be if you approach it as a ‘herding cats’ exercise.

A better approach is to get the basics in place, and let these be the framework that guides more peripheral aspects. All you need start with is a three-page document. (If ready for more pages, refer to Creating an intranet governance guide.)

Page 1 — Intranet definition

Without agreement and clarity on what your intranet is, where it is going and the principles that will take you there, the intranet and team are rudderless. Not only is it essential to get the definition right, it needs to be agreed across the business and captured in a way that can be easily communicated. This means it must be concise, and clear. Anything more than a page is a clue that you are including too much, but when composing it, ensure that:

• the overall purpose is driven by staff needs
• you have consulted widely with stakeholders
• guiding principles to help with decisions in times of change have been included

[July article by Stephen Byrne, read the full article]