Step Two are the global experts on intranets, and we help organisations of all shapes and sizes deliver usable and valuable outcomes

We take a holistic approach to intranets, always driven by an understanding of what staff need, shaped by your business priorities, and informed by an unbiased view of technology options

We’ve literally written the book on intranets — two in fact!

For over 25 years, we’ve uncovered and shared best practices that have been used by teams around the globe. Much of this unique experience is distilled into our two books: Essential intranets that explores business-driven possibilities, and Designing intranets which shows how to apply UX techniques to employee-facing solutions.

How Step Two can help

With decades of practical experience we can help at every stage of the intranet journey.

Employee research

“Whatever you do, don’t ask staff what they want!” This is the surprising message we often start with when discussing intranet research. Instead, we take the time to understand the day-to-day working practices and information needs of employees, seeking out key findings that will shape intranet strategy and design.

We employ a practical mix of one-on-one interviews, workshops, and workplace observation. The research is collated and analysed, and delivered via a series of key themes and insights.

From our library: conducting intranet needs analysisselecting staff for interviews

Stakeholder engagement

An intranet is only valuable when it supports business goals and priorities, and buy-in from key stakeholders and senior leaders is critical for achieving this.

Whether developing a five-year strategy, re-designing an intranet, or building a governance framework, we will bring your senior stakeholders along on the journey. This includes showing what’s been done by other similar organisations, building internal knowledge, and developing a consensus for the path ahead.

From our library: align intranet strategy with business objectives; how to get approval for your intranet project

Vision, strategy and roadmap

Intranets must continuously evolve and improve in step with organisational and technological changes. One of the greatest challenges for intranet owners is to see beyond the reactive day-to-day demands and consider the longer-term direction of the intranet.

Step Two has worked with many teams to put in place a clear intranet vision, a concrete 3-5 year strategy and a pragmatic roadmap of coming activities. We take a highly collaborative approach to strategy development, resulting in a roadmap that is relevant to your specific needs, and endorsed and supported by your senior leaders.

From our library: three elements of every intranet strategy; at the start of the intranet year, where to start?; 6×2: a new approach to planning

UX for employees

Intranets should be user-friendly and intuitive; poor structure and design will immediately lead to frustration and disengagement. Step Two utilises best-practice user-experience (UX) techniques, nuanced to address the specific considerations of intranets and other employee-oriented solutions.

Our collaborative process marries organisational needs with end-user behaviours, and all our design solutions are user-tested and iterated. We also offer mentoring, to guide you through your own design process, and UX training for you and your teams.

From our library: Designing intranets: creating sites that work; designing intranet homepages that help employees do their jobs; creating effective intranet “shop windows”

Governance

Governance is a foundational element of every successful intranet, and it becomes more important over time as the intranet grows and matures.

To make governance achievable and sustainable, Step Two have developed the unique Intranet Operating Model, covering the key aspects of managing and delivering your intranet. Through an engaging process of workshops and consensus-building, we’ll work with you and your senior stakeholders to develop a framework that matches both your intranet maturity and organisational complexity.

From our library: governance is not a weapon; how intranet teams can support site managers and publishers; take a graduated approach to governance.

Technology advice and selection

There are now many technology options for delivering a successful intranet, from SharePoint Online sites, to intranet-in-a-box offerings, and intranet-savvy CMS products. For over two decades, Step Two has played an unbiased, vendor-agnostic role in the marketplace, helping teams navigate the available options.

With an in-depth understanding of technology offerings, Step Two can provide vendor-neutral know-how to inform future directions. We also have unique experience in helping Australian firms conduct a go-to-market process, including determining requirements, writing an RFP and  providing a short-list of relevant vendors.

From our library: five pro tips for selecting a new intranet technology platform; use the five purposes to guide intranet technology selection; consider an out-of-the-box intranet solution

Content

By far the most important role of most intranets is to deliver trusted content, maintained in a way that ensures it remains accurate and useful over time. In addition to the wider questions of intranet governance, there are practical skills that intranet authors need to create useful content.

As well as developing content strategies, Step Two also runs ‘writing for the intranet’ training for intranet teams and groups of content authors. We’ve also mentored many organisations through the establishment and evolution of thriving and engaged authoring communities.

From our library: how to empower authors; the “all together” rule for intranets

“As an incoming digital workplace manager, working in a team experiencing major workplace change, I was so grateful for the support and guidance of James and Step Two to help me untangle our priorities and deliver on our new remit. James’s wealth of knowledge helped me to set a course through managing change in the team and the wider organisation, gather stakeholder feedback, develop a roadmap, create our new graduated governance model and initiate digital skills support. We collaborated through workshops and personalised mentorship over a number of months and by the end of it I had a clear path forward – albeit with a mountain of work ahead of me! As I have set into action these new ways of working with my team and our partners, I’ve seen increased trust and positivity from our stakeholders, better engagement from the business, improved relationships across the organisation and a team that is genuinely excited about our next steps. I couldn’t have done all this without James’s support at the start of the journey. I’ve also found great value in the Step Two webinars and forum posts and have made new connections across my sector through these channels. Thanks, Step Two, for the amazing work you do!”

Rina Garner, Deakin University

What sets us apart

intranet-knowledge

Unrivalled knowledge that will help you deliver a successful, valuable intranet

intranet-support

Our pragmatic support and advice, regardless of what step of the intranet journey you’re on

intranet-track-record

Trusted track record of client engagements across every industry, around Australia and internationally

intranet-community

A sustained commitment to the intranet community, through our Forum, conference and Awards

What do great intranets look like?

Designed to inspire and engage stakeholders and senior leaders, Step Two can help get the internal conversation started with our possibilities workshop. Using real-world examples of great intranets, digital workplaces and digital employee experiences, the workshop paints a picture of what your digital future could look like.

Drawing on 10+ years of the Intranet and Digital Workplace Awards, we can show you real intranet screenshots, relevant to your industry and size.