Intranet

The fundamental distinction between intranet and internet lies in accessibility and security controls.

The internet is a public, worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that connects computers globally, allowing anyone with a device and internet connection to access and exchange information across a vast array of resources including websites, videos, and services.

An intranet is a controlled private network, generally within an organization, such as a company or school, that operates like a closed-off version of the internet accessible only to specific members or employees of that organization.

While both networks use similar internet protocol and World Wide Web standards as their core framework, intranets are secured behind firewalls with mandatory user access controls, passwords, and authentication protocols, whereas internet users can access the web with no safeguards if they choose.

The internet serves as a public library accessible to everyone, while an intranet functions more like a private office exclusively for insiders to communicate, collaborate, and access company resources within a secure environment.

An intranet and extranet serve different organizational networking purposes, with distinct levels of access and security protocols.

An intranet is a private local network that enables employees within an organization to create content, communicate, and collaborate exclusively among internal team members, with access restricted to employees or select staff through firewalls, authentication, and permissions controls.

An extranet is a controlled access private network that extends beyond organizational boundaries, providing authorized customers, vendors, and partners access to certain parts of the internal network for secure collaboration and information sharing.

While both are private networks that differ significantly from the public internet, extranets allow varying levels of access based on roles and permissions assigned to each external user, such as suppliers accessing invoices or sharing product information with manufacturing businesses.

The key distinction is that intranets focus exclusively on internal operations and employee communication, while extranets extend that reach to include external stakeholders while maintaining strict security measures and controlled access to specific resources.

Corporate intranets vary significantly across industries, each tailored to meet specific operational and communication needs.

Google's MOMA intranet represents a technology industry gold standard, featuring powerful search engines, customized dashboards, and AI-powered insights that reflect the company's commitment to innovation, built on proprietary technology to facilitate seamless global workforce communication.

Goldman Sachs operates a secure collaboration hub designed for the finance industry, integrating with financial modeling tools, forecasting systems, and providing timely updates across different communication channels.

Cleveland Clinic's employee portal in healthcare focuses on four core elements: improving patient outcomes, enabling cross-functional team collaboration, making healthcare data shareable, and complying with HIPAA guidelines, featuring real-time case updates and training modules.

Walmart's OneWalmart intranet serves the retail sector by connecting global associates through scheduling tools, training resources, communication channels, and feedback portals to boost employee engagement.

Harvard University's my.Harvard intranet provides a comprehensive platform for students, faculty, and staff in the educational sector. Other notable examples include technology companies using intranets for company announcements and employee recognition features, background screening services utilizing intranets as full-featured content management systems, and various industry-specific implementations in manufacturing, airline, food service, and financial sectors.

Intranets provide substantial organizational benefits that directly impact productivity, communication, and operational efficiency.

The primary advantage is improved internal communication, with 87% of respondents acknowledging intranets' role in facilitating strong communication by centralizing workplace interactions and eliminating information silos. Intranets significantly enhance productivity and cost savings by consolidating business workflows, reducing the need for multiple applications, and serving as central document storage that eliminates documents being spread across numerous platforms.

They enable effective remote work capabilities, allowing companies to connect employees to necessary people and resources regardless of location or time zone, with teams collaborating on projects in real-time while maintaining community connection. Knowledge management becomes streamlined through central repository functions with robust search capabilities that help teams efficiently locate relevant information, while advanced security and permission settings protect confidential data.

Employee retention improves as well-informed and connected employees better understand their work's impact and alignment with company goals, leading to increased job satisfaction. Additional advantages include transparent company culture development, enhanced project management visibility, scalable documentation management, simplified IT support through self-serve searches, and strengthened HR management through automated onboarding and internal recruitment capabilities.

The three fundamental types of intranets are categorized based on their primary functionality and organizational communication approach.

1. The Collaboration Platform emphasizes two-way publishing where users contribute content as much as they consume, featuring extensive discussion forums and connection tools that enable employees to interact with each other, with information tending to be informal and conversational.

2. The Internal Website operates on one-way publishing principles, dividing users into distinct consumers and publishers groups, with a defined administrative side accessible to few people where information undergoes review and approval workflows before publication, structured similarly to public websites but behind organizational firewalls.

3. The Distributed Intranet emerges in larger organizations as decentralized systems comprising dozens or hundreds of small applications such as phone directories, announcement systems, and document libraries, grouped around common infrastructure like centralized user databases and unified design elements to maintain consistency across mini-applications.

An alternative classification system identifies Communication Intranets for facilitating internal employee communication, Tools Hub Intranets providing access to various management and documentation systems, and Social Intranets creating collaborative atmospheres for idea sharing and employee connection. Most modern implementations represent hybrid approaches combining elements from multiple types depending on organizational needs and goals.