7 Intranet Planning Steps to Make Your Next Project a Success

Intranet success is built on thoughtful planning. Knowing how to plan a successful intranet that delivers real business value, supports daily work, and evolves over time is essential for any organization navigating today’s digital workplace demands.

Below, we outline seven proven success factors and intranet planning steps to help you design, implement, and manage a successful intranet—one that works today and continues to deliver value in the future.

Learn more: If you want to go deeper into how to plan and implement a successful intranet, be sure to check out our popular, long-running webinar on how to implement a successful intranet.

A well-defined governance model is one of the most important intranet planning steps. Governance clarifies ownership, responsibilities, content standards, compliance requirements, and decision-making processes—ensuring consistency, quality, and security across the platform.

Strong governance also aligns the intranet with business priorities, helping teams focus on the content, workflows, and experiences that matter most. As part of intranet planning, involve key stakeholders from communications, HR, IT, and core business units to ensure broad ownership and long-term sustainability.

Learn more: See real-world design and governance principles in action in this blog: Best Practices for Intranet Design: Principles for Improving the User Experience.

Effective internal communication is a primary driver of intranet value. As you plan your intranet, define a clear communication strategy that outlines audiences, goals, content types, and publishing responsibilities. Empower both central and local communicators with templates, scheduling tools, and clear guidelines to keep content consistent and relevant.

Including communication strategy as part of your intranet planning steps ensures the intranet becomes the trusted source for updates, resources, and strategic messaging. 

Choosing the right tools is a foundational step in how to plan a successful intranet. Modern intranet platforms offer a wide range of features for content creation, collaboration, personalization, and integration.

During intranet planning, evaluate platform capabilities against user needs across roles, locations, and devices. Prioritize tools that support consistency and scalability—such as templates, branding controls, social features, analytics, and integrations with Microsoft 365 and other business systems. The right toolset simplifies both launch and long-term intranet management.

Want to see what matters most? Check out our post on top intranet features. 

User experience (UX) is a make-or-break factor in intranet success. As part of your intranet planning steps, focus on intuitive navigation, modern design, personalization, and mobile responsiveness.

Employees should be able to find information quickly and complete tasks easily—wherever they work. Involving end users early through testing or feedback sessions helps validate assumptions and improves adoption. Ongoing UX optimization, based on usage data and feedback, is essential for long-term success.

Learn more: Learn why social intranets are essential for today’s workplaces in our blog Social Intranet: How it Evolved from Trend to Core Capability in Modern Workplaces.

Even the best intranet plan will fall short without strong adoption. A successful intranet planning strategy includes change management, training, internal communication, and launch activities. Identify champions and early adopters to build momentum, and clearly communicate how the intranet supports everyday work.

Highlight features that save time, improve collaboration, or simplify processes to reinforce ongoing value and encourage regular use.

With hybrid and frontline work now standard, mobile access is no longer optional—it’s a core intranet planning requirement. A successful intranet must work seamlessly across devices, enabling employees to stay informed and productive regardless of location or schedule.

During intranet planning, ensure that navigation, search, notifications, and key services—such as HR self-service or task completion—are fully optimized for mobile use. A mobile-friendly intranet is essential for building an inclusive, connected digital workplace.  

You can’t improve what you don’t measure. One of the most important intranet planning steps is defining success metrics upfront. Identify which analytics will help you evaluate performance—such as user engagement, content reach, search behavior, or task completion rates.

Build dashboards that provide visibility into adoption, content effectiveness, and improvement opportunities. Use these insights to refine your intranet strategy and demonstrate ROI to stakeholders.

Learn more: For insights into boosting user engagement through intranet analytics, check out Intranet Analytics: How to Use it to Improve Intranet Engagement and Performance.

A successful intranet doesn’t happen by chance. It’s the result of clear goals, strong governance, user-focused design, and continuous improvement. By following these intranet planning steps and best practices, you’ll be well positioned to plan a successful intranet that delivers value from day one—and continues to evolve with your organization.

Want more guidance on how to plan, implement, and manage a successful intranet? Download our free resource: Step-by-Step Guide to Achieving Intranet Success. 

Learn more: Explore the resources below to learn more about building and sustaining successful intranets:

Quick Read: Signs Your Intranet Is Outdated: 6 Indicators It’s Time to Upgrade

Case Study: Duni Group Strengthens Communication and Brand Identity

Webinar: How to Implement a Successful Intranet in Microsoft 365