Both intranet and extranet are network architectures using one or more servers over the Internet. However, the company opts for the establishment of the first or the second to achieve different objectives; although both are effective channels of communication and exchange.
The special feature of the intranet is that it is the internal network (LAN or WAN), which, in the case of a company, only its employees and other authorized persons can access. On the other hand, the extranet is an external network, made available to a company’s suppliers, partners or customers.
Development of an intranet for this fast food giant.
Creation and maintenance of an intranet for this teachers union in Switzerland.
Intranet: the benefits
- Improves your internal communication
- Connects your business anytime, anywhere
- Encourages information sharing
- Increases collaboration and productivity
- Boosts employee engagement
- Reduces the number of emails and meetings
- Simplifies employee onboarding
- Provides organizational clarity
- Strengthens your brand and values
- Enrich your corporate culture
Intranet extranet development: types of intranet and extranet
- Examples of intranet networks:
- The internal website
This internal company portal is accessible online, only to its staff. Internal administrators create, publish and edit content for other employees. The information is validated by management before being published. The intranet is structured like a public website, protected by a firewall.
- The collaboration platform
On this platform, employees can ask questions, seek clarification, have conversations with each other and exchange documents and tools. It is a digital workplace promoting communication and collaboration. Such a platform can contain dashboards, project management tools and access to training. It encourages participatory innovation, collaborative editing of documents, etc.
- The distributed intranet
The distributed intranet is best suited for large companies with hundreds or thousands of employees, because in this case, one intranet is not enough. A firm's intranet services are decentralized through the design of several applications, resources and tools following a common infrastructure. However, they operate independently within the company's private network.
- Examples of extranet networks:
- The extranet for project management
The extranet is an effective tool for project management, especially when there are various contributors. Privacy is ensured with permissions and other customizable settings. Interorganizational collaboration is important in many sectors. With the extranet, each employee remains responsible for their share of the work and there is less risk of project components being overlooked.
- The extranet for logistics management
The extranet is very useful for companies operating in the field of electronic commerce. This type of platform can connect suppliers, distributors, couriers and customers, representing a communication channel for exchanges between these parties. Logistics extranets help businesses improve their customers' experience by giving them access to real-time updates on their products and services.
- The extranet for product integration
The integration extranet is another effective tool for brands selling products online, allowing inventory to be well managed and instantly updated. This data can be used for inventory purposes and is easily accessible by relevant parties. Integration extranets can be built on a company intranet or hosted on an entirely separate platform.
- The extranet dedicated to Human Resources
The extranet is a handy tool for franchises and other businesses with a large frontline workforce, in order to disseminate employee information. The platform can host employee calendars and other worker-specific information, while serving as a direct line to a company's head office. This network can also allow employees to submit their concerns or recommendations confidentially.
Esokia: we set up your intranet or extranet!
Defining and deploying an intranet or extranet requires know-how. Call on a digital agency with the expertise and tools to set up the best network for your business needs. Esokia is at your disposal for all your web development projects.
Assign the creation, implementation and maintenance of your intranet or extranet to our dynamic developers. We will first analyze your objectives and identify the internal and external problems that these architectures must solve. Then, we will recommend to you the most suitable and secure technology, with easy-to-use and maintainable features, as well as good ergonomics. Finally, we'll make the user adoption process easier. In the long term, you can also hire our services to maintain or update your networks.
Here is how we set up your intranet or extranet:
- First, the conduct of an audit
We start with an audit. We analyze the structure of your IT network, as well as the information system put in place. This allows us to identify the needs, as well as the potential users of the intranet or extranet to be developed and determine with you the solutions required to make your project a reality.
- The formulation of specifications
The specifications can be formulated by you - with the help of a specialized consultant; or by our team. It contains the functional specifications of the intranet or extranet project, with the aim of understanding, organizing and structuring them.
- The budget to allocate
We accurately estimate the costs of your project, in order to submit a commercial proposal to you. These costs depend directly on the tasks to be carried out and the developments that will be necessary for the deployment of the intranet or extranet. We will rely on the specifications.
- The determination of suitable technologies
Having defined the constraints during the audit, we can choose the technologies to be used in the design and implementation of the intranet or extranet system. To make these technological choices, we rely on the customer's information system.
- The development of the intranet or extranet
We develop the intranet or extranet using Agile, Waterfall or hybrid methodology depending on the client's expectations and the constraints of the project. Similar to the creation of an application or a website, it involves the use of programming languages and technologies adapted to the needs of the project, be they languages (PHP, .Net, Java, HTML, CSS, JavaScript ...), databases (MySQL, SQL Server ...), frameworks and CMS.
- The development testing
We perform unit and functional tests from test cases; to check the good performance of the functions of the developed intranet or extranet. Essential during the development process, functions are tested in isolation during unit tests. On the other hand, functional tests serve to validate the correct sequence of functions, themselves made up of other more basic ones.
- The training of the administrators and users
A well-designed intranet or extranet should be easy to use, without requiring lengthy explanations. However, we will have a small training session to introduce the system, so that it is very clear. In this one, we will do some demonstrations, at least to show the functions and usefulness of each one.
- The launch
The time has come to put the intranet or extranet on a server and make it accessible through a single address. It is important to ensure that the application is secure and to put in place backup and monitoring procedures, as well as recovery procedures in the event of a glitch. Then all you have to do is to notify everyone who will use it.
- The operational maintenance
Formally called maintenance in operational condition (MCO), it is a question of implementing measures allowing, in the event of problem (s), to maintain the application in an acceptable operational state. For these circumstances, we plan degraded operating modes, in order to guarantee continuity of service.
