Citrix mobile collaboration platforms GoToMeeting and Citrix Receiver have been available for Apple iOS users for a while and the Motorola Droid 3 was the first Android smartphone to have both of these apps pre-installed. Now all Android smartphone owners can use GoToMeeting, which lets you participate in online meetings and view presentations remotely. READ MORE
The promise of cloud computing has been around for years. Like any new technology, it’s taken time for the vendor community to work out the kinks and get cloud computing ready for prime time. While cloud computing comes in numerous flavors, what I’m going to address and what’s typically most relevant to small or mid-sized businesses is software-as-a-service (SaaS). This means that applications are hosted by service providers instead of running on your hardware in the office. This is a big deal. My company — a global PR firm with offices across the United States, Asia, and Europe — depends on extremely high service levels from the IT function. As a one-woman band managing our technology operation, I’m always striving to simplify IT deployment, but it can’t be done at the expense of functionality. This is what led me to evaluate cloud computing for our office applications. After doing my homework, three options were left on the table: Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. We opted to go with Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) solution which was best-suited for our size, reach, and 24×7 response requirements. This said, you should take the time to evaluate all three options because each provider offers a little different functionality. Microsoft BPOS is a fully deployed, cloud-based version of Exchange, SharePoint, Office Communications Online, and Office Live Meeting, which allows us to offload basic functions such as e-mail and Web-based collaboration tools. Why was this important? For one, our e-mail servers were almost four-years-old — ancient in “hardware years.” The money saved by not purchasing three new servers was a “no brainer.” Furthermore, this approach meant substantial time savings for our IT department — i.e., that would be me. Microsoft now handles all updates and maintenance, and we no longer have to pay for applications to screen our e-mail for spam or check e-mail for viruses. For context, consider that our users send and receive over 100,000 e-mails a month. Before moving to the cloud, it used to take on average 12 hours just to back-up our systems. Plus we used to spend $3,000 per year on Trend Micro’s spam filtering services. Rounding out the picture, we were shelling out a chunk of change for collaboration tools such as eRoom (at $300 per license) and Citrix conferencing software ($1,200/per year for just three licenses). Microsoft’s BPOS enabled us to eliminate these costs and ensure that we always have the most current versions of comparable software and a secure environment. The service also comes with 24×7 technical support including support for multiple languages. This last point carried some weight in our evaluation process. With Microsoft BPOS, our overseas offices now have quicker response time to e-mail and receive support in their local languages. I also can’t emphasize enough the value of engaging with a knowledgeable third-party IT consultant to assist with the transition to the cloud. Just the task of importing e-mails from the legacy system into the cloud application is not for the squeamish. You want to make sure you have someone at your side who has been through this exercise before. In our case, we partnered with firm called Zag Technical Services. Zag is a Microsoft Gold Partner, and their consultants helped us wade through all of the costs and steps involved in a successful transition, including the migration of 45 gigabytes of e-mail (which is why I used the term “not for the squeamish.”) As you would expect, our transition to the cloud did not come without its challenges. For example, even though our transition was completed six months ago, I’m still receiving feedback — prefer that word to “complaints” — about e-mail limitations. Employees who have been with the company for five, 10, 15 or more years used to have no limitations when it came to e-mail use. Now, all of a sudden they’re confined by such parameters as a 15MB limit to attachments and 2GB of storage space. And it’s worth pointing out that moving to the cloud has also meant that I had to relinquish some control. Simple requests to modify backend applications now have to go through Microsoft. Not a problem going through a service provider if the changes are made fairly instantaneously with a three-, six-, even a 12-hour turnaround. But we are currently looking at three days — a bit frustrating for an IT director who is used to doing everything herself in-house. Nevertheless, from my perspective as well as from our CFO’s, the benefits far outweigh any downside. Our mantra for 2010 is “shaking up the status quo.” Our move to the cloud has IT leading the charge. Linda Wilson is the IT director of The Hoffman Agency, a global public relations firm with 120 employees.
The promise of cloud computing has been around for years. Like any new technology, it’s taken time for the vendor community to work out the kinks and get cloud computing ready for prime time. While cloud computing comes in numerous flavors, what I’m going to address and what’s typically most relevant to small or mid-sized businesses is software-as-a-service (SaaS). This means that applications are hosted by service providers instead of running on your hardware in the office. This is a big deal. My company — a global PR firm with offices across the United States, Asia, and Europe — depends on extremely high service levels from the IT function. As a one-woman band managing our technology operation, I’m always striving to simplify IT deployment, but it can’t be done at the expense of functionality. This is what led me to evaluate cloud computing for our office applications. After doing my homework, three options were left on the table: Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. We opted to go with Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) solution which was best-suited for our size, reach, and 24×7 response requirements. This said, you should take the time to evaluate all three options because each provider offers a little different functionality. Microsoft BPOS is a fully deployed, cloud-based version of Exchange, SharePoint, Office Communications Online, and Office Live Meeting, which allows us to offload basic functions such as e-mail and Web-based collaboration tools. Why was this important? For one, our e-mail servers were almost four-years-old — ancient in “hardware years.” The money saved by not purchasing three new servers was a “no brainer.” Furthermore, this approach meant substantial time savings for our IT department — i.e., that would be me. Microsoft now handles all updates and maintenance, and we no longer have to pay for applications to screen our e-mail for spam or check e-mail for viruses. For context, consider that our users send and receive over 100,000 e-mails a month. Before moving to the cloud, it used to take on average 12 hours just to back-up our systems. Plus we used to spend $3,000 per year on Trend Micro’s spam filtering services. Rounding out the picture, we were shelling out a chunk of change for collaboration tools such as eRoom (at $300 per license) and Citrix conferencing software ($1,200/per year for just three licenses). Microsoft’s BPOS enabled us to eliminate these costs and ensure that we always have the most current versions of comparable software and a secure environment. The service also comes with 24×7 technical support including support for multiple languages. This last point carried some weight in our evaluation process. With Microsoft BPOS, our overseas offices now have quicker response time to e-mail and receive support in their local languages. I also can’t emphasize enough the value of engaging with a knowledgeable third-party IT consultant to assist with the transition to the cloud. Just the task of importing e-mails from the legacy system into the cloud application is not for the squeamish. You want to make sure you have someone at your side who has been through this exercise before. In our case, we partnered with firm called Zag Technical Services. Zag is a Microsoft Gold Partner, and their consultants helped us wade through all of the costs and steps involved in a successful transition, including the migration of 45 gigabytes of e-mail (which is why I used the term “not for the squeamish.”) As you would expect, our transition to the cloud did not come without its challenges. For example, even though our transition was completed six months ago, I’m still receiving feedback — prefer that word to “complaints” — about e-mail limitations. Employees who have been with the company for five, 10, 15 or more years used to have no limitations when it came to e-mail use. Now, all of a sudden they’re confined by such parameters as a 15MB limit to attachments and 2GB of storage space. And it’s worth pointing out that moving to the cloud has also meant that I had to relinquish some control. Simple requests to modify backend applications now have to go through Microsoft. Not a problem going through a service provider if the changes are made fairly instantaneously with a three-, six-, even a 12-hour turnaround. But we are currently looking at three days — a bit frustrating for an IT director who is used to doing everything herself in-house. Nevertheless, from my perspective as well as from our CFO’s, the benefits far outweigh any downside. Our mantra for 2010 is “shaking up the status quo.” Our move to the cloud has IT leading the charge. Linda Wilson is the IT director of The Hoffman Agency, a global public relations firm with 120 employees.
CTAP has been supplying the oil and gas industry drilling in the Rocky Mountain region with tubing products and service for 25 years from its Louisville, Colo. headquarters. Andy Carlson, CTAP’s director of IT, tells IncTechnology.com that by centralizing the firm’s information environment and networking its storage yards along railroad routes the firm has improved inventory management, billing, and internal communication. Elizabeth Wasserman: How many storage yards do you manage in your business? Andy Carlson: CTAP supplies steel tubular products, pipe, and services for the drilling rigs in the Rocky Mountain region. We have our service yards strategically positioned on rail sites, where we can receive, ship, store, manage and service our customers’ needs. The tubing products we work with generally range from 20 feet to 40 feet long and are extremely heavy, requiring loaders and heavy machinery to move. We’re currently at six yards now located in Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado, and expect growth this year. Wasserman: What was the issue with communications between the yards? Carlson: This business has grown by acquiring other businesses and locations over 25 years. As a result, we have very different methods of management, communication and culture in each of these locations. The first task was to be able to standardize our method of inventory management, so we would know how much tubing has come in, how much has gone out, where it’s gone and who it’s for. Historically, this was accomplished on spread sheets and e-mailed into the corporate office on a weekly basis. We used that to assemble our billing packages for customers, but there was latency issue in the timing of the bills and the fact that we had no auditing trial at all. The communication of inventory information was not part of an efficient process and did not leverage available technology. Wasserman: What did you do? Carlson: I started at CTAP a year ago, and the first priority was to create a perpetual inventory management system. We needed a centralized information application and a centralized information environment. Given that I was the only IT person at that time, I needed a cloud based solution, and the expertise to design, build and implement it fast. I chose 3T Systems because they provided both of those services, and had worked well with them in the past. We developed our network environment based on Citrix. It allowed all of us including main office and yards to communicate on the same platform, through e-mail, file sharing, and application sharing. Today, we use the same working environment and we’ve been able to be consistent in the way we work. The second thing we did with 3T was to develop an inventory management application specific to when the product comes in and out of the yards. It’s a perpetual inventory management system so we can bill faster and have accuracy in terms of reporting, both internally and back to our customers. Our customers were asking questions such as, ‘How much of our tubing do you have at the Montana yard?’ It would literally take three days to figure out. Someone would have to go out and count and report back. The spreadsheet would need to be re-keyed in, then adjusted for any last minute inventory level changes. Today, any one of us can get that information in 10 seconds. Shortly, customers will be able to get that information on demand through our customer portal. Wasserman: What are the improvements that you’ve noticed? Carlson: It’s revolutionized the way we communicate, forecast and implement decisions. It’s contributed to our profitability in that we are able to assemble billing packages much more quickly. It’s allowed our management team to monitor the inventory levels from a macro level, and respond to new business accordingly. It’s allowed our sales team to monitor the inventory levels at the micro level, and respond to customer inquiries in real-time. It’s reduced a lot of errors and inefficiencies. Finally, we now have a competitive advantage over other businesses that provide similar services because of our information system. That’s a big improvement for our customers because sometimes we store some of their inventory, and the confidence they gain in our processes They like to know how much of their inventory is in our yards at any given time, and they now have the tools to get that information a lot quicker than they use to.
Still sorting out the difference between webinar, webcast, and Web meetings? Each means of interacting with clients, customers, or staff members via the Web is used to a different end. The one you choose depends on the business situation you’re addressing. You’d hold a Web meeting, for instance, to interact with outside clients or with team members. A webcast would be useful for managers with a message for a dispersed team of employees. And webinars can help build your client base. Obviously, the way you choose to interact with clients and customers will likely change according to your subject. Here are some tips for choosing the best option to suit the message you’re delivering. Decide how much interaction you’ll need between participants Unlike Web meetings, where everyone can participate, talk, and share presentations, both webinars and webcasts have a single presenter, or at least one presenter at a time, says June Bower, vice president of the collaboration software division at WebEx of San Jose, Calif., which offers all three services. The primary difference between a webinar and a webcast is the amount of interactivity between the presenter and the audience. A webcast is a one-way presentation that commonly uses streaming video. “The analogy is to the television experience,” Bower says. Little interaction. Do you have financial numbers to present to team members? A webcast is the way to go, says Bernardo de Albergaria is vice president of global marketing at Citrix Online of Santa Barbara, Calif. His company makes GotoMeeting tools for all three methods of Web interactions. Moderate interaction. Webinars are generally held to communicate about a new service or initiative. They typically feature moderated interaction, with a moderator helping the presenter by organizing questions from the audience. You can present PowerPoint slides, photographs, and software demonstrations during these meetings, Bower says. You’d hold a webinar much as you’d host a sales or marketing presentation in a hotel conference center, de Albergaria says. A lot of interaction. Will you need to discuss an issue? Then a Web meeting, which allows for back-and-forth interaction, is applicable here. Think of it as a conference call with updated visual and collaborative Web functions. “We’ve found our customers use the words Web conference and meeting interchangeably,” Bower says. “They’re for when you have something specific to talk about with your customers or clients that’s not a marketing message. You’re collaborating to get work done.” The medium isn’t the message Whichever Web-based contact method you choose, you’ll still need to follow best meeting practices. You’ll want to make sure attendees will have an agenda to follow, for example. Keep in mind, webinars take much more planning than Web meetings, which can be set up on the fly, de Albergaria says. These Web tools make repeated interactions pretty easy, de Albergaria says. You can archive webinars and webcasts at your website for replay, which makes them powerful marketing or refresher tools. Consider more than one meeting method A first contact may be more applicable to one method, a follow-up meeting another method. “So if you want to update internal people on a new service you’re rolling out you could do it as a Web conference, then follow that up with a webcast,” Bower says. “Of you could hold a Web meeting and point attendees to a pertinent webinar you have archived.” SIDEBAR: Questions to Ask When Choosing a Web Meeting Option Who is your audience? Is your message marketing or informational in nature? How much interaction between participants will you need? Will you need a presenter? Someone to take questions? Or will all participants speak freely back and forth? Should you use a second method for a follow-up meeting?
Poor Karen Pierce Gonzalez. Not long ago, an out-of-state client of her California public relations firm needed her at a face-to-face meeting but had cut its travel budget. To save money, the client booked her on a weekend flight with multiple stopovers from an airport that wasn’t even close to her home. “I was exhausted from sitting in horrible airport chairs during the stopovers, plus the meeting was scheduled for late Saturday night and Sunday morning,” her usual time off work, Gonzalez recalls. “I don’t see how they could have gotten their money’s worth from me.” If only Gonzalez’ client had considered a videoconference, she could have participated from the comfort of her own desk during regular office hours and the client could have saved itself the hassle and expense. With air travel and gas prices still sky high, more small and mid-sized businesses are using videoconferencing and online meetings in place of in-person visits. In fact, 42 percent of 610 business travelers and corporate travel managers responding to a June poll by Business Traveler Magazine said they were exploring alternatives to business trips, including video- or Web conferences. Technology finally lives up to promise When videoconference systems debuted in the early 1990s they promised to revolutionize how companies conducted business. Things didn’t exactly work out that way. Hardware in those early systems was glitchy and transmissions traveling over too-slow computer networks resulted in choppy pictures that lagged behind audio feeds. Thanks to high-quality graphics, high-speed Internet connections, webcams and voice over IP, videoconference systems, and Web-based online meeting services are miles ahead of where they used to be. Add to that companies looking to cut travel budgets — and lower their carbon footprint — and you have the perfect combination of factors pushing online meetings into widespread use. “Videoconferencing is a whole different experience today than it was a few years ago, and it’s more affordable, which is driving it down” to smaller companies, says Brett Shockley, CEO at Spanlink Communications, a Minneapolis communications reseller that markets videoconferencing and other communications networks to small and mid-sized businesses. While some high-end videoconferencing systems run well into six figures, services exist for just about any budget. At the lowest end are services such as DimDim, a free, open-source, Web-based online meeting tool that lets up to 20 people share PowerPoint presentations, files and video without having to download software onto their desktop. Meatier versions of DimDim’s software cost $99 a year for online meetings of up to 100 people and $1,999 a year for up to 1,000 people. Even mid-sized companies are remodeling conference rooms to include expensive telepresence systems featuring wrap-around-style screens and HD-quality video from companies such Cisco and HP to avoid flying salespeople and managers to face-to-face meetings, says Spanlink’s Shockley. Spanlink uses telepresence rooms for its own business, to hold meetings with far-flung employees and make presentations to new customers. “I fly two or three days a week but I can’t be on the East Coast, West Coast, Florida and Canada in the same week,” Shockley says. Using videoconferencing “I can leverage my time and be closer to the customer.” Not to mention cutting his travel costs. Road warriors and companies that don’t want to take on the burden of buying videoconferencing equipment themselves can rent videoconferencing rooms by the hour at FedEx Office, formerly known as FedEx Kinko’s. The shipping and business services company has videoconferencing systems in 122 locations around the country, starting at $225 an hour. Meanwhile, Gonzalez, the California public relations agency owner, is hoping her customers start using videoconferencing soon. “While it isn’t warm and fuzzy, it still serves a great purpose,” she says. SIDEBAR: Videoconference and Online Meeting Vendors Here are some additional videoconference and online meeting services suited to small businesses: Adobe Connect Pro — The Meetings module included in this recently upgraded Web conference and e-learning lets a user customize the look of their online meeting space, among other features. Connect Pro also has modules for presentations, training and events. GoToMeeting.com — Citrix’s videoconference service for small businesses was recently upgraded to include free VoIP and audio conferencing for PCs and Macs. IBM Lotus — The venerable communications and productivity program includes features people can use to simultaneously send instant messages, share documents and launch Web confernces. Microsoft Live Meeting — The Microsoft service lets people schedule, start or join audio or video online meetings from Outlook. WebEx — Cisco purchased this online meeting pioneer in May 2007 and six months later introduced a version of the service for sole proprietors called MeetMeNow that’s $49 a month and includes personal video conferencing and Web meetings that can be launched from Microsoft Office programs.
Poor Karen Pierce Gonzalez. Not long ago, an out-of-state client of her California public relations firm needed her at a face-to-face meeting but had cut its travel budget. To save money, the client booked her on a weekend flight with multiple stopovers from an airport that wasn’t even close to her home. “I was exhausted from sitting in horrible airport chairs during the stopovers, plus the meeting was scheduled for late Saturday night and Sunday morning,” her usual time off work, Gonzalez recalls. “I don’t see how they could have gotten their money’s worth from me.” If only Gonzalez’ client had considered a videoconference, she could have participated from the comfort of her own desk during regular office hours and the client could have saved itself the hassle and expense. With air travel and gas prices still sky high, more small and mid-sized businesses are using videoconferencing and online meetings in place of in-person visits. In fact, 42 percent of 610 business travelers and corporate travel managers responding to a June poll by Business Traveler Magazine said they were exploring alternatives to business trips, including video- or Web conferences. Technology finally lives up to promise When videoconference systems debuted in the early 1990s they promised to revolutionize how companies conducted business. Things didn’t exactly work out that way. Hardware in those early systems was glitchy and transmissions traveling over too-slow computer networks resulted in choppy pictures that lagged behind audio feeds. Thanks to high-quality graphics, high-speed Internet connections, webcams and voice over IP, videoconference systems, and Web-based online meeting services are miles ahead of where they used to be. Add to that companies looking to cut travel budgets — and lower their carbon footprint — and you have the perfect combination of factors pushing online meetings into widespread use. “Videoconferencing is a whole different experience today than it was a few years ago, and it’s more affordable, which is driving it down” to smaller companies, says Brett Shockley, CEO at Spanlink Communications, a Minneapolis communications reseller that markets videoconferencing and other communications networks to small and mid-sized businesses. While some high-end videoconferencing systems run well into six figures, services exist for just about any budget. At the lowest end are services such as DimDim, a free, open-source, Web-based online meeting tool that lets up to 20 people share PowerPoint presentations, files and video without having to download software onto their desktop. Meatier versions of DimDim’s software cost $99 a year for online meetings of up to 100 people and $1,999 a year for up to 1,000 people. Even mid-sized companies are remodeling conference rooms to include expensive telepresence systems featuring wrap-around-style screens and HD-quality video from companies such Cisco and HP to avoid flying salespeople and managers to face-to-face meetings, says Spanlink’s Shockley. Spanlink uses telepresence rooms for its own business, to hold meetings with far-flung employees and make presentations to new customers. “I fly two or three days a week but I can’t be on the East Coast, West Coast, Florida and Canada in the same week,” Shockley says. Using videoconferencing “I can leverage my time and be closer to the customer.” Not to mention cutting his travel costs. Road warriors and companies that don’t want to take on the burden of buying videoconferencing equipment themselves can rent videoconferencing rooms by the hour at FedEx Office, formerly known as FedEx Kinko’s. The shipping and business services company has videoconferencing systems in 122 locations around the country, starting at $225 an hour. Meanwhile, Gonzalez, the California public relations agency owner, is hoping her customers start using videoconferencing soon. “While it isn’t warm and fuzzy, it still serves a great purpose,” she says. SIDEBAR: Videoconference and Online Meeting Vendors Here are some additional videoconference and online meeting services suited to small businesses: Adobe Connect Pro — The Meetings module included in this recently upgraded Web conference and e-learning lets a user customize the look of their online meeting space, among other features. Connect Pro also has modules for presentations, training and events. GoToMeeting.com — Citrix’s videoconference service for small businesses was recently upgraded to include free VoIP and audio conferencing for PCs and Macs. IBM Lotus — The venerable communications and productivity program includes features people can use to simultaneously send instant messages, share documents and launch Web confernces. Microsoft Live Meeting — The Microsoft service lets people schedule, start or join audio or video online meetings from Outlook. WebEx — Cisco purchased this online meeting pioneer in May 2007 and six months later introduced a version of the service for sole proprietors called MeetMeNow that’s $49 a month and includes personal video conferencing and Web meetings that can be launched from Microsoft Office programs.
Seven years ago, INK, Inc., a pay-for-placement media relations firm, needed a way for its staff to quickly share information about potential opportunities for clients. E-mail was too awkward and restrictive, especially where images or video materials were concerned. The answer was for INK to create its own intranet. “This is a really great solution and doesn’t require an IT professional,” says Cindy West, vice president and director of operations. “In fact, I set it up myself.” Using Citrix, and later Microsoft SharePoint, West created what amounts to a portal that all 50 or so INK employees can access, even from overseas. “With the old intranets, you could log in and share stuff, but they were pretty limited,” West says. “With this, we can create a virtual office people can tap into and see what’s going on. They can contribute ideas to accounts, even ones that aren’t theirs. And if they’re pitching one of our clients, they can get all the material they need, including images and video.” There’s no question that intranets are growing in popularity among small and midsize businesses. But what exactly is an “intranet?” An internal data network Strictly speaking, the term refers to an internal network, parallel to the Internet, which exists within an organization and allows employees to share resources. But most users don’t know or care where data is hosted, they simply see an interface that offers password-protected access to company information, documents, and contacts. So the term is commonly used for any secure website where employees can access materials they need, even if it’s a single site on a single server, and even if it’s actually hosted via the Web, and not within the company at all. Using this definition, many types of collaboration software (such as SharePoint at INK, Inc.) can be used to create an intranet. Though passing around video and images is an exciting use for an intranet, “It’s the more workaday things that drive people to our product,” says David Christian, chief technology officer at Mindbridge Software, which publishes the intranet application IntraSmart. Specifically, getting the correct versions of important documents into users’ hands. “Suppose you’re a bank, and you’ve got a whole set of policies and procedures you must provide to every employee,” Christian says. “You could e-mail them around, but that would fill up mailboxes pretty quickly.” Instead, many companies store essential documents in a shared directory within the network, but that creates its own problems, Christian says. For one thing, users copy the documents to their hard drives, but don’t always replace them with new ones as the documents are updated. Pretty soon, they’re working from outdated policies and procedures. Intranets help bypass this hassle by providing the information in webpage form, rather than as a document, making users more likely to simply open the relevant page, whenever they need that information. If the information on the page stays current, users do, too. Starting an intranet of your own If you’re thinking of creating an intranet for your own company, here are some questions that can help you make the right choices: 1. Exactly how will the intranet be used? “Plan it out,” advises West. “You need to have a good idea of how you want to set up the architecture, and what exactly you want it to do.” She herself learned this lesson the hard way. “I’ve had to change our structure twice now,” she says. 2. Will there be an extranet as well? An extranet is a section of the intranet accessible to customers and/or business partners. Providing an extranet was one of the two changes West had to make to INK’s intranet, and it was worth the effort, she says. “When they get mentioned in the media, they can easily find it, and the clips are all there. They can also see what media we’re working on, so they get a good idea of what we’re doing for them,” she says. 3. Will different users need different resources? Most employees may need a link to your company’s health insurance company, Christian notes. Your human resources people may also need administrative access, so they can manage employees’ accounts. Likewise, your sales staff may need links to CRM software that HR people don’t. Consider customizing the intranet interface for different types of users. 4. How compatible is it with existing technology? “The first concern we get from IT people is, how will it integrate with the environment they already have?” Christian notes. For instance, can it use existing credentials? Most users resist having to sign in twice, once to get on to the company network and a second time to get into the intranet. 5. How easy is it to change or add content? “You want to make it as easy to add material as possible,” Christian says. This only makes sense. If updating is too much of a hassle, the documents on the intranet could wind up being just as out of date as what users have stored on their hard drives. SIDEBAR: Internet Resources for Small Business Intranets can help users share information, serve customers better, and stay up to date on important policies. There are literally hundreds of software products that can help you create one of your own. Here are a few that are popular with small companies: HotOffice Thruport Technologies, of Alexandria, Va., provides HotOffice, a Web-based intranet service for small businesses to communicate and collaborate round-the-clock. Pricing for the intranet suite of services starts at $14.95 per month. Microsoft SharePoint A server and service, Microsoft’s SharePoint technologies can help small and midsize businesses set up a portal to facilitation collaboration and supply access to essential information across the business. Server software and services are available through Microsoft’s volume licensing agreements. IntraSmart A product of Mindbridge Software, of Norristown, Pa., IntraSmart is designed for midsize or larger organizations. A hosted solution, IntraSmart starts at $99 per month. Web Office This collaboration software product uses the Internet to make it easier and more cost-effective for small and midsize business employees to work together no matter where they work. Prices start at $59.95 per month and up.
Seven years ago, INK, Inc., a pay-for-placement media relations firm, needed a way for its staff to quickly share information about potential opportunities for clients. E-mail was too awkward and restrictive, especially where images or video materials were concerned. The answer was for INK to create its own intranet. “This is a really great solution and doesn’t require an IT professional,” says Cindy West, vice president and director of operations. “In fact, I set it up myself.” Using Citrix, and later Microsoft SharePoint, West created what amounts to a portal that all 50 or so INK employees can access, even from overseas. “With the old intranets, you could log in and share stuff, but they were pretty limited,” West says. “With this, we can create a virtual office people can tap into and see what’s going on. They can contribute ideas to accounts, even ones that aren’t theirs. And if they’re pitching one of our clients, they can get all the material they need, including images and video.” There’s no question that intranets are growing in popularity among small and midsize businesses. But what exactly is an “intranet?” An internal data network Strictly speaking, the term refers to an internal network, parallel to the Internet, which exists within an organization and allows employees to share resources. But most users don’t know or care where data is hosted, they simply see an interface that offers password-protected access to company information, documents, and contacts. So the term is commonly used for any secure website where employees can access materials they need, even if it’s a single site on a single server, and even if it’s actually hosted via the Web, and not within the company at all. Using this definition, many types of collaboration software (such as SharePoint at INK, Inc.) can be used to create an intranet. Though passing around video and images is an exciting use for an intranet, “It’s the more workaday things that drive people to our product,” says David Christian, chief technology officer at Mindbridge Software, which publishes the intranet application IntraSmart. Specifically, getting the correct versions of important documents into users’ hands. “Suppose you’re a bank, and you’ve got a whole set of policies and procedures you must provide to every employee,” Christian says. “You could e-mail them around, but that would fill up mailboxes pretty quickly.” Instead, many companies store essential documents in a shared directory within the network, but that creates its own problems, Christian says. For one thing, users copy the documents to their hard drives, but don’t always replace them with new ones as the documents are updated. Pretty soon, they’re working from outdated policies and procedures. Intranets help bypass this hassle by providing the information in webpage form, rather than as a document, making users more likely to simply open the relevant page, whenever they need that information. If the information on the page stays current, users do, too. Starting an intranet of your own If you’re thinking of creating an intranet for your own company, here are some questions that can help you make the right choices: 1. Exactly how will the intranet be used? “Plan it out,” advises West. “You need to have a good idea of how you want to set up the architecture, and what exactly you want it to do.” She herself learned this lesson the hard way. “I’ve had to change our structure twice now,” she says. 2. Will there be an extranet as well? An extranet is a section of the intranet accessible to customers and/or business partners. Providing an extranet was one of the two changes West had to make to INK’s intranet, and it was worth the effort, she says. “When they get mentioned in the media, they can easily find it, and the clips are all there. They can also see what media we’re working on, so they get a good idea of what we’re doing for them,” she says. 3. Will different users need different resources? Most employees may need a link to your company’s health insurance company, Christian notes. Your human resources people may also need administrative access, so they can manage employees’ accounts. Likewise, your sales staff may need links to CRM software that HR people don’t. Consider customizing the intranet interface for different types of users. 4. How compatible is it with existing technology? “The first concern we get from IT people is, how will it integrate with the environment they already have?” Christian notes. For instance, can it use existing credentials? Most users resist having to sign in twice, once to get on to the company network and a second time to get into the intranet. 5. How easy is it to change or add content? “You want to make it as easy to add material as possible,” Christian says. This only makes sense. If updating is too much of a hassle, the documents on the intranet could wind up being just as out of date as what users have stored on their hard drives. SIDEBAR: Internet Resources for Small Business Intranets can help users share information, serve customers better, and stay up to date on important policies. There are literally hundreds of software products that can help you create one of your own. Here are a few that are popular with small companies: HotOffice Thruport Technologies, of Alexandria, Va., provides HotOffice, a Web-based intranet service for small businesses to communicate and collaborate round-the-clock. Pricing for the intranet suite of services starts at $14.95 per month. Microsoft SharePoint A server and service, Microsoft’s SharePoint technologies can help small and midsize businesses set up a portal to facilitation collaboration and supply access to essential information across the business. Server software and services are available through Microsoft’s volume licensing agreements. IntraSmart A product of Mindbridge Software, of Norristown, Pa., IntraSmart is designed for midsize or larger organizations. A hosted solution, IntraSmart starts at $99 per month. Web Office This collaboration software product uses the Internet to make it easier and more cost-effective for small and midsize business employees to work together no matter where they work. Prices start at $59.95 per month and up.
