How will you connect your Intranet Strategy to your
Business Strategy? We've got a plan.
What is the Intranet Maturity Model?
We developed the Intranet Maturity Model to represent the 13 business priorities we most frequently encounter across our AEC client community. The model is written from the perspective of the employee and focuses on 3 core areas:
Level 1: I have the information I need to do my job
Level 2: I know what is happening at the firm
Level 3: I am part of a learning organization
The Intranet Maturity Model is loosely based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and is inspired by The Gallup Q12 Index:
Level 1 represents the basic functions that an intranet must provide in order to help employees achieve their daily objectives and be a trusted resource throughout the firm.
Level 2 highlights internal communications, which helps employees stay connected to a shared purpose and mission — a key driver of engagement, performance, and retention.
Level 3 represents the highest levels of learning and peer-to-peer sharing. Firms with an intentional strategy around level 3 priorities provide opportunities for growth and learning and have team members that support one another in their commitment to quality work.
Knowledge Architecture will continuously leverage the Intranet Maturity Model throughout your Synthesis journey.
IMM Level 1: I have the information I need to do my job, including...
Essential Content
Synthesis is built to house your firm’s essential content, whether it be firmwide policies and procedures, practice area codes and standards, or design technology how-tos and FAQs. In short, essential content comprises the policies, procedures, templates, forms, standards, codes, how-tos, and FAQs you need to run your AEC firm. For more information, check out our Essential Content Checklist.
Basic Data about Current + Completed Projects
Synthesis integrates with Deltek and OpenAsset to surface relevant project data to all employees. Our project directories and profiles are clean, simple, and can be instantly accessed through our web or mobile application. Whether your marketing team needs to build a proposal, a designer needs to find precedent projects for his new assignment, or a principal unexpectedly needs to show images from key projects to a prospective client from her mobile phone, we've got you covered.
Employee Directory + Profiles
You already store employee data in Deltek. Why duplicate your efforts on the intranet? Displaying basic data such as phone numbers, e-mail addresses, and office locations is a start, but our employee directories and profiles do not stop there. Our rich employee profiles give you historical context about every employee — from what projects s/he has worked on to a list of posts s/he has published on the intranet.
IMM Level 2: I know what is happening in the firm, because I hear about...
Vision, Strategy, and Performance
Your vision and strategy inspired your employees to join your firm. Synthesis helps you amplify the voice of leadership, so employees maintain the same level of connection to a shared sense of purpose. We know that getting strategic communications right requires so much more than the right technology. We provide best practices, guidelines, and examples from other award-winning firms to help you achieve your strategic communications goals.
Practice Area, Department, and Firmwide Initiative Updates
The level of communication required to keep an entire firm engaged and in-the-know does not happen by accident. The leaders of your practice areas, departments, and firmwide initiatives need a platform and a plan. When you combine Synthesis with our advice and best practices, you get just that.
High-Profile Wins, Press, and Photography
Give your team something to celebrate by sharing high-profile wins, press, and new photography on your intranet. You can tag both projects and team members in your posts, so posts are automatically cataloged in the project’s history.
Hires, Promotions, and Newly Acquired Licenses
Keep everyone up-to-date with your evolving firm by leveraging the intranet to introduce new hires, announce promotions, and congratulate newly-licensed architects and engineers.
News + Events from Local Offices
Synthesis serves as the digital fabric that connects all of your offices. Employees across multiple states and countries strengthen their informal connections by sharing local stories and news.
IMM Level 3: I am part of a learning organization, because...
Relevant Learning + Development Resources Are Shared
Show employees that your firm is committed to learning. We help our clients build useful portals that integrate video, step-by-step instructions, and links to additional resources. We then help you track what learning resources employees are using the most, so you can tailor your strategy to favor the learning content that delivers the best results.
Learning + Development Opportunities Are Shared
Improve accessibility to your upcoming learning events by advertising them to a broad audience on the intranet. After the event, engage employees that could not join by posting the video on the intranet and inviting employees to continue the dialog online.
Project Teams Share Exciting Updates
Give project teams a platform to share stories from the field with a firmwide audience. Sharing project updates, from conceptual design to jobsite tour, helps spread knowledge to all levels of your organization. When employees know exciting details about other projects, they are better equipped to sell your services and know who to contact with specific technical challenges.
Employees Ask Questions + Get Answers
Give employees the power to crowdsource answers to their technical questions. On Synthesis, you can invite employees to post their questions. Experts across multiple offices can jump into an online dialog where they can share their answer, provide commentary on someone else’s response, or tag another expert. All questions can be automatically routed to a group of first responders, so your employees can trust that they will always be supported in their quest for fast, reliable knowledge. To learn more, check out our article on Establishing a Firmwide Q+A Program Using Synthesis.
Lessons Learned + Emerging Best Practices Are Shared
Keep your firm at the cutting edge of practice by institutionalizing a culture of learning on the intranet. Our clients use Synthesis to share insights from lessons learned on projects, thus amplifying the benefit of that learning. As your firm evolves, lessons learned can be translated into emerging best practices. Synthesis can then help you share those best practices throughout your organization and measure their usage.