Successful organisations recognise the importance of internal communications. An effective system of internal communications is seen as vital for keeping all relevant parties informed of what is happening throughout the organisation.

An Intranet can be used to provide:

• access to company documents
• distribute software
• enable group scheduling
• provide an easy front-end to databases
• allow individuals and departments to publish information they need to communicate to the rest of the organisation.

It is also possible to allow external parties to view some of your information. This selected sharing of information is known as an Extranet. Extranets can be used for developing and maintaining ongoing business/working relationships while enabling privacy, security, and customised communication.

It is very important that Extranets are secure. The information on Extranets is often sensitive, and tailored for each user e.g. supplier price lists, order history etc.

Intranets and Extranets offer a relatively simple and inexpensive means to deliver far-reaching benefits to organisations and their external partners. Communication, collaborative working and shared applications already established within the corporate Intranet can all be delivered to external organisations and partners via an Extranet.