UNIT-II Lecture# 24 Intranet Software Applications of Intranets Generic Functions of Intranet Intranet Application Areas Industry-Specific Intranet Solutions

Intranet Software: Intranet Software enables an organization to securely share it's information or operations with it's members. It enables the efficient use and more importantly reuse of an organization's gathered business knowledge and intelligence, which increases productivity and knowledge transfer in any organization. Increasingly, extranets are also coming into use, where external partners, customers can also interact with an organization. Applications of Intranet: The most popular intranet application is obviously inter-office e-mail. This capability allows the employees of a company to communicate with each other swiftly and easily. If the intranet has access to the Internet, e-mail can be accessed through the Internet connection. If the intranet is running without the Internet, special e-mail software packages can be bought and installed so that employees can take advantage of its many benefits. An intranet has many other different applications that can be utilized by a company. These include the Web publishing of corporate documents, Web forms, and Web-to-database links that allow users to access information. Newsletters, information on benefits and 401(k) enrollment, job listings and classifieds, libraries, stock quotes, maps, historical data, catalogs, price lists, information on competitors' products, and customer service data are just a few examples of these types of applications. In addition, there are several other main applications that are very popular in the intranet format. Every type of company has to deal with forms of some sort. This is another area where paperwork can become a problem for a business. Intranet servers can be equipped with programs that allow for forms to be filled out online. They could also be downloaded and printed out by the users themselves, which would cut down on the time it would take to distribute these forms manually. 1. Document publication applications The first application that always comes to mind for intranets in and of themselves is the publication and distribution of documents. This application allows for paperless publication of any business information that is needed for internal employees or external customers or suppliers. Any type of document may be published on an intranet: policy and procedure manuals, employee benefits, software user guides, online help, training manuals, vacancy

announcements--the list goes on to include any company documentation. 2. Electronic resources applications In the past it has not been easy to share electronic resources across network nodes. Employees have had problems sharing information for various reasons including software version inaccuracies and incompatibilities. Intranets provide the means to catalog resources online for easy deployment across the network to any authorized user with the click of a mouse. Software applications, templates, and tools are easily downloaded to any machine on the network. 3. Interactive communication applications Two-way communications and collaboration on projects, papers, and topics of interest become easy across the intranet. Types of communications that are enhanced and facilitated include e-mail, group document review, and use of groupware for developing new products. 4. Support for Internet applications Even though organizational full-service intranets are the next step in enterprise-wide computing and have enough value to make them desirable simply for the organizational benefits they bring, they are also necessary for supporting any Internet applications that are built. The transactional processes and trading of information that will be done by all but the most elementary Web applications will require an infrastructure to store, move, and make use of the information that is traded. The infrastructure to accomplish those tasks is the organizational intranet. Generic Functions of Intranet: Major generic functions that internet can provide are: Corporate/ department/ individual WebPages: Access the web- pages of corporate, departments and individual. Database access: Web- based database. Search engines and directories: It assists the keyword- based search. Interactive communication: chatting, audio and videoconference. Document distribution and workflow: web- based download and routing of documents. Groupware: E-mail and bulletin board. Telephony: intranet is the perfect conduit for computer-based telephony. Extranet: linking geographically dispersed branches, customers and suppliers to authorized sections of intranets creates happiest customers, more efficient suppliers, and reduced staff cost.

Intranet Application Areas Production, requisition, distribution and update of dynamic information that has traditionally been published on paper Intranet offering various applications and different type of tools for productivity such as collaboration through which grouping and teleconferencing are possible, project supervision, business directories, sales, and customer relationship administration etc. Intranet also used in corporate culture platform to perform various task. Intranet forum application could guide new ideas in administration, excellence, efficiency and business issues. In large business companies where intranet working widely. The locations where traffic of public website similar to website traffic Intranet using metrics software to follow on the whole actions. Through intranet large business companies facilitate their customer to get access community internet all the way through firewall sever which have ability to sending and receiving of messages with intact security. When any part of intranet made accessible to users outside the business then this part turn out to be the part of extranet. Organizations may send and receive messages via public network within powerful security features to connect one part of the intranet to others.

Industry-Specific Intranet Solutions

UNIT-II Lecture #25 Intranet Application Case Studies: Intranet Case studies with ROI Analysis Short Intranet Application Cases Share Knowledge among Corporate Employee Considerations in Intranet Deployment Intranet Application Case Studies: Now, let us investigate some typical application case in depth, including their return on investment (ROI). Intranet Case studies with ROI Analysis: The need for accountability and for clear measures of success is increasingly demanded for all corporate expenditures, including intranets. If you are responsible for an intranet, you need to know how build a business case and develop a return on investment (ROI) strategy. Intranet ROI Intranets and corporate portals are expensive endeavors. Despite the expense, many organizations understand the implicit and/or explicit value. Intranets are widely valued for:

Streamlining business processes and driving operational efficiencies Significantly reducing cost of internal business functions Enhancing communications and collaboration between employees, managers, suppliers and partners

As with any critical business system, an intranet or portal must be delivering measurable performance and remain accountable to the investment. If the sites value is not being measured, then it risks failing the needs and demands of employees and management. When asked how executives determine whether an intranet or portal is delivering value, they typically point to reducing costs and improving productivity. Of course, IT budgets are increasingly tied to company-wide business and strategic initiatives. The cost justification for any expenditure, including IT must have a clear bottom line that answers the question, Whats the payback?

In recent years, business challenges and subsequent solutions/applications have been the driving force behind intranet investments. They will continue to play this role in the future. Executives will make investments in intranets and portals (see defining in the adjacent glossary) if such investments spur growth, cut the cost of operations, and/or help enhance the customer experience (retaining and building the customer base). The challenging economic climate of the past few years means that more and more organizations will allocate dollars to IT systems and applications that can demonstrate a measured solution and ROI to a business problem or provide enhanced service and growth.

Short Intranet Application Cases Of the respondents to the Prescient Digital Media ROI survey that undertake rough estimates of their organizations intranet, answers varied from $0 to $20M. The average annual ROI of respondent intranets fell just shy of $1 million ($979,775.58). While less than 20% of organizations have measured specific benefits, a majority of organizations have at the very least made a rough estimate or guess of the value of their ROI. While only a handful of technology companies measured intranet ROI three years ago, there are encouraging signs of change. A recent study, conducted by Prescient Digital Media Ltd., finds that 6% of organizations undertake ongoing, specific measurement of the ROI of their intranet. Occasional measurement is undertaken by 26% of the respondent organizations. While extensive ROI measurement has not yet become mandatory at a majority of organizations with intranets, ROI is a priority in 76% of the survey respondents. Rather than attempt to measure the intranet or portals entire value, those companies that are successfully gauging value are measuring specific benefits. This paper lists intranet benefits in 10 key categories including hard costs, increased revenue, etc. with two supporting categories: content management and procurement. The precision, scope of work and execution required to build and maintain a successful intranet or portal is massive from governance to content management, and from technology to business processes. At the heart of a successful intranet is the strength of the underlying plan. Failure to develop an integrated plan that accounts for an organizations structure, stakeholder, and user requirements will almost certainly ensure failure and, with it, a loss of significant time, money and jobs. Finally, while appraising the ROI of an intranet or portal is critical for most executives, there exists a great deal of untapped, intangible value that is perhaps even more critical than the measured dollars and cents. When properly deployed, intranets improve communication and collaboration and improve employee satisfaction, which in turn can improve productivity. All benefits are clearly important to any organization, but not always a measurable ROI.

Share Knowledge Among Corporate Employee Intranets offer several facilities that aid knowledge sharing:

Easy-to-access and use. The use of World Wide Web (WWW) browsers give a low cost and easy-to-use interface to information and applications Universal access to information. Information can be kept on any 'server' on the network, and can be accessed from anywhere within the Intranet. Person-to-person interaction. Intranets simplify interaction between people in different locations, through electronic mail, and computer conferencing Informal networks. Publishing information and making contact is quick and informal on an Intranet. Scalable networks. As organizations restructure, it is easy to add or remove servers to the overall network. Access to external information and knowledge. Intranets usually have gateways to the external Internet, which give access to a rapidly growing global information resource

Considerations in Intranet Deployment 1. collections of web links 2. company news and department newsletters 3. organization charts 4. manuals, documentation, policies 5. basic collaboration tools (groupware) 6. directory services (gateway to phone and other staff contact info) 7. human resources information 8. threaded discussions on current company topics/issues 9. webbased email access 10. webbased discussion list management and participation 11. access to company databases sales, inventory, pricing 12. calendaring (companywide events calendar) 13. scheduling (meetings, personal scheduling) 14. document management 15. search engine of company documents 16. employee time logging 17. employee expense reporting 18. Forms to help automate other business processes work orders, job descriptions, mileage, maintenance requests, etc.

UNIT-II Lecture #26 The Extranet Concepts of Extranet Application Case Potential of Extranet Market Planning Extranet The Extranet: The extended intranet that connects multiple intranets through a secured tunneling internet. Extranet architecture is given in following figure:

Concepts of Extranet Extranets combine the privacy and security of intranets with the global reach of the internet, granting access to outside business partners, suppliers, and costumers to a controlled portion of the enterprise network. Extranets are becoming the major platforms for B2B EC replacing or supplementing EDI. They provide flexibility serving internal and external users. At its most basic an Extranet is a means of networking two or more entities so they can securely share information. In some cases an Extranet is simply an extension of a law firm's Intranet to include a connection to a client. In other cases an Extranet makes use of the public Internet combined with security features to create a new, more private, environment. Extranets generally have the following features:

The use of Internet technologies and standards. These include the standardized techniques for transmitting and sharing information and the methods for encrypting and storing information, otherwise known as the Internet Protocol, or IP. The use of Web browsers. Users access Extranet information using a web browser like Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator or, more recently, Mozillas Firefox. Browser software uses relatively small amounts of memory and resources on a computer. The great thing about browsers is that an application written for a browser can be read on

almost any computer without regard to operating system or manufacturer. That makes an application developed for a browser a snap to deploy. A browser on a users machine is all the software he or she needs to take full advantage of the Extranet application. No messy and confounding installation disks; fewer clogged hard drives. Security. By their very nature, Extranets are embroiled in concerns about security. To protect the privacy of the information that is being transmitted, most Extranets use either secure communication lines or proven security and encryption technologies that have been developed for the Internet. Central Server/Repository. Extranets usually have a central server where documents or data reside. Members can access this information from any computer that has Internet access.

While these are the broad attributes shared by most Extranets, Extranets vary dramatically in their design and implementation. They can be employed in a wide variety of environments and for very different purposes, like:

Sharing case information Sharing of case-related documentsmany Extranets contain document repositories that can be searched and viewed by both lawyer and client on-line Calendaringkey dates and scheduling of hearings and trials can be shared on-line Providing firm contact information Acting as a work flow engine for various suppliers Providing access to firm resources remotely Sharing time and expense information

Extranet applications Case An extranet application is a software data application that provides limited access to your company's internal data by outside users such as customers and suppliers. The limited access typically includes the ability to order products and services, check order status, request customer service and much more. A properly developed extranet application provides the supply chain connection needed with customers and suppliers to dramatically lessen routine and time consuming communications. Doing so frees up resources to concentrate on customer service and expansion as opposed to administrative office tasks such as data entry. Just as intranets provide increased internal collaboration, extranets provide increased efficiencies between your company and its customers and/or suppliers. Developing and implementing an extranet application can provide you the competitive edge to stay ahead of the competition in the eyes of your customers and a better ability to negotiate prices with your suppliers. Potential of Extranet Market Internets are included in extranets, the forecasted potential of extranets is frequently combined with that of the intranets. According to a study by Gartner Group, Extranets are expected to be a platform of choice of more than 80 % of B2B EC. This increasing acceptance is expected to

surpass B2C EC which is also expected to be conducted across intranets, by about 40 percent. Most of the B2C EC traffic will be done on the regular internet. However many companies, such as FedEx, will allow costumer to enter their intranets.

Planning Extranet

If you are considering introducing an intranet or extranet into your business, you should ensure that it is flexible enough to meet not only your immediate requirements, but also your needs as your business grows. Make sure your objectives are clear. Will you restrict access to your site, or will you allow all of your customers to use it? Do you want to promote flexible working in your business by catering for your remote workforce? How will you measure the success of your investment? Identify the information that will need to be made available in order to meet your objectives:

What kind of company information do you need on your intranet? For example, company policies, news, forms and corporate branding. Do you need to make all of your production and sales information available to your partners via your extranet, or will discrete sub-sections be sufficient? Web server hardware and software. The size of the server will depend on the number of potential users and whether or not you will need a lot of bandwidth to support audiovisual content, eg video feeds. Computers connected via a local area network - a closed, private network. Firewall software and hardware, which will prevent unauthorised access from outside your organisation. A content management system to add and update intranet content.

This might be a good arrangement if your business is just starting up - you can develop your own intranet once your business has grown and you have more funds available. Once you have your intranet up and running, you can create your extranet by giving partners access to the necessary company data via a log-in page. Identify the support costs that will be required to run the site on a day-to-day basis. Will you require technical support - if so, at what level? You should also consider how the content will be managed. Remember that security is paramount, since any security incident will directly affect not only you but also your key business partners. You should establish what levels of security are provided when choosing a technology solution.

ADVANTAGES/BENEFITS OF AN EXTRANET An extranet offers impressive advantages and benefits to a distributed group of organizations with common goals or objectives. These advantages can be justified based upon cost, time, and

other resource efficiencies that can be recognized across the various organizations. Extranet solutions, however, should be developed and supported with robust software tools to ensure they can meet both the immediate and long term requirements of the organizational group. Specific advantages that an extranet can provide if developed with a flexible, scalable, open and secure architecture solution are briefly analyzed below.

Ease of set-up, use and maintenance Extranets should be simple to set-up, use and maintain. The time it takes to develop a complete and functioning extranet with a robust Web-standard software solution amounts to days or weeks, rather than months or years with proprietary networks solutions. Modifications can also be implemented with little or no interruption to the extranets activities. Scalability Extranets require the flexibility to grow to include additional users or organizations, or to expand to a new hardware server array without compromising the system's usability or integrity. Solutions written using non-industry standard format or proprietary architectures can ignificantly restrict an extranet's ability to scale to include new users, applications, servers or other components. Extranet solutions eliminate the lock-in strategies used by software vendors and allow for greater extensibility of the extranet to meet the growing and changing demands of the on-line user community. Versatility An extranet should serve fundamental business activities such as document exchange, collaborative discussion groups, on-line submission forms, database queries, etc. yet have the ability to be customized to satisfy a particular business purpose. For example, companies transferring text or document files have different requirements than those that transfer movies, video clips, other multimedia files to be viewed on-line. Some organizations may wish to sell directly on-line through the extranet and others may wish to only automate the back office operations. Regardless of the business objective, extranets require versatility to accommodate a dynamic company's changing mission, goals and objectives. Security - Security is perhaps the single most important characteristic possessed by an extranet that serves multi-organizational interests. Ensuring that all participant and contributor content is protected within a secure and accountable framework provides the basis for system usability and dependability. Although no system is ever 100% secure, recent advances in security technology provide extranets with security that exceeds industry standards and protects on-line information and intellectual property.

UNIT-II Lecture #27

Business Models of Extranet Applications Managerial Issues Business Models of Extranet Applications The extranet represents the bridge between the public Internet and the private corporate intranet. The extranet connects multiple and diverse organizations on-line, enabling strategic communities of stakeholders with common interests (communities of interests) to form a tight business relationship and a strong communication bond, in order to achieve commerce-oriented objectives. The extranet defines and supports this extended business enterprise including partners, suppliers and distributors, contractors, customers and others that operate outside the physical walls of an organization but are nonetheless critical to the success of business operations. With the Internet providing for public outreach or communication, and intranets serving internal business interests, extranets serve the business-critical domain between these extremes where the majority of business activity occurs.

The unification of robust enabling technologies and ubiquitous access through the Web is resulting in unique and interesting market dynamics that are changing the way many companies are doing business. Interactive communities are beginning to emerge that exist solely in cyberspace, where information travels faster, more cost effectively, and with greater accuracy when compared to other forms of communication and information exchange. These interactive communities are the driving and sustaining force behind the extranet concept, and their insatiable collective need to access content when, where, and how they want to see it will continue to push the limits of what is technologically possible. Extranet solutions built to engage and support these interactive communities are designed to emphasize and foster customer relationships. As successful businesses know, the cost of obtaining a new customer far outweighs the cost of maintaining a current one. With commerce-enabled extranets, companies are now able to establish and maintain one-to-one relationships with each of their customers, members, staff or others at very low cost through the Web, offering a customized and individualized experience that can be dynamically generated or modified based upon a user's privileges, preferences, or

usage patterns. Information entered by the user (registration form, on-line surveys, etc.) can be compiled with statistics and other information that is captured automatically by the system (searches performed, products purchased, time spent in each site area, etc.) to provide the company a complete picture for each and every visitor of the system. This comprehensive user profile offers unprecedented opportunities to present relevant information, advertising, product and service offerings and other content to a qualified, targeted interactive user community on a one-to-one basis.

Managerial Issues Management is no longer worries about whether or not to adopt the intranet/ extranet but is concerned about how to utilize them successfully for business. Intranets/ Extranets are already to fact of life in many large corporations. Thus management needs to review its own companys position in dealing with a verity of issues in installing the internet/ extranet. The following are the guidelines for managerial issues: 1. Find the business opportunities by utilizing the intranet and extranet: for example, consider connecting the customer, suppliers and internal branches that are geographically dispersed. 2. Analyze whether the connectivity requirement suits the intranet and extranet: it is mainly dependent upon whether the network is composed of one LAN or multiple LANs. The former is suitable for internet and the latter for extranet. Individuals remote access should also be considered. 3. Plan the most secure economical choice for implementation: consult the technical persons and outside the company for implementation. Review the current proprietary or leased network and determine if it can be replaced by intranet and extranet. It may reduce costs and widen connectivity for the customers and suppliers. 4. Select the best outsourcers for implementation: compare the outsourcers who can implement the internet/ extranet. The extranet solution providers can cultivate new opportunities in this big market. 5. Selling the intranet: corporate intranet can serve as a wonderful pool, where employees can do many things ranging from taking classes to updating benefit plans. Too often employees are not using the intranet to its fullest capacity. Business are exploring innovative ways to market their their intranet to their employees. For example some companied are making presentation to employees, other give prizes, yet other created an Intranet Day