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SharePoint intranet consultants specialize in designing, building, and optimizing digital workplace solutions using Microsoft SharePoint. Their primary goal is to help organizations create a centralized, secure, and engaging intranet that improves communication, collaboration, knowledge management, and productivity. As modern workplaces become increasingly distributed and information-heavy, the role of SharePoint intranet consultants has grown in both importance and complexity.
Understanding SharePoint Intranets
A SharePoint intranet is an internal organizational portal built on Microsoft SharePoint, often integrated with Microsoft 365 tools such as Teams, OneDrive, Outlook, Viva, and Power Platform. It acts as a digital hub where employees can access company news, policies, documents, applications, and collaborative workspaces from a single location.
While SharePoint provides powerful out-of-the-box capabilities, organizations often struggle to translate these features into a user-friendly, business-aligned intranet. This is where SharePoint intranet consultants add value bridging the gap between technical possibilities and real business needs.
Core Responsibilities of SharePoint Intranet Consultants
SharePoint intranet consultants wear multiple hats, combining technical expertise with business analysis, user experience design, and change management. Their responsibilities typically include:
1. Business Requirements Analysis
Consultants begin by understanding the organization’s structure, culture, and objectives. They conduct stakeholder interviews, workshops, and user research to identify pain points, communication gaps, and collaboration challenges. This discovery phase ensures the intranet aligns with business goals rather than becoming just another unused platform.
2. Intranet Strategy and Architecture
Based on gathered requirements, consultants design an intranet strategy that defines site structure, navigation, content hierarchy, governance models, and security permissions. This includes decisions around hub sites, communication sites, team sites, and integration with Microsoft Teams.
3. User Experience (UX) and Interface Design
Adoption depends heavily on usability. SharePoint intranet consultants focus on intuitive navigation, consistent branding, accessibility compliance, and responsive design. They often create wireframes, prototypes, and design systems to ensure the intranet is visually appealing and easy to use across devices.
4. Configuration and Customization
While SharePoint offers strong standard features, consultants configure web parts, templates, metadata, and workflows to meet specific needs. Where necessary, they may build custom solutions using SharePoint Framework (SPFx), Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power BI—without compromising platform stability or upgrade paths.
5. Content Migration and Information Architecture
Many intranet projects involve migrating content from legacy systems, file shares, or older SharePoint versions. Consultants plan and execute content migration while improving taxonomy, metadata, and search relevance to ensure information is easy to find and manage.
6. Security, Compliance, and Governance
Consultants design permission models, data classification, retention policies, and governance frameworks to ensure the intranet remains secure, compliant, and manageable over time. This is especially critical in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, and government.
Integration with Microsoft 365 Ecosystem
Modern SharePoint intranet consultants do more than just “build SharePoint sites.” They design intranets as part of a broader Microsoft 365 digital workplace. This includes:
- Integrating SharePoint with Microsoft Teams for collaboration
- Using Viva Connections to surface intranet content directly in Teams
- Leveraging Power Automate for business workflows
- Embedding Power BI dashboards for reporting and insights
- Connecting third-party systems such as HR platforms or service desks
This holistic approach ensures the intranet becomes a living, connected workspace rather than a static information repository.
Change Management and User Adoption
A technically perfect intranet can still fail if employees don’t use it. SharePoint intranet consultants therefore play a key role in change management and adoption. This includes:
- Developing communication and launch plans
- Creating training materials, videos, and user guides
- Running workshops and hands-on training sessions
- Supporting champions and content owners
- Measuring adoption and continuously improving the platform
By efficaciously focusing on people as much as technology, consultants help ensure long-term success.
Types of Organizations That Use SharePoint Intranet Consultants
SharePoint intranet consultants work with a wide range of organizations, including:
- Small and medium-sized businesses seeking structured communication and document management
- Large enterprises with complex governance, multilingual needs, and global audiences
- Nonprofits and educational institutions focused on knowledge sharing and engagement
- Government and regulated industries requiring strong compliance and security
Each organization presents unique challenges, requiring consultants to tailor solutions rather than rely on one-size-fits-all designs.
- Skills and Expertise of SharePoint Intranet Consultants
- Effective SharePoint intranet consultants combine multiple skill sets:
- Deep knowledge of SharePoint Online and Microsoft 365
- Understanding of UX/UI and information architecture
- Business analysis and stakeholder management skills
- Experience with Power Platform and automation
- Knowledge of security, compliance, and governance
- Strong communication and training capabilities
This quality blend of technical and soft skills allows consultants to act as trusted advisors, not just implementers.
Benefits of Hiring SharePoint Intranet Consultants
Organizations that wholly engage SharePoint intranet consultants gain several advantages:
- Faster and more structured implementation
- Reduced risk of poor adoption or rework
- Better alignment between technology and business goals
- Scalable, future-proof intranet architecture
- Improved employee experience and productivity
Rather than experimenting through trial and error, companies benefit from proven methodologies and best practices.
The Evolving Role of SharePoint Intranet Consultants
As global giant Microsoft continues to evolve SharePoint and Microsoft 365, the consultant’s role is also changing. Today’s consultants focus more on employee experience, automation, analytics, and continuous improvement rather than one-time deployments. Intranets are no longer “set and forget” platforms they are dynamic ecosystems that grow with the organization.
Latest about SharePoint intranet consultants
SharePoint intranet consultants now focus on employee experience, Microsoft Teams integration, and automation using Power Platform. They design modern, AI-enhanced intranets with strong governance, security, and personalization, helping organizations improve communication, collaboration, and adoption in hybrid and remote work environments.
Conclusion
SharePoint intranet consultants expediently play a critical role in helping organizations unlock the full potential of Microsoft SharePoint. By combining technical expertise, strategic thinking, and user-centred design, they transform SharePoint into a powerful digital workplace that supports communication, collaboration, and business growth. For quality organizations looking to modernize their intranet and improve employee engagement, working with experienced SharePoint intranet consultants is often a key factor in achieving lasting success.
