In the corporate sector, there is an increasing interest in portal software applications or "enterprise portals" which offer a way of integrating internal information from various sources to give employees access to the resources they require, including databases, employment status, and other company data, all from a single interface. Users have the option to customize and personalize their own page.

As with any institution, there are several considerations involved in implmenting a portal. It is important to plan effectively, to look at the company's information requirements and the financial implications, to consider the current financial stability of the institution, and to conduct research how stable finances are likely to be in coming years. Other factors to consider are methods of communication within the company, the "business objectives," of the company and, of course, return on investment (ROI).²²

Another issue to consider is the firm's existing intranet. Just as a library must decide on the relationship between the OPAC and the portal, so must a corporation decide whether or not the portal would replace or integrate the existing intranet. MartinWhite argues that "corporate portal applications are better used as an integration platform for a number of intranets than as a 'next-generation intranet' in their own right." He also warns that a implementing a portal is not necessarily the solution to an unsuccessful intranet.²³

But do corporate portals go far enough? According to Chris Knowles, there is also the need for a more powerful search engine with "an intelligent search strategy" that will deliver relevant external information that can be integrated into the "business processes" of the company.²⁴ This need for a more sophisticated search strategy is akin to the vision of a "super discovery tool" for the ARL Scholar's Portal.