How to Optimize Intranet Search and Navigation for a Better Employee Experience

Investing in better navigation and search is not just about technology—it’s about empowering employees. Studies show that employees spend up to 1.8 hours per day searching for information (McKinsey & Company), and poor intranet usability can decrease productivity by up to 10% annually (Nielsen Norman Group). Additionally, 44% of employees report frustration with inadequate intranet search (Gartner), and 76% struggle to quickly find critical information (IDC).

In short, the business case for effective navigation, search, and content discovery is strong. As shown by Gallup, organizations that prioritize streamlined navigation and search experience up to 41% higher employee engagement, leading to better collaboration and efficiency. Now, let’s look at how this can be achieved!

Optimization In this section, we will explore methods and best practices for designing, implementing, and improving search and navigation solutions that enhance the user experience and contribute to a robust and effective intranet. Welcome to join our webinar on improving intranet search and navigation for hands-on examples.

The natural first step to improving navigation, search, and content discovery is to assess the content currently available on your intranet and determine if it aligns with user needs.

✔ Audit all content, tools, and resources—identify outdated, redundant, or missing information. List the most frequently used content and resources users interact with.

✔ Assess content based on target audience and formal requirements, including properties, approval processes, review cycles, archiving, and compliance standards.

✔ Understand employee needs by conducting surveys, polls, or stakeholder interviews. Analyze user feedback and intranet improvement suggestions.

✔ Prioritize improvements by focusing on frequently accessed content and developing strategies for reducing clutter.

✔ Create a structured plan to effectively organize content before redesigning search or navigation.

The information architecture of an intranet is more than just hierarchical structures translated into navigation nodes. A sustainable architecture must also account for how different types of content are managed throughout their life cycle. Global policies, local instructions, project reports, country-specific handbooks, corporate news articles, and documents in knowledge communities all have unique requirements for how they are created, managed, and surfaced within the intranet.

Important aspects to consider when shaping an effective information architecture include:

✔ Categorization: Categorize content based on similar requirements. Distinguish between official content (global or local), multilingual content, team and collaboration content, and user-generated knowledge-sharing content. Define specific requirements and target audiences for each content type.

✔ Terminology: Use clear, consistent labeling for content, pages, meta data, and navigation elements to prevent confusion. Develop early navigation prototypes and conduct usability testing.

✔ Engage Users: Conduct pilots and usability tests, gathering feedback to refine content structures and improve ease of use.

By prioritizing these steps, organizations can create a well-structured, intuitive intranet that enhances usability and meets the diverse needs of employees.

When designing an intranet, you should plan to use multiple types of navigation based on content types and end-user needs. Examples include:

✔ Global Navigation: Ideal for company-wide information.

✔ Mega Menus: Best for content-heavy areas with multiple sections.

✔ Landing Pages: Centralized entry points for key content areas.

✔ Current Navigation: Highlights where users are within the intranet structure.

✔ Breadcrumb Navigation: Helps users understand their location and navigate back easily.

These navigation types work well for content displayed in hierarchical structures, where mega menus, landing pages, breadcrumbs, and more reflect the navigation setup. If you’re creating a new intranet, ensure that your platform offers easy setup and administration of navigation structures—preferably separate from the underlying information architecture. This allows for navigation adjustments without requiring content to be moved to fit a new structure.

Image: Example of how to edit navigation structures

Other types of navigation should also be used for the best results include:

✔ Directory Navigation: Organizes lists of people, teams, or resources for quick reference. Use filters to narrow down lists.

✔ Visual Navigation: Uses images, process maps, icons, and other visuals to simplify complex navigation and provide context.

✔ Personalized Navigation: Allows users to create shortcuts to frequently accessed resources or tools, such as most-used apps, recent teamwork, or personal workflows.

✔ Role-Based Navigation: Customizes menus based on job roles, departments, or locations to provide relevant content.

✔ AI-Powered Personalization: Recommends content based on user behavior.

Learn more: Check this blog post out for 12 Great Intranet Navigation Examples.

You should also plan to use multiple types of search applications to optimize the user experience, including:

✔ Global Search: A search experience including all intranet content, often split into Quick Search and Advanced Search, provides broad access across all intranet content.

✔ Predictive Search: Offers real-time suggestions as users type queries. Could include “Did You Mean” functionality to correct misspellings to improve accuracy.

✔ Faceted Search: Enables users to refine results by categories like documents, teams, or news.

✔ Semantic Search: Uses AI to interpret intent and return relevant results beyond keyword matching. Ask questions and receive answers in natural language.

✔ Chatbot Search: Uses conversational AI to assist users with finding information.

✔ Promoted Search Results: Ensures important content appears at the top.

✔ Search Applications: Creates focused search tools for specific business areas as product search or find colleague.

✔ Business System Integration: Expands search capabilities across CRM, databases, or cloud storage.

Learn more: Check this blog post out for 13 Tips to Improve Intranet Search.

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Navigation and search must work together seamlessly to provide an intuitive user experience, including:

✔ Consistency: Ensure consistency between menus and search results so employees can easily find content.

✔ Filtering: Implement category-based filtering to make search results and navigation lists more relevant.

✔ Mobile Search: Optimize for mobile, remote, and hybrid work environments to ensure both search and navigation are accessible across all devices.

✔ Search Feedback: Encourage user feedback on search performance to continuously refine results.

✔ Standardization: Standardize design elements such as button labels and terminology to reduce confusion and improve usability.

Learn more: See Omnia capabilities for flexible navigation in intranets.

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Improving your intranet is an ongoing process that requires regular monitoring and updates, including:

✔ User Feedback: Gather direct user feedback through surveys and usability testing. Regularly refine navigation and search functionality to keep up with evolving employee needs.

✔ Search Analytics: Track search analytics to understand what users are looking for and where they face difficulties. Identify trends in abandoned searches to detect missing content.

✔ Organization: Assign a search administrator to oversee ongoing improvements.

✔ Integrate: Expand integrations with external data sources and applications over time to increase search effectiveness.

Learn more: See Omnia capabilities for a customized search experience.

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A well-structured intranet improves productivity, reduces frustration, and enhances engagement. Organizations that prioritize intuitive navigation and advanced search functionalities ensure employees can efficiently find the information they need—ultimately driving better collaboration, decision-making, and workplace satisfaction. By continuously optimizing and refining search and navigation based on real user behaviour, your intranet can evolve into a truly valuable business asset.

Are you ready to transform your intranet into a user-friendly experience—helping employees spend less time searching for information, minimizing frustration, improving decision-making and workflow execution, and fostering a more collaborative workplace?

A great first step in advancing navigation and search solutions for your intranet is to discuss your needs with one of our experts. That’s why we offer a free 30-minute consultation with an Omnia Coach, providing hands-on advice tailored to your organization.

Book your session via this link and start your journey today!