Much can be done to improve the quality of search results. No amount of tweaking of metadata or search configuration will, however, ensure that the most relevant results always appear at the beginning of the list. This is where search engine 'best bets' come in. These are a hand-created list of key resources for common queries, and they can dramatically improve the search experience, particularly on information-rich sites such as intranets. Presenting best bets In the screenshot shown, the staff member has searched for 'organisational structure'. The first section highlights the intranet page 'CSIRO organisational structure'. Below that, the rest

Intranets serve a diverse range of users in organisations, from staff in head office to those in regional offices, or on the front line. These users are not all the same, and do not have the same needs, issues or environment. A key principle for intranet teams is therefore: you can't usefully deliver information to users that you haven't personally met. This article discusses the challenges in delivering information to all staff within an organisation, and outlining practical approaches that ensure efforts spent publishing intranet content are not wasted. Users are not the same There is no such thing as

I'm sitting in today on an intranet conference today, and I've now heard three different talks about improving content quality on intranets. In particular: developing content standards and guidelines industry standards and guidelines "inverted pyramid" writing style training intranet authors enforcing content standards I just don't care. I've written before than not all content needs to be of equal quality. More importantly, with all the challenges involved in delivering an effective intranet, is this really where we want to be focusing our efforts? When there are limited intranet resources, a too-small intranet team, and no content management system, should we

This briefing outlines a simple scenario in which the intranet helps staff find key corporate information, while the documents accessed are stored in the document/records…

Many organisations are attempting to clarify the relationship between the corporate intranet, and their document/records management system. While this is a broader issue of information management with an organisation, there are some short-term activities that can be taken to create a working relationship between these two platforms. This briefing outlines a simple scenario in which the intranet helps staff find key corporate information, while the documents accessed are stored in the document/records management system. Usage scenario The following scenario outlines one of the typical ways an intranet is used: A staff member browses into the HR section, and then to

When planning improvements to an intranet, two main approaches can be taken: the 'big bang' and evolutionary approaches. The big bang approach involves making a single, site-wide change to the design and structure of the intranet as the old site is replaced by a new one. In contrast, the 'evolutionary' approach makes gradual changes over time, evolving the capabilities and design of the current intranet. This article discusses the differences between the big bang and evolutionary approaches to intranet development. Guidelines are provided on when to use each approach, along with a range of practical tips and suggestions. Is it

There are two main approaches to redeveloping an intranet: a big bang and evolution.

One of the greatest challenges confronting intranets is ensuring that content is up-to-date, accurate and useful. In many organisations, much thought and effort is put into maintaining (and enhancing) the quality of published content. What must be realised, however, is that not all content on an intranet needs to be of equal quality. Only once this is recognised can successful strategies be put in place to support content authoring and publishing. Most intranets struggle to deliver consistent, up-to-date and useful content. In many cases, the overall content of the site is poor, impacting on staff trust and usage levels. Confronted

The fundamental question to ask for all intranets is: what is the intranet actually for? While this is an easy question to ask, answering it meaningfully involves gaining an in-depth understanding of staff and organisational needs. While much has been written about the design of intranets, less is said about how to ensure that the intranet contains useful information and tools. At the end of the day, staff will use an intranet if it is useful. To ensure this, there are a range of practical 'needs analysis' techniques that can be used to identify staff (and organisational) requirements. This article

Determining what an intranet is actually for involves gaining an in-depth understanding of staff (and organisational) needs and issues.