[Sigia-l] Challenging Intranet Question

[Tom Donehower]

Hoping this may not be that challenging for some of you...

SITUATION
Working on a client intranet that over the years has grown to link to many
outside sources. In a nutshell the intranet consists of content on an old
CMS - which was the original intranet. But now there are additional links
to Google Apps, Links to HR Apps, Federated Search, and a Helpdesk
application.

The chief user complaint is that they can no longer find what they are
looking for. The client's initial solution has been to replace an outdated
departmental navigation scheme with a home page that looks like Google,
just a simple Search bar. This was shared with users and while most liked
the simplicity there was a common request for some sort of navigation and a
way to browse "in case I don't know what I'm looking for."

While the client thinks the answer to helping users find what they are
looking for is to guide them to search, the research seems to be indicating
there is a need for a consistent header or global navigation across this
fragmented experience of different sources.

Is there an elegant way to create a consistent experience such as a global
header nav and search bar that can show on any browser-rendered page
regardless of the source e.g. Google Sites, Google Apps, Outside
applications, legacy CMS?

Any other thoughts/suggestions welcom.

Thanks for sharing.

-Tom