Recently you or your webmaster may have received notice that your public website is not mobile friendly. Google is now beginning to rank search based on the “mobile friendliness” of pages – and the notification you received is Google’s way of warning that your site may not perform well in future search results if changes aren’t made. Smart webmasters, marketers, and site owners know that the world of search is continuously evolving, and they need to evolve along with it if they are to be competitive.

But what about search abilities inside of your business? It’s a troubling fact that most business are lacking internal search capabilities when it comes to their documents, records and intellectual property.

Today’s employees need rapid access to critical information, and effective search capabilities are vital. In addition, the leaders of the future will not be satisfied when working for companies that cannot provide internal information via search – and they would prefer to get it through a mobile interface. Even as millennials are taking the lead in hash tagging information outside the web, many businesses aren’t implementing systems inside the firewall to rank and index their business information. This is a problem.

Every day I hear about how bad companies are at communication – and this is in an era when there are more ways to communicate than ever before. I think that there is a paradigm shift underway that needs to be acknowledged and addressed. The Web – and the search function – have taught us how to proactively access information. In many cases people would rather find out information on their own at their own pace, rather than be selectively “communicated to” at others’ discretion. In many cases I think companies are confusing the need for information with the need for better communication. If an information deficit exists – if employees are unable to access the data they need, when and where they need it – efforts to improve communication are likely to be ineffective at best.

Speaking for myself, I have seen the light. I am evangelizing a concept that I have always believed in – self-directed access to business information – and I now know that it is feasible AND reasonable. The technology exists to enable employees to quickly access the information they need to work faster, smarter, and more effectively through search, and I believe that forward-looking companies will make this vital tool available.

If your company is holding back on making business information search friendly, Google’s wake-up call might indicate that it’s a good time to ask why – and to do something about it.

(By the way: If you’re wondering how your public website will perform, enter your URL at Google Page Speed Insights for a quick look at how your site stacks up.)

Ready to enable powerful search functionality on your company’s Intranet? Red Level can help. Contact us to discuss the possibilities.