Why Employees Don't Use the Intranet (And How to Fix It)

Introduction

Many organizations invest in an intranet only to find that employees rarely use it. Low adoption leads to wasted budget, outdated content, and missed opportunities for better communication and productivity. Understanding why employees ignore the intranet is the first step to fixing it.

Common Reasons Employees Avoid the Intranet

1. Hard to Find What They Need

If the intranet is cluttered, poorly organized, or lacks a strong search, employees give up quickly. They return to email, shared drives, or asking colleagues—habits that bypass the intranet entirely.

Fix: Improve information architecture and search. Use clear navigation, consistent metadata, and a search experience that surfaces the right content. A custom SharePoint intranet can be designed around how your teams actually work.

2. Outdated or Irrelevant Content

When policies are outdated, news is stale, and links are broken, employees lose trust. They assume the intranet is not the source of truth.

Fix: Assign content owners, set review cycles, and remove or archive old content. Governance is key—define who owns what and when it gets updated.

3. Poor Mobile Experience

Employees on the go, in the field, or working hybrid need mobile access. A desktop-only intranet excludes them.

Fix: Use responsive design and consider mobile-first approaches. SharePoint modern sites and employee portals can be built to work well on phones and tablets.

4. No Clear Value Proposition

If the intranet doesn’t solve a real problem—faster access to policies, self-service HR, or project collaboration—employees have no reason to switch from their current habits.

Fix: Start with high-value use cases: HR self-service, document findability, or team collaboration. Show tangible benefits before expanding.

5. Lack of Executive and Manager Support

When leaders don’t use or promote the intranet, employees assume it’s optional or low priority.

Fix: Get executive sponsorship. Have leaders publish announcements, use the intranet for key communications, and include it in onboarding and team rituals.

How to Improve Intranet Adoption

1. Simplify navigation – Fewer clicks to key resources.
2. Improve search – Metadata, taxonomy, and a reliable search experience.
3. Fresh, relevant content – Regular updates and clear ownership.
4. Mobile-friendly design – Access from any device.
5. Training and change management – Help users understand where to go and why.
6. Measure and iterate – Use analytics to see what’s used and what’s not.

Conclusion

Low intranet adoption is usually a mix of UX, content, governance, and change management issues. Addressing these systematically can turn an underused intranet into a central hub for your organization.

Need help designing an intranet that employees will actually use? Contact us for a free consultation.