Search resources: books and blogs
The books listed below represent a core library which should be on the bookshelf of any manager with enterprise search responsibilities.
See also here for reviews I have written on a range of other books, reports and conferences
Updated December 2021
Designing the Search Experience
Tony Russell-Rose and Tyler Tate, 2012. Morgan Kaufmann (Book website) (Review). This book takes a deeper look into information seeking models, using them to consider how best to design user interfaces.
Enterprise Search
Martin White, 2nd Edition 2015. O’Reilly Media (Book website)
My objective was to write a book for search managers without a technical background that supported the entire process from building a business case through to evaluating performance.
The Inquiring Organisation
Chun Wei Choo, 2015. Oxford University Press (Review)
The importance of this book is that it provides a context for search within an overall integration of the value of information and knowledge to the organisation.
Interactions with Search Systems
Ryen W. White, 2016. Cambridge University Press (Review)
Although the focus of this book is on web search, the principles also apply to e-commerce and enterprise search.
Introduction to Information Behaviour
Nigel Ford, 2015. Facet Publishing (Review)
Information seeking models are a special case of information behaviours. They form the basis of use cases for search, and the design of user interfaces.
Looking for Information
Donald O. Case and Lisa M. Given, 4th Edition 2016. Emerald Publishing (Book website)
A survey of research on information seeking, needs and behaviour, which places search into the wider context of why people seek information and how they interact with search systems.
Multilingual Information Retrieval
Carol Peters, Martin Braschler and Paul Clough, 2012. Springer (Book website)
A good introduction to the basic principles of multilingual and cross-lingual search.
Relevant Search
Doug Turnbull and John Berryman, 2015. Manning Publications (Book website) (Review)
The objective of all search applications is to deliver the most relevant results as early as possible in the list of results. Although based around the management of Lucene and Solr this book is applicable to any search application.
Search Analytics for Your Site
Louis Rosenfeld, 2011. Rosenfeld Media (Review)
This introduction to search analytics is primarily about websites and intranets but the principles apply to enterprise search.
Searching the Enterprise
Udo Kruschwitz and Charlie Hull, 2017. Now Publishers (Review)
The authors provide an important bridge between information retrieval research and the practical implementation of search applications.
Text Data Management and Analysis
ChengXiang Zhai and Sean Massung, 2016. ACM/Morgan & Claypool (Review)
A very comprehensive handbook on the technology of information retrieval and content analytics based on a highly regarded MOOC.
Morgan & Claypool and Now Publishers both offer a wide range of books on specialist aspects of information retrieval and search, though with an academic rather than a practitioner focus.
This is a list of blogs, newsletters and columns on various aspects of search
Updated March 2020
Beyond Search Stephen Arnold
CMSWire Miles Kehoe
CMSWire Martin White
Complex Discovery Rob Robinson
Coveo Insights Corporate Blog
Daniel Tunkelang
Do More With Search BA Insight corporate blog
Elastic Corporate blog
Enterprise Search Miles Kehoe
Forum ACM Special Interest Group on Information Retrieval
Funnelback Corporate blog
Geodyssey Paul H Cleverly
Google AI blog Google
Information Interaction Tony Russell-Rose
Informer BCS Information Retrieval Specialist Group
Intranet Focus Martin White
LucidWorks Corporate blog
Microsoft Search Blog Microsoft
Microsoft Research Reports Microsoft
Neilsen Norman Articles Neilsen Norman Group
Opensource Connections Corporate blog
Searchblox Corporate blog
Search Explained Agnes Molnar
Sease Corporate blog
Sinequa Corporate blog
Synaptica Corporate blog
Tech and Me Mikael Svenson