Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Website Development
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH), one of the world’s largest educational publishers, partnered with Kentech-U to redesign their company website and simplify navigation for students, parents, and teachers.
Our Client
For over 185 years, HMH has been a global leader in publishing, delivering world-class literary content and learning resources. Their mission is to support Pre K–12 students with relevant educational content and services, positioning themselves as a premier learning resource.
The Goal
HMH needed a technology partner to consolidate and optimize 30 disparate websites under the HMHco umbrella into a single, intuitive user experience. The primary objective was to modernize the website, simplify navigation, and create a consistent, uncluttered flow that supports both content discovery and the purchasing journey.
Our Plan & Process
Kentech-U approached the project in two phases:
1. Homepage Redesign – Streamline the site’s entry point to make information easy to find.
2. Product Page Optimization – Reorganize product pages and create a clean, consistent navigation system tailored for two primary user groups: parents and teachers.
Our process included:
• Reviewing user behavior and site analytics to identify pain points
• Conducting user testing, interviews, and competitive analysis
• Redesigning navigation and e-commerce flows to simplify book discovery and purchase
• Working within HMH’s existing CMS to keep the site live during the upgrades
The Results
The redesigned HMH website delivered measurable improvements:
• 40% increase in user engagement following new UX checkout flows
• 15% faster page load times
• A cleaner, more intuitive navigation experience for students, parents, and teachers