Information architecture: Five things information managers need to know

Information Management Journal, Sep/Oct 2002 by Farnum, Chris

Most professionals involved in user-- centered design can at least agree that somebody needs to address IA for every Web project, whether or not they have the title "information architect." The creation of any site requires that someone apply some level of graphic design, whether or not that person is a graphic designer by trade. In the same way, producers or project managers might design the information architectures for sites. An information manager would be another obvious candidate to adopt the responsibility of doing IA without being considered a full-time information architect. It is reasonable to predict that all these related disciplines will continue to evolve, although there will continue to be some convergence particularly in the uses of IT. In the meantime, the most important point is that all will value user-- centered design even while emphasizing different methods.

Why should information management professionals care about information architecture?

Records and information management is a much more mature and established field than IA. However, both share a connection to the information sciences (e.g., -representation of information, thesaurus design, and information retrieval). Information architects and information management professionals share a passion for organizing information, creating effective content management strategies, and providing efficient access to that content for users.

Both professions also are riding the waves of change brought on by the conflicting forces of the explosion of networked information and the fickle winds of economic change. Information managers and information architects currently are finding that they must justify their value in an era of tightened budgets and shrink-wrapped solutions. However, many areas of our society have increasingly ambitious expectations for creating, sharing, and managing information. Not long ago, however, just having a Web site, intranet, or electronic records management system was enough for many organizations. Yet, over time, these same organizations have expanded the scope, variety, and expectations of such initiatives. Many also have learned that "solutions" ultimately require human beings skilled in organizing information and optimizing the way software tools and systems are implemented.

As the information boom in business, public, and consumer cultures continues, it seems safe to predict that both IA and information management will become indispensable. Information managers increasingly are more involved in organizational efforts to support knowledge management, intranet development, content-maIt.rnfiiagement, customer relations management, e-commerce, and other Web-based enterprise applications. The IA field has emerged in order to address these same issues. Examining this emerging discipline may suggest useful ways of approaching current and future work.

What are the Key Concepts of IA?

IAs focus is on the logical structure of a Web site (or other information system). When one designs or provides a critique of the information architecture of a site, there are a number of important concepts to consider.