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How You Can Think Like an Information Architect and Improve Your Organization's Performance
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Monday, 12 November 2001

Topic: "How You Can Think Like an Information Architect and Improve Your Organization's Performance"

About the Event

Good information architecture matters.

To make the complex clear, organizations increasingly depend on information architects - those who structure information so people can find it, use it, and appreciate the experience. Business statistics show that user-focused structure can help organizations meet business goals, increase membership, save money, and improve organizational performance (what we do and what we leave behind).

The label Information Architect carries with it real-world implications. We must be able to articulate what information architects do and do not do. And we must be able to say that even if we "wear" some other organizational title (such as technical writer), we understand what it takes to structure information with the user in mind.

As information architects we have the opportunity to help users see the untapped potential of information structure. We are challenged to strategize, plan, render, manage, build, and measure so we can help organizations improve performance, boost productivity, and increase profitability.

Can we do it? You bet.

Join us on November 12 as Thom Haller, user advocate, and principal of Info.Design, Inc. explains how we can apply eight principals of information architecture to improve the structure of information in your organization.

Speakers' Handouts and Presentations

Don't forget your business cards for networking and books for the book drive! Books are donated to local charities.

About the Speaker

After several years working as a writer, trainer, and information designer, Thom founded Info.Design, (www.infodn.com) a Washington D.C.-based information architecture firm, to apply the science of information architecture in the workplace. In his capacity as trainer and consultant, he helps organizations and Government agencies structure information so people can find it, use it, and appreciate the experience.

Thom teaches courses in Business Writing, Technical Writing, Writing for the Web, Information Architecture, Information Design, Creative Nonfiction Writing, and other understanding-focused courses. He is an instructor with The University of Maryland's Professional Writing Program, Georgetown University's Center for Professional Development, EEI Communications, and USDA Graduate School, where Thom received the prestigious USDA Faculty Excellence Award.

Thom works as a communications and usability consultant to multi-national organizations (World Bank and International Monetary Fund), associations and think tanks (National Education Association and The Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Studies), corporations (Arthur Anderson, Xerox Corporation, Fry Multimedia), foundations (Corporation for Public Broadcasting Annenberg Foundation) and for Government (Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Smithsonian Institution).

Prior to launching Info.Design, Thom managed corporate communications and established documentation departments for small businesses. He received several awards sponsored by the Society of Technical Communication and was the recipient of the Donald Bullock Award for Performance Intervention, an annual "Oscar" provided by the Potomac Chapter of the International Society of Performance Improvement.

As a user advocate, Thom has been instrumental in helping organizations and individuals structure information with the user in mind. He serves on the Board of Directors for the International Association of Professional Communications Consultants. His advocacy was profiled in Fall 1999, Communications Transactions, a publication of the IEEE. This story is available for reading or downloading at: http://www.infodn.com/staff_thom_story.shtml.

Schedule

6:30 - 7:00 p.m. Registration and networking
7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Program

Food

Fruit and cheese platter
Bite-sized tortilla wraps with meat and vegetarian fillings
Cookies and brownies
Sodas and water

Fees

STC members: $5
Administrative Council members: $5
Student members or nonmember students: $5
Nonmembers: $10
Nonmember first timer — Print free admission coupon
Walk-ins (without advance reservation): $10