Chapter 15. Building an Information Architecture Team

What we'll cover:

Striking a balance between innies and outies

The implications of pace layering to IA team formation

Staffing IA projects and programs (short-term and long-term considerations)

The case for professional information architects

Since even the title of this chapter may incite quiet fury among our colleagues, we'd like to begin with a few qualifications. First, our focus on staffing an information architecture team in no way suggests a desire to build walls between roles and disciplines. To the contrary, we are firm believers in the value of closely knit, multidisciplinary teams. Second, we fully recognize that our description of an information architecture dream team is provocative and ambitious. The complete vision will be realized only in the largest of projects and organizations.

Our intent is to push the envelope, and to explore scenarios for the small but influential community of professional information architects. How will the world's most massive sites be designed and managed? Who will do the work? Will it be outsourced or done internally? Will staff be centralized or distributed?

These questions loom large in the minds of many. Should I become an in-house information architect, or is it better to stay in a consulting firm? Innie or outie? Which is safest? Where can we expect the most growth?

Intranet and web managers are asking the same questions. How do I get this information architecture designed? Do I need a permanent staff, or can I get by with a consultant? Either way, who do I hire? What mix of skills is required?

These are hard questions. They drive debates about the role and discipline of information architecture. They force us to imagine the future of our web sites, intranets, and companies. They demand that we make distinctions between the transient and the enduring. They make us feel confused and insecure. In other words, these are exactly the right questions to be asking.

These questions are especially difficult because we're compelled to fix the airplane while we're flying it. Even worse, we haven't yet reached cruising altitude. As we struggle to climb above the clouds and gain greater visibility, it's important to recognize that we're in the midst of a powerful transition.

In the 1990s, companies viewed their web sites and intranets as short-term projects. They expected to engage a design or IT consultancy for a few months and be done with it. Fortunately, this naïve attitude is gradually giving way to more enlightened perspectives. Many managers see the growing mission-critical nature of their web sites and intranets. They recognize the long-term value of strategy and architecture, and they're aware that information architecture challenges multiply as their sites become larger and more complex.

Consequently, many leading companies have created positions for in-house information architects. This is a positive step for the field as a whole, but it's unnerving to consultants and consultancies. Does this mean all information architecture design will soon be done in-house? No, of course not. But it does mean that we must figure out which approaches work best in which situations and at what times, and that leads us to the critical issue of the web design life cycle.