In brief: Information architecture arranges content, concepts, navigation, and relationships so people can find and understand information. It starts from their tasks, not only from the company's internal structure.
How I use Information architecture in practice
For Information architecture, I first establish which decision it should clarify. I write down the current state, intended customer, available alternatives, and the company's constraints. Then I look for one change that can be made and verified. Theory is useful only when it helps choose a priority, an owner, and something we will consciously not do now.
What to watch for
Beware of trying to cover all customers and all channels. Information architecture should help select something and reject something. Without boundaries, general communication emerges that anyone can use. Another error is changing direction after every weaker week instead of checking the original hypothesis.
Questions for decisions
- Which specific decision should the term clarify?
- What supports our claim, and what is still only a hypothesis?
- What will we do differently because of this decision?
- Who owns the change, and when will we assess its impact?