Mark Mellblom

The information architect must be a generalist. They must understand the relationships of systems present in any endeavor. These include technology, motive, cognition, communication and context. A person cannot understand how to optimize a process if they only view it though a single lens or subject it to a single test. This is why successful change begins with an understanding of how things relate, how they influence, and how important they are to those that see them as part of their world. Anthropologists, archaeologists and linguists are well suited to being information architects. They take a broader view and seek to understand how these systems present themselves in any business. They look at precursor concepts and how a business arrived at its current state. Finally, they document what language is being used to sustain and advance the culture as well as how it expresses the world view of the participants. Information architecture is the capture, codification, presentation and analysis of what exists in a business at any point in time. It is the structure of all the possible questions that management may ask. It is the foundation of successful change.