Information Architecture for the World Wide Web: Designing Large-Scale Web Sites

2.3. Information Architecture Specialists

These general discussions about the role, value, and qualifications of information architects are worthwhile but incomplete. The community of information architects is experiencing what evolutionary biologists call a period of "punctuated equilibrium," marked by rapid change and specialization.

Particularly in large organizations, people who began as all-purpose information architects are gravitating towards specialized niches that match their strengths to their organization's needs. Here are just a few of the titles that already exist:

• Thesaurus Designer

• Search Schema Content Editor

• Metadata Specialist

• Content Manager

• Information Architecture Strategist

• Manager, Information Architecture

• Director, User Experience

There are so many possible variations and so many different facets. For example, information architects can specialize by:

• Industry lines (e.g., financial services, automotive)

• Functional department (e.g., human resources, engineering, marketing)

• Type of system (e.g., intranets, web sites, extranets, online magazines, digital libraries, software, online communities)

• Audience (e.g., small business owners, elementary school teachers, rocket scientists, teenagers, grandparents)

Finally, much IA work is centered on making large-scale applications work as advertised. So many information architects find their specializations centered on a variety of tools, most commonly:

• Content management systems

• Search engines

• Portals

As our use of networked information environments grows, the possibilities for specialization are unlimited and unpredictable. We're watching evolution in fast-forward. This is part of what makes it so much fun to be part of the information architecture community.