IA: WTF? workshop
Do you want to improve your digital publication, product, or service?
You need to learn information architecture, the design discipline focused on making stuff more findable and understandable. IA: WTF? is a four-week online workshop that teaches foundational IA concepts in practical terms.
“Simply put, this course will supercharge your practice. Jorge’s lectures are the perfect balance of theory, practicality and good magic — they will inspire you to do your best work. By the end of the course, you’ll be able to construct a complex system with confidence and clarity.”
— Tara Kimura, Lead Content & Conversation Design, CBC
Who is this for?
- UX designers working on complex products or websites
- Product managers wanting to drive better user experiences
- Anyone shaping digital publications, products, or services
What will you get?
The Basic tier includes:
- Four two-hour learning sessions that include lectures, discussion, and exercises
- An individual 30-minute onboarding meeting
- Access to our Discord channel
The Full tier adds:
- Four open office hours (one per week for the duration of the workshop)
- A signed copy of Information Architecture for the Web and Beyond
- A signed copy of Living in Information
What will you learn?
Session 1: Information Architecture Fundamentals
Introducing IA. How people find and understand things. The IA process.
Session 2: Understanding and Modeling the Domain
Research for information architecture. Understanding user mental models. Understanding system models. Creating conceptual models that bridge the two.
Session 3: Information Architecture Components
How to design effective navigation, search, labeling systems, and metadata.
Session 4: Information Architecture in Practice
How to communicate IA effectively with collaborators and stakeholders. Governance and ethical concerns.
How will it work?
- We’ll meet live for two hours every Tuesday
- Office hours (Full tier only) will meet every Thursday
- All meetings will be held over Zoom
- All exercises will be hosted on Mural
- We’ll provide optional assignments and readings between sessions
When will we meet?
We’ll meet over four weeks, from November 29 to December 20, 2022.
| Dates | PT | ET | GMT | CET |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesdays (main sessions) | 8 - 10 AM | 11 AM - 1 PM | 16 - 18 | 17 - 19 |
| Thursdays (office hours) | 8 - 9 AM | 11 AM - 12 PM | 16 - 17 | 17 - 18 |
Photo by José Goulão
Who’s teaching?
The workshop is taught by Jorge Arango, an information architect, author, and educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jorge is the author of Living in Information: Responsible Design for Digital Places (Two Waves, 2018), co-author of Information Architecture: for the Web and Beyond (O’Reilly, 2015), and host of The Informed Life podcast.
Besides consulting, writing, and podcasting, Jorge also teaches in the California College of the Arts graduate interaction design program. He’s also taught IA workshops for private organizations and public conferences around the world.
Information Architecture: For the Web and Beyond
By Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville, and Jorge Arango
O’Reilly Media, 2015
How much does it cost?
The fall 2022 cohort is now closed. Please sign up to my newsletter to be notified of future offerings.
Any other questions? Please get in touch.