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My understanding is that the term "grew up" on the Web, made popular by the
book "Information Architecture for the World Wide Web" by Morville &
Rosenfeld (O'Reilly Publishers).
And yes, I do believe many technical writers are actually doing a lot of
this stuff already (I know I am) so the transition is possible (and an easy
sell to a recruiter)
HTH
Gordon
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+gordon -dot- mclean=grahamtechnology -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
[mailto:techwr-l-bounces+gordon -dot- mclean=grahamtechnology -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- c
om] On Behalf Of Jim Barrow
Sent: 20 December 2007 15:19
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: Information Architect
Good Morning All,
There have been discussions here in the past that dealt with other areas
that are open to tech writers who want to move up/on/out, etc. I think
about this often as I try to couple my retirement plans with where I am now
in my career.
This is what I was doing the other day when I received a phone call from a
recruiter. She stated that she had an exciting opportunity for an
information architect.
An info whatsy?
Seriously, I don't think I had ever heard of that title outside of being
creative on my business card. But, lo and behold, it's a real job category.
When I asked the recruiter to describe the duties and responsibilities
associated with the job I was surprised - they matched what I am currently
doing at my present job. When she mentioned the pay rate, I fell over - it
was 30% more than what I am getting now.
>From what I've researched - and this is where I'd like your opinion and
feedback - information architects seem to do equal parts technical writer,
business analyst and GUI (Web) developer. Granted, the job descriptions I
found on various job boards varied greatly, but no more so than a
"financial" tech writer, or a "medical industry" tech writer.
Has anyone here worked as or with an information architect? Is my
assessment of the job title accurate? Is this something that technical
writers could move into without too much of a learning curve?
- Jim
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