Flinders University Web. High-Level Information Architecture

Transcription

1 Flinders University Web High-Level Information Architecture Version July 2006

2 Document control Version Date Comments Author /07/06 Draft for IA Working Party Antonia Malavazos review

3 1. Introduction This report outlines the proposed high-level information architecture of the Flinders University Web. This high-level information architecture includes: A high-level site map: illustrating the top-level information structure for Flinders University Web. High-level wireframes: illustrating the navigation elements of the Flinders University Web homepage, subsite homepages and content pages. The development of this high-level information architecture is part of a web redevelopment project that aims to deliver a Flinders University Web that: promotes the University s brand, values, capabilities, and activities; attracts and recruits high quality people and partners to the Flinders University community; and facilitates information and service provision that is responsive to user and business needs. 2. Background 2.1. Information Architecture in an enterprise environment The Information Architecture Plan for the Flinders University Web 1 outlined the strategy and approach that would be undertaken to develop effective information architecture for the Flinders University Web. Flinders University is an enterprise organisation, as characterised by the following: It is a large, distributed, decentralised organisation made up of multiple cost centres A large degree of authority and responsibility resides in the hands of the cost centres Cost centres have their own significant infrastructure (technical, staff, expertise). Within this environment, a truly centralised information architecture model is doomed to fail. The structure and culture of the organisation and the distribution of resources are simply incompatible with this type of model. Conversely, a truly decentralised information architecture model will fail to meet user and business requirements. The challenge for information architecture in this environment is to find a workable balance between centralisation and decentralisation. The goal, therefore, is to integrate content from across the Flinders University Web in ways that make sense to users. The Information Architecture Plan outlines top-down and bottom-up enterprise information architecture solutions. This report outlines the high-level information architecture, which addresses the topdown enterprise information architecture solutions outlined in the plan: the information structure; and contextual navigation. It also supports the development of enterprise information architecture supplementary navigation aids, including the 1 Flinders University, Information Achitecture Plan, March 2006 Version 1.0 Page 3

4 development of an A Z index (a topic based index) and a site map, as identified in the Information Architecture Plan A Multiple-Information Architecture (IA) Project The development of new information architecture for the Flinders University Web is a multiple-ia project. The building block of the Flinders University Web is the subsite. Subsites contain the actual content of the Flinders University Web and are created and maintained by different units and department of the University. Flinders University Web is made up of numerous subsites, including: Global University content sites: eg. About Flinders; Courses and Programs User focused sites: eg. Future Students; Staff; i-flinders Administrative Division and Unit sites: eg Health and Counselling; Employee Self Service Faculties, Schools and Department sites: eg Faculty of Science and Engineering, Department of Environmental Health Centre and Institute sites: eg Centre for Research in New Literatures in English, Flinders Asia Centre In addition, there are commercial entity sites, journal and conference sites, student organisation sites, professional association sites, and staff and project sites. The development of information architecture for the Flinders University Web, therefore, requires a multi-level approach. The high-level information architecture outlined in this paper will lead to the development of detailed site maps and wireframes done on a section-by-section basis, as illustrated in the diagram below: Source: Hempell A., & Kawano E., BlastRadius, Taming the 800 pound gorilla: Some insights on managing a multiple-ia project, May 2006 Version 1.0 Page 4

5 2.3. Web Redevelopment Principles and Requirements A range of research work was undertaken to inform the requirements of the web redevelopment. This work focused on developing an understanding of the context, content and users for the Flinders University Web and includes: The establishment of Flinders University Web Goals 2 A content survey 3 and content analysis 4 An analysis of the search logs 5 A competitive analysis 6 Usability testing of the prospective student experience 7 The requirements identified through this work have been aligned with the web redevelopment principles established to accompany the Flinders University Web Redevelopment Project Outline. The relevant principles and requirements used to inform the development of the high-level information architecture are outlined below: Principle Users (internal and external) should not have to understand or deal with the complexity of the University structure when seeking information and services on the Flinders University Web. Requirement Enterprise information architecture solutions will be developed to integrate content from across departmental silos in ways that make sense to users. These solutions include top-down navigation (the top level information structure and contextual navigation), supplementary navigation aids (site map, A Z index) and the configuring of the search to meet user needs. Reference: Information Architecture Plan There should be consistency in navigation, look and feel and page layout across the subsites of the Flinders University Web. Reference: Information Architecture Plan; Competitive Analysis Report 2 Flinders University, Flinders University Web Goals and User Groups, rgroupsv2_march06.doc, 2 March Flinders University, Content Survey, April 4 Flinders University, Content Analysis, February Flinders University, Search Log Analysis Report, May Flinders University, Competitive Analysis Report, y06.doc, May Flinders University, Prospective Student Experience, Flinders University, prepared by Dey Alexander Consulting, June 2006, Version 1.0 Page 5

6 There should be common core navigation structures and elements adopted by all University sites. The standard industry (ie University websites) approach to site organisation, where the site is organised into the 2 main categories of For and About should continue to be used by the Flinders University Web. Reference: Competitive Analysis Report A standard global navigation bar should be included in all subsites representing the legal entity of Flinders University. The navigation bar should include links back to Home, amongst others, and a standard search box. Variations may occur for subsites not part of the Flinders University legal entity. Reference: Competitive Analysis Report; Prospective Student Experience, Flinders University; Flinders University Policy and Management Matrix Breadcrumbs should be included as a standard navigation tool. Reference: Competitive Analysis Report Consistent subsite navigation features (page layout, contextual navigation and look and feel) should be included in templates to provide a standard user interface. Reference: Competitive Analysis Report Subsite homepages should be designed so there is one focal point on the screen the navigation options. These should occupy the primary real estate in the centre of the screen. Reference: Prospective Student Experience, Flinders University Contextual linking on pages should be improved by developing solutions to group contextual (or related) links. Reference: Prospective Student Experience, Flinders University 3. Developing the High-Level Information Architecture 3.1. A Conceptual Model Following the content analysis, the establishment of the Flinders University Web Goals and the identification of the user groups, a conceptual content map was established (see Attachment 1) to map the relationships between content (subsites), user groups and goals. This was used illustrate the possibilities of moving away from an organisational structure perspective for establishing the information architecture to an approach based on users and content. Version 1.0 Page 6

7 3.2. The Information Architecture (IA) Working Party This proposed high-level information architecture was developed based on a series of workshops undertaken by a working party specifically established for its development. The membership of the working party is comprised of a mix of: University and staff representatives; web developers and designers; and information management specialists. Members include: David Green, Educational Designer Katie Cavanagh, Education, Humanities, Law and Theology Angela Brown, School of Nursing John Banbury, Library Luke Rowett, Planning Services Tim Hayward-Brown, Public Affairs and Alumni Debra Hackett, Social Sciences Chris Simmons, Multimedia Technology Unit James Caller, Multimedia Technology Unit Lidia Gnacinska, Multimedia Technology Unit The working party participated in a series of structured workshop activities, including: A competitive analysis exercise An information structure exercise A navigation design exercise The work and reports of the IA Working Party can be accessed at 4. The High-Level Information Architecture The proposed high-level information architecture is comprised of a high-level site map and high-level wireframes High-level site map The proposed high-level site map is at Attachment 2. The high-level site map illustrates the top-level information structure for Flinders University Web. It is a top-down information architecture approach that aims to: bring the subsites/content together in a manner that makes sense to users (via a logical and useful content hierarchy); and lead users to the areas in which they can locate the information they are looking for. Version 1.0 Page 7

8 As the site map illustrates, the content actually resides in the subsites, which are developed and maintained by different units and departments of the University. The subsites listed in this site map are not an exhaustive list. Rather it is representative of the content available on Flinders University Web. The key points about this high-level site map are outlined below Global navigation elements A number of global navigation features have been included in this high level site map. There are 2 components of these global navigation features: Global topics: including Library, Faculties and Staff Directory. Supplementary navigation features: including Quick Links, A Z Index, Site Map and Search Site Structure The site structure maintains the industry (University Web Site) standard where the site is organised into the 2 main categories of For and About. The new categories introduced in this structure include: About the Campus : This is a result of the information structure exercise undertaken by the IA Working Party, where both work groups created a category to include content relating to the campus and its physical facilities. About Teaching and Flinders : During the information structure exercise of the IA Working Party both groups took different approaches to categorising the teaching and learning content. It was subsequently considered to be a first level subsite due to the objective identified as part of the Flinders University Web Goals, to promote our excellence in teaching and research. This topic is also relevant to a range of audience groups including: current students, prospective students, staff, media and business and community. The shift of this content to a first level subsite requires content to be developed to promote our excellence in teaching to external audiences. About Flinders : Both work groups in the information structure exercise of the IA Working Party identified this as being a homepage link. This is consistent with: the web goal to attract and recruit high quality people and partners to the Flinders University community ; and the finding in the search log analysis where jobs was the highest ranked search term. The For categories of International Students, Business and Community and Media are consistent with the Flinders University web goals, the prospective student usability study and competitive sites. Version 1.0 Page 8

9 A move away from organisational structure It is also important to note that the information structure is based on categorising division and business unit websites according to topic and audience rather than organisational structure. This resulted in ideas for development of new content guides, including IT Services and Student Services. 5. High-Level Wireframes The high-level wireframes outline the navigation elements of the Flinders University Web homepage, subsite homepages and content pages. The aim is to set a pattern for other pages. Consequently, the high-level wireframes become the base document for detailed wireframes and templates. The wireframes at Attachment 3 include examples of a Faculty subsite (and its content pages) and the Research subsite (and its content pages). The new elements to be noted are described below Standard global navigation bar and footer A standard global navigation bar and footer have been established in these wireframes. The global navigation bar elements include: Accessibility information and features The banner with the Flinders University logo which always links back to home Global topics Global supplementary navigation features: Quicklinks, a Search box, A Z Index and the Site Map 5.2. Quicklinks and Search As stated above, quick links and a standard search box have been included as global navigation features. Quick links is a drop-down list of links to the most frequently searched for content. This is based on the monitoring of the search logs and can be updated accordingly. As the examples of the Faculty subsite wireframes show at Attachment 3, the quick links feature can be tailored for subsite content. In addition, an additional search feature has been provided for Faculty sites, which allows users to limit their search to the Faculty site. Version 1.0 Page 9

10 5.3. Breadcrumbs Breadcrumbs are included as a navigation feature. Breadcrumbs show the location of where the user is in the structure of the site. Eg. Flinders University > About Flinders University > Governance. The breadcrumbs become effective from subsite level and below. The breadcrumbs provide context to the content within the Flinders University Web structure and are a supplementary navigation tool. The benefits of breadcrumb navigation relate to usability and better integration of content from the lower levels of the structure Subsite homepages The wireframe for subsite homepages was used as the building block for developing the wireframes in the navigation design exercise workshop of the IA Working Party. The wireframe for subsite homepages is a major shift to the templates being used on Flinders University Web now. It is based on the findings of the Prospective Student Experience, Flinders University usability study which recommended that subsite homepages should be designed so there is one focal point on the screen the navigation options. It recommends that the navigation options should occupy the primary real estate in the centre of the screen, where most people look when they first look at a new page, because the primary purpose of these homepages is navigation. The IA Working Party reached this same conclusion as they worked through the exercise. The example subsite wireframes show a key advantage of this approach to the subsite navigation. Placing the navigation at the centre of the screen provides more room for that navigation, thereby allowing the items of the lower levels of the navigation to appear on the subsite homepage. This allows users to access content at those lower levels via a shorter navigation path. Optional News and Feature/Feature links/related links areas have been provided within the subsite homepage wireframes to meet the content requirements for these subsites Subsite content pages The example subsite wireframes at Attachment 3 show that the local navigation area on subsite content pages moves to the left so that the focus of the content pages is on the content. The examples provided at Attachment 3 also provide two levels of content page wireframes. The features of the subsite wireframes developed (breadcrumbs, central navigation area) have provided the possibility for better integrating lower-level subsites into the upper level of the information structure. Therefore, within a first level content page, optional News and Feature/Feature Links areas have been provided. Version 1.0 Page 10

11 It should be noted, however, that where a lower level subsite is comprised of a significant amount of content, it will use the subsite homepage wireframe. 6. Implications 6.1. Developing detailed information architecture As stated above, this high-level information architecture will lead to the development of detailed information architecture, comprised of a detailed site map and detailed wireframes done on a section-by-section basis and then consolidated with the highlevel information architecture Content management As the detailed information architecture is developed, the impacts on content management will need to be determined. This includes the impact on content management process (rules and roles), which will be administered by the content management system, and resources Change management This high-level information architecture introduces some changes. The most significant changes include: categorising division and business unit websites according to topic and audience, rather than by organisational structure, in the information structure; placing the local navigation of the subsite homepage at the centre of the page; and integrating lower-level subsites into the upper level of the information structure. This requires significant communication with the range of staff involved throughout the University A template strategy As stated previously, the high-level wireframes become the base document for the templates. A template strategy needs to outline how the elements in these wireframes apply to the various categories of subsites including: centres and institutes, commercial entities, journal and conference sites, student association sites, etc. Version 1.0 Page 11