1. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 1 One Large or Many Small? Executing Taxonomies for Large Organizations Kevin Hannon Principal Consultant and Founder, eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com

2. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 2 Taxonomies for Large Organizations l Large Organizations Need Simple Taxonomies The more complex an organization, the more likely people will be intimidated by them. The more complex the organization, the more the employees need a simple taxonomy. The taxonomy can enable employees and site visitors to understand the organization at-a- glance.

3. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 3 Taxonomies for Large Organizations l Taxonomies Need to Tie Organizations Together Large organizations are always a grouping of many smaller separate and diverse organizations. In most cases, employees will admit that these separate organizations have developed information silos. As a result, many differences exist between the groups. Each has developed separate vocabularies and processes. Taxonomies create a visual link between these diverse, divisional silos.

4. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 4 The Master Taxonomy l Many Organizations Strive for the “Spine” or “Master” Taxonomy Efforts to create a single view are based on the need to unify an organization. The goal is to create a single, high-level view of the organization as a whole. A side benefit of this process is a better understanding of each division’s content. With a single view, site visitors can find both the similarities and differences between and within divisions. Identify unique content that is “authoritative” and content that is not. Identify areas of duplication.

5. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 5 The Master Taxonomy l Two Distinct Approaches There are two philosophies for developing the “Master” taxonomy for an organization. One large taxonomy to cover the organization as a unit. Several smaller taxonomies to cover the organization as a sum of its parts. On paper, a single taxonomy is better. Functionally, several taxonomies are better.

6. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 6 Taxonomies Represent Content l Taxonomies Need Form AND Function A well-defined taxonomy on paper has form. A well-defined taxonomy that organizes bodies of content has form AND function. l Good Taxonomies Deliver Relevant Content In order to deliver relevant content, taxonomies need a tight relationship to content. Taxonomies that relate to content have distinct functional properties that are driven by the content they represent.

7. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 7 Taxonomies Represent Content l Meaningful Taxonomies Are Based on Existing Evidence. For a taxonomy to deliver content effectively, that taxonomy must be derived from the content itself. Industry standards will drive the structure (e.g., HR Best Practices) Organizational functions will drive the labels (e.g., define the major functions in the organization – they will remain constants). Existing content will drive the output (e.g., only categories with content behind them should be published).

8. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 8 Function and Form Are Different l Form and Function Do Not Mix A presentation taxonomy and a functional taxonomy are two different entities. Together, these two taxonomies function as a unit. Each taxonomy needs to be defined separately. The functional taxonomy needs to define the relationship to relevant content. The presentation taxonomy needs to define the experience for the user.

9. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 9 The Presentation Taxonomy l Presentation is the Experience l The presentation creates the experience of the taxonomy for the user. l A large and complex site can be unified and simplified by well- structured taxonomy. l This single taxonomy will help the user to locate specific content.

10. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 10 The Presentation Taxonomy l Presentation is the Experience A well-designed and well-organized taxonomy is words only and has no function. A well-designed and well-organized taxonomy needs to be supported by a functioning taxonomy to have meaning. Presentation taxonomies sit on top of one or many functional taxonomies. The number of functional taxonomies depends on the size and complexity of the content they describe.

11. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 11 The Functional Taxonomy l Functional Taxonomies Support the Presentation l Presentation taxonomies sit on top of one or many functional taxonomies. l The number of functional taxonomies depends on the size and complexity of the content they describe. l Dissimilar content is defined separately.

12. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 12 The Functional Taxonomy l Functional Taxonomies Focus Content l Functional taxonomies need to be are highly specific. l Each functional taxonomy isolates a grouping of relevant content. l Dissimilar content is defined separately. l In the example on the right, one functional taxonomy describes each content repository.

13. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 13 Flexible Taxonomies l Large Organizations Need Flexibility. Since most large organizations often re-organize or go through other bureaocrat changes, taxonomies need to be highly flexible and easy to maintain. Flexible taxonomies represent specific content and describe a standard function. Content-specific subject areas are usually in discreet, identifiable repositories. Smaller content areas from other repositories can add value to the core content repository (e.g., the HR repository could benefit from also connecting to Legal Policies regarding Affirmative Action).

14. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 14 Flexible Taxonomies l Functional Taxonomies Are Flexible l Functional taxonomies can add specificity to subject areas. l Functional taxonomies can add flexibility to subject areas. l In the example to the right, the HR taxonomy adds focused pieces of other content sources to round out the subject area.

15. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 15 Taxonomies for Clarity l Large Organizations Need Clarity Across divisions of an organization, several controlled vocabularies are required for accuracy. For example, when searching for the term “terminate” in a high- tech company, HR, R&D and Product information should be returned. In such an example, these shared terms need to be associated to other terms specific to their context. In a multi-taxonomy model, each taxonomy has its own controlled vocabulary. A single, large taxonomy could provide similar functionality, but it would be more complex, harder to maintain and lack clarity.

16. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 16 Taxonomies for Clarity l Large Organizations Need Clarity l In the example to the right, each functional taxonomy has its own controlled vocabulary. l Each vocabulary is managed separately. l Each vocabulary relates directly to a specific subject area.

17. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 17 One or Many Taxonomies? l Large Organizations Need Clarity, Flexibility and Simplicity. Several functional taxonomies will deliver clarity and flexibility to the site user. A single presentation taxonomy will deliver a simplicity for the site visitor.

18. Created Exclusively for eBusiness and IT, Inc. “Information Over Technology” ™ April 28, 2004 © 2004 eBusiness and IT, Inc. khannon@mindspring.com 18 Thank You