[Sigia-l] [summary] Questions to ask an IA job candidate

[Francois Jordaan]

I asked:
"""
I'm interviewing for an IA job position next week, and would like to ask the
list what questions they'd put to the candidates, and what answers they'd
like to hear.
"""

Thanks very much for the helpful replies, Scott and Beth.

----- Scott Abel --------
I'd make sure the candidate knows how to build an information product model
(understands modeling content for publication to multiple channels),
understands usability, and knows that IA is a business function, not an IT
function. The best candidates have both a grasp on technology and the
business needs of their organization's customers, be they internal/external
of both. Technical writers with IT knowledge often make some of the best
candidates because they understand the importance of "structure", "users"
and they've had to document many of the worst systems ever developed. As a
result, they come to the table with the basic experiences a IA needs.

Also, I'm working with a start-up non-profit that hopes to build IA into a
discipline. They claim that the following job titles are good candidates of
information architects:

Information Architect, User Experience Designer/Expert, User Experience
Manager/Director, Interaction Designer, Human Factors Engineer/Manager,
Usability Engineer/Manager, Usability Specialist, User Interface Designer

----- Beth Berrean --------
Here are a couple of my favorites when interviewing
people (I haven't done in about a year) & some of my
favorite answers:

+ Walk me through a deliverable that represents a
particular design decision that you made. Why this
approach, what alternatives did you consider and why
did you choose this approach.

+ What thinkers/books/firms etc do you think have been
most influential? Who do you think is the MOST wrong?

+ Which user-testing exercises have been the most
helpful to you when making design decisions? Have you
ever radically changed a design because of testing?

+ How do you communicate some of the advantages and
disadvantages of certain approaches to
clients/decision makers?

+ What has been your best collaboration to date?

Some of my favorite answers demonstrate attention to
detail in deliverables, the ability to articulate
alternative approaches, a general awareness of 
trends/concepts from LIS, HCI and design, independent
thinking and empathy with users and, I think most
importantly, the ability to see their work as a
collaboration rather than an individual work of
genuis.

-------------------

francois

Wheel Group, Beaumont House, Kensington Village, Avonmore Road,  London W14
8TS
www.wheel.co.uk

_____________________________________________________________________
This e-mail has been scanned for viruses by MessageLabs.