Information architects, usability analysts, digital designers and technologists were among the professionals who gathered at Milwaukee School of Engineering on Feb. 18 for a regional celebration of World Information Architects (IA) Day.

Information architects decide how to arrange the parts of something – websites, apps, software, printed materials and physical places – to help people understand their surroundings and find what they are looking for. World IA Day started in 2012 with the support of the Information Architecture Institute. In 2017, World AI Day celebrations took place at 58 locations, in 24 countries on five continents.

About 60 information architects attended the Milwaukee World IA Day, which was hosted by MSOE’s User Experience and Communication Design (UXCD) program.

“I thought with the launch of the UXCD program in the fall, hosting a World IA Day was a great opportunity to let the Milwaukee community know about the program,” said Dr. Nadya Shalamova, program director. “IA is an important skill within UX and other disciplines.”

MSOE Instructional Technologist Andrew Holmes was among the event’s speakers. Businesses represented at World IA Day included MGIC, Johnson Controls, The Understanding Group and many others. Joe Elmendorf, an information architect from The Understanding Group, and Rebecca Arnell, a web Producer at MGIC, organized the event.

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User Experience

Are you tech-savvy and creative? When you look at a mobile application, do you see ways it can be improved to help users achieve their goals? Thanks to UX leaders such as Apple, Google, and Amazon, consumers expect their digital service experience to be clean, simple, and user-friendly regardless of the device or platform.