Summary: This article describes Baylor College of Medicine’s guidelines regarding information architecture of pages and applications within the bcm.edu domain.
Approving Authority: Office of Communications and Community Outreach, Institutional Web Management
Last Updated: Nov. 27, 2018
Purpose: Uniformity and consistency of content and organization are essential for website effectiveness. The underlying organization, structure and naming that define the relationships between a site’s content and functionality is called the information architecture. The purpose of this guidance is to describe the requirements for information architecture within the bcm.edu domain.
Scope: This governance applies to all webpages and applications within the bcm.edu domain. All websites identified with Baylor College of Medicine must be built in the College content management system (CMS) in accordance with the College site information architecture.
Definition
Information Architecture
The organization, structure and naming of website content and functionality. Information architecture is separate from the user interface but shapes it, for example by setting standards for content and determining placement of pages within the site.
Responsibilities
The Office of Communications and Community Outreach, Institutional Web Management, is responsible for developing the information architecture environment based on the needs of the site visitor and input from internal College stakeholders. The web management team is responsible for placing all Baylor sites and pages within the established information architecture and for evaluating and auditing content for uniformity of tone, accuracy, usefulness and effectiveness.
Web maintainers are responsible for working with Institutional Web Management to ensure the content adheres to College information architecture.
Guidelines
New pages and changes to existing pages are submitted through the College content management system. Institutional Web Management reviews pages to ensure adherence to established guidelines for structure and content before publication.
To access, create or edit College websites, or to request training in the College CMS, requestors must submit the following form.
*Note: Policies cited in the Digital Governance document (approved by the Board and published in March 2019) supersede any previous agreement, policy and/or guideline.
Contact
Cognizant Office: Office of Communications and Community Outreach, Institutional Web Management: pa-webteam@bcm.edu
General questions should be directed to the Digital Governance Subcommittee.