Information Architecture in Practice
Community-Supported Learning with Abby Covert
Ready to transform how you work? Join a learning community solving the real information architecture problems - like how to check and organize huge content collections, design navigation people can actually use, and get others to support better organizing systems. Each month, we tackle one focus area, building skills you can use on your hardest information challenges.
Ready to Practice IA in Community? Start today.
Each month centers on one focus area of information architecture. You'll work alongside Abby Covert to develop essential skills and practical approaches to organizing information.
Your learning path includes four connected experiences each month. Community discussions that explore real challenges, workshops that build concrete skills, resource guides that capture proven methods, and practice sessions where you apply what you learn.
This structured but flexible approach helps you tackle complex information problems with confidence. Rather than just discussing theory, you'll build skills you can apply to your work right away.
Includes:
- Weekly Chat Discussions
Deep dive with Abby into specific challenges in our members-only chat channel. - Monthly Video Discussions
Join live conversations moderated by Abby exploring each topic with fellow practitioners. - Group Workshops Every Month
Participate in newly developed workshops incorporating community insights. - Growing Sensemaker's Handbook
Reference our collective discoveries and research in each focus area.
SEPTEMBER'S FOCUS AREA
STRUCTURAL ARGUMENTATION
Your proposal is only as strong as how well you can defend and connect your reasoning. Success isn't just about having the right structure—it's about building a case that shows stakeholders exactly why your solution works and what it will cost to make it happen.
Think of it like presenting evidence in court with clear exhibits and logical flow. Good structural arguments mean decision-makers can follow from your basic premise to specific recommendations without getting lost—whether they're reviewing your main reasoning, checking your supporting research, or jumping between different aspects of implementation. In information architecture, this means laying out how your solution handles real content, actual users, and true constraints. It's less about creating perfect logic and more about building honest connections between your ideas and the messy reality of making change happen.
Are your proposals helping stakeholders see the full picture or just the shiny parts? Can they trace back to your core intention when you dive into classification details? Do your trade-offs actually acknowledge what this will cost in time, people, and resources? When you build structural arguments thoughtfully from the start, you're not just defending ideas—you're creating the foundation that turns maybe into yes.
Your stakeholders shouldn't have to guess what you're really asking for. But as an information architect, understanding how they evaluate risk and return should drive every argument you make. It's the difference between proposals that get built and ones that sound nice but go nowhere.
Approaches, Methods and Tools
Community Chat Discussion
Mondays in September
@ 12 PM Eastern
Join us every Monday in September to dig into the messy, essential work of making solid arguments for change when it comes to information architectures.
Building Strong Arguments in Information Architecture
Discussion Group
September 5 2025
@ 12 to 1 PM Eastern
We'll cover simple ways to back up your design choices with clear evidence, organize your thinking so stakeholders can follow along, and present your case in a way that actually convinces people instead of just confusing them.
The Sensemaker's Guide to Structural Arguments
Chapter Release
September 12, 2025
Available for FREE on abbycovert.com
A practical guide for making sense of complex information and building clear cases for your decisions. Learn how to spot patterns in messy data, organize your thinking into arguments that hold up under pressure, and present your findings in ways that help others see what you see.
How to Argue (for IA) Better
Workshop
September 19, 2025
@ 12 to 2 PM Eastern
OCTOBER'S FOCUS AREA
Proving a Return on Investment
Answering the number 1 question information architects receive when making recommendations for big change: how do we know that the investment will pay off? In October we will focus on understanding how to think about, collaborate on and frame the return on investment of IA work.
Approaches, Methods and Tools
Community Chat Discussion
Mondays in October
@ 12 PM Eastern
Join us every Monday in October to tackle the big question of ROI in information architecture. We’ll explore practical ways to demonstrate the value of IA work, linking clarity and structure to measurable business outcomes. From identifying the right metrics to telling compelling before-and-after stories, we’ll share real-world examples of how to make the case for investment (and what pitfalls to avoid). Bring your questions and challenges for group brainstorming.
Show Me The Money: Proving Better Design Pays Off
Discussion Group
October 10 2025
@ 12 to 1 PM Eastern
Ever wonder why your beautifully designed feature gets killed in budget meetings? Or why executives don't see the value in the structural work that keeps products from falling apart? This discussion is for anyone who's tired of hearing "we can't afford good design" while watching companies spend way more money fixing preventable problems.
We'll share war stories, swap tactics for talking to business folks in their language, and explore concrete ways to show how smart information architecture saves money, reduces customer service costs, and keeps your best team members from quitting.
The Sensemaker's Guide to Return of Investment
Chapter Release
October 17, 2025
Available for FREE on abbycovert.com
A Return on Investment Matters: Building a Business Case for IA
Workshop
October 24, 2025
@ 12 to 2 PM Eastern
Coming in November
Collaboration in Information Architecture
Coming in December
Change Management
EACH MONTH BRINGS A FOCUS AREA
Each focus area builds on the last, following the natural flow of how we make sense of, design for, and improve information spaces. This thoughtful progression helps you develop a complete approach to information architecture practice.
MONTHLY FOCUS AREAS
- January: Auditing an Existing Information Environment
- February: Establishing Measurements in Preparation for Change
- March: Conducting a Heuristic Evaluation
- April: Managing Stakeholders
- May: Diagramming & Modeling
- June: Controlling Vocabularies
- July: Designing with Metadata
- August: Proposing Thoughtful Taxonomies
- September: Arguing for Structural Resilience
- October: Proposing ROI for Architectural Improvements
- November: Collaborating in Information Architecture
- December: Managing Changes in Information Architecture
Frequently Asked Questions
What experience level is this program designed for?
How much time should I plan to commit each month?
What if I can't attend all the live sessions?
Do I need to commit to all 12 months?
Will this be relevant if I don't work as an Information Architect?
Can I see the rest of the schedule?
MEET YOUR GUIDE
ABBY COVERT
Abby Covert is an information architect, writer and community organizer with two decades of experience helping people make sense of messes.
She has written two popular books, How to Make Sense of Any Mess and Stuck? Diagrams Help. She currently spends her time making things that help you to make the unclear, clear, many of which she makes available for free on her website www.abbycovert.com
In 2022 she started The Sensemakers Club where she brings together sensemakers from different walks of life to learn from one another. Abby currently lives and writes from Melbourne, Florida where her most important job title is ‘Mom’.
"In 2025 I want to be in the thick of defining a practice while in community with fellow practitioners, not standing at a pulpit preaching to a choir who has been well rehearsed to sing along." - Abby Covert
Sensemakers face increasingly complex challenges made of information.
- Systems that defy conventional frameworks
- Stakeholders with competing needs
- Rapid technological change
- Growing information complexity
Traditional education isn't keeping up with the sense that we collectively need to make. We need a new approach.
"We need a different way to learn about working with information, data, content and people."
- Abby Covert
This isn't another course where an expert tells you what to do. Instead you will learn through active discussion, help shape curriculum as we go, test ideas in real time and build lasting connections with other folks doing the same.
This is an exercise in what we can discover together. No pedestals. No preaching. Just real exploration with fellow practitioners.
Turn Learning into Action
Build Your IA Practice
- Turn complex information problems into clear, actionable solutions
- Make decisions based on real evidence, not just gut feelings
- Get key players on board using tested communication strategies
- Design organizing systems that work for real people
- Lead meaningful change in your organization or team
Learn from Real Experience
- See how others tackle information challenges in different fields
- Dig into real projects and learn from what worked (and didn't)
- Get honest feedback when you're stuck
- Build lasting connections with other information architects
Take Home Practical Tools
- Step-by-step guides for each area of IA practice
- Watch in-depth workshops again when you need them
- Quick summaries that capture key insights from our discussions
- Ready-to-use templates and frameworks for common IA challenges
JOIN THE JOURNEY
Information Architecture in Practice
Subscribe to Club Emails
By subscribing to monthly email updates you will gain access to key learnings from this course and access to published chapters every month.
FREE
Subscribe TodayJoin the Sensemakers Club
Club members at all levels get access to chat channels, monthly moderated discussions with Abby and a 25% discount on any monthly workshops
$75/m
Start TodayHow to Argue
(for IA) Better
Workshop taught by Abby Covert
September 19, 2025
@ 12 to 2 PM Eastern
Your proposal is only as good as your argument for it. In this hands on workshop we will cover what it means to make a solid argument for change when it comes to information architecture.
$125
per drop in
A Return on Investment Matters: Building a Business Case for IA
Workshop taught by Abby Covert
October 24, 2025
@ 12 to 2 PM Eastern
Stop letting your information architecture decisions happen by accident. In this hands-on workshop, you'll learn to calculate the real dollar impact of structural design choices and build cases that get executive buy-in.
We'll work through real examples of companies that ignored their information architecture until it cost them millions in customer service, team turnover, and lost sales. You'll leave with concrete tools to avoid becoming one of those cautionary tales.
$125
per drop in
Become a Premium Member
Club members at all levels get access to chat channels, monthly moderated discussions with Abby and a 25% discount on any monthly workshops
Premium club members will additionally receive access to all IA in Practice workshops including recordings.
This is the best way to get access to the content in this program while paying month by month.
...and yes, we know how valuable this braintrust is about to be.
$100/m
Start TodayWorkshop Videos For Sale
(Premium Members Get FREE Access)
Strategies for Effective Audits
Learn pressure-tested strategies for running successful information audits that deliver real value to your organization. This hands-on workshop will equip you with practical techniques you can apply immediately to your own audit projects.
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How to Measure Before Change
Learn tested ways to capture your current state before making changes. This hands-on workshop shows you how to document what matters, spot patterns in how people work, and set up measurements that help rather than hinder your improvement efforts.
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Heuristics in Action
Learn practical ways to catch issues before they trip up users. This hands-on workshop shows you how to spot common problems, find patterns in user confusion, and set up simple checks that help you fix issues early in your design work.
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How to Manage Stakeholders
Learn practical methods to identify and work with the people who matter most to your project's success. This hands-on workshop gives you simple but effective tools to map stakeholder influence, understand competing priorities, and build the relationships that turn good ideas into implemented solutions.
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Diagramming & Modeling
Stop creating diagrams that collect dust! This hands-on session teaches you how to build visual models teams actually use. You'll learn the nuts and bolts of effective system blueprints, practical ways to match your models to real problems, and methods to ensure your work becomes a go-to resource rather than forgotten documentation. Bring your current project challenges—you'll walk away with clear, useful blueprints your team can put to work immediately.
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Controlled Vocabularies
The words we use shape how people navigate, understand, and trust the systems we build. In this hands-on workshop, we’ll roll up our sleeves and get into the nitty-gritty of creating controlled vocabularies that actually stick. You’ll learn how to map messy terms, wrangle synonyms, and guide your team toward shared language—without getting lost in semantics..
Metadata
The metadata we create determines what people can find, connect, and understand across our systems. In this hands-on workshop, we'll move beyond theory and dig into the practical work of designing useful metadata. You'll learn how to audit existing attributes, create structured tagging systems, and implement governance approaches that keep your metadata clean and consistent over time.
Taxonomies
The difference between a taxonomy that helps and one that hurts comes down to understanding how people naturally group and search for information. In this hands-on workshop, we'll work through the messy reality of taxonomy design—from card sorting and user research to handling overlapping categories and multi-faceted content. You'll learn practical techniques for testing category labels, structuring hierarchies that make sense, and maintaining taxonomies as content grows and changes.
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