the importance of visualisation – mapping the way forward

MAPPINGTHE WAY FORWARD

The importance of visualisation -

Richard Ingram

@richardjingramFriday, 13 September 13

© T

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Babylonian map of the worldClay tablet, probably from Sippar, southern Iraq (c.700-500 BC)

Babylon

Friday, 13 September 13

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Hereford Mappa Mundi (‘Sheet of the World’)Inked parchment, the largest medieval map known to still exist (c.1300)

London

Edinburgh


Administrative


Administrative Social



MilitaryFriday, 13 September 13


Military PoliticalFriday, 13 September 13

Walt Disney’s business map,1957Depicts a central film asset and its supporting entertainment assets


Growth of Las Vegas, NV 1984–2012Google Earth timelapse constructed from satellite imagery


Radial hierarchical organisation structureAbout as complex and contradictory as its name suggests


John Rocque's map of London, 1746Rocque deliberately left out the city’s unsavoury elements


Map of organisation-wide content distributionOr that giant hairball the cat coughed up yesterday. Equally yucky.


MAPPINGOUT ASTORY

Beyond physical geography -


Wabash river

Ohio river

Mississippi river

© T

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Native North American buckskin mapPossibly used in land negotiations with the British (c.1744)


Distribution Distance

Overlap Direction

NA

BC

A

B


LIGHT

HEAT

SUN

gives

gives

Exploded view Concept map

Different maps, same basic building blocks


Topological map Star map

Different maps, same basic building blocks


North

South

EastWest

Find your coordinate systemAnything can be mapped using pairs of opposites


Expensive

Cheap

Slow Fast



High

Low

Small Large



N

Plot your landmarksStart with the most prominent feature, then move outward


FINDINGOURWAY

The unfamiliar environment -


Content

ProcessesPeople

Tackling that complex trinityContent governance is an important tool for this end


web�� site?

We�� use�� ‘website’

Oh�� well�� ...

✓

✗

Maintaining content consistency is hardParticularly when many contributors have other responsibilities

Style�� query Content�� Control�� filter Publish�� to�� web

web-site?


Regional English Council

Approx. 15,000 staff

7 departments

Serving approx. 700,000 people

Scenario: Design a new content workflow


Digital Services department(Our heroes)

Our varied, siloed environmentSome departments are responsible for 100s of pages,

while others only a few


Follow�� me!

Map Expert guide (Mandy)

Our varied, siloed environmentHow to find our bearings in unfamiliar surroundings


Our varied, siloed environmentTo discover how content decisions are made and how they could be improved, we need to figure out who

best to talk to

Mandy

?

??

?

?


Let’s map our environment

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's

Corporate�� Resources

Childrenand�� YoungPeople

Adults�� &�� Communities

Environment�� and��

Transport

Community�� Planning

We’ll begin by marking out each of the seven departments


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

Let’s devise our coordinate system

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Transport



LargeSmall Fast

Slow

We’re on the move! What can we see?

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Transport



LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Let’s map those pathways


Transport


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





What can our marked pathways tell us?


Transport

FASTER

SLOWERFriday, 13 September 13

LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Where are the opportunities for improvement?


Transport


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Our map: Simple, but effective


Transport


MAPPINGOUT APROCESS

The unfamiliar environment -


Requirements for an effective CMS workflowMeet the needs of the organisation and your content players


Conducting content player interviewsAsk them to walk you through several different content

creation and publishing scenarios

DigitalServices

MandyContent Officer


The ensuing conversationMandy talks us through the typical process for publishing

a press release on the council website

On�� Monday�� I�� received�� a�� request�� from�� John,�� Highways�� Manager�� at�� the�� Environment�� and�� Transport�� department,�� to�� publish�� a�� press�� release�� to�� inform�� the�� community�� of�� the�� start�� of�� major�� road�� improvement�� work.

I�� first�� called�� Helen,�� Technical�� Services�� Manager�� at�� the�� Environment�� and�� Transport�� department,�� who�� emailed�� through�� the�� source�� material�� and�� directed�� me�� on�� the�� technical�� details�� that�� needed�� to�� be�� included.


The ensuing conversation cont.Mandy talks us through the typical process for publishing

a press release on the council website

After�� completing�� the�� draft�� in�� the�� CMS�� environment,�� I�� marked�� the�� press�� release�� as�� 'ready�� for�� review'�� and�� emailed�� Rachael,�� a�� Content�� Manager�� and�� colleague�� in�� the�� Digital�� Services�� team,�� and�� Helen�� again�� for�� their�� feedback.��

After�� one�� or�� two�� line�� edits,�� I�� was�� ready�� to�� mark�� the�� press�� release�� as�� 'ready�� for�� publishing',�� so�� I�� emailed�� David,�� a�� Digital�� Media�� Officer�� to�� prepare�� and�� publish�� the�� press�� release�� to�� the�� test�� server.


The ensuing conversation cont.Mandy is still talking us through the typical process for

publishing a press release on the council website

John,�� Helen�� and�� Rachael�� were�� all�� emailed�� to�� help�� me�� perform�� a�� second�� review�� of�� the�� content,�� where�� they�� duly�� approved�� its�� publishing�� to�� the�� public�� website.��

David�� then�� got�� all�� the�� glory�� as�� usual�� by�� hitting�� the�� button�� marked�� 'publish'.

I’m�� completely�� lost.�� Let’s�� make�� a�� map.


Who are the players in our story?

MandyContent�� Officer

JohnHighways�� Manager

HelenTechnical�� Services�� Manager

RachaelContent�� Manager

DavidDigital�� Media�� Officer







Enviro

nmen

t�� an

d�� Tr

ansp

ort

Digita

l�� Ser

vice

s

MAKE�� REQUEST

SOURCEMATERIAL

PROVIDEMATERIAL

CREATEDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

EDITDRAFT

PUBLISH�� TO�� TESTSERVER

REVIEW�� &APPROVE



REVIEW

PUBLISH�� TO�� WEB







Enviro

nmen

t�� an

d�� Tr

ansp

ort

Digita

l�� Ser

vice

s

MAKE�� REQUEST

SOURCEMATERIAL

PROVIDEMATERIAL

CREATEDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

EDITDRAFT





REVIEW


WHY�� THE�� DELAYS?







Enviro

nmen

t�� an

d�� Tr

ansp

ort

Digita

l�� Ser

vice

s

MAKE�� REQUEST

SOURCEMATERIAL

PROVIDEMATERIAL

CREATEDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

REVIEWDRAFT

EDITDRAFT





REVIEW


CMS�� INTERACTIONS


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Breaking down the department


Transport

Transportation

Environment

Highways



LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





Why is John’s sub-department failing?


Transport

Transportation

Environment

Highways



I�� have�� no�� access�� to�� the�� central�� CMS!


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's





CMS workarounds adding unnecessary time and cost


Transport

Transportation

Environment

Highways



I�� have�� no�� access�� to�� the�� central�� CMS!


LargeSmall Fast

Slow

DigitalServices

ChiefExecutive's


Community�� Planning Adults�� &��

Communities


Where else could improvements be made?


Transport


ChiefExecutive's




Transport


SPEED�� UP�� PROCESSES

=�� POTENTIALSAVINGS


MAPPINGTHE WAY FORWARD

The power of drawing -


Remember: We are not completely bound by what has happened before

Content

ProcessesPeople

Balancing that complex trinity


Suggestion: let’s not always rely on the old established categories, we can always invent new ones

New ideas won’t always fit neatly

�� ?!?


Suggestion: let’s not always rely on the old established categories, we can always invent new ones

New ideas won’t always fit neatly

�� Aha!


Suggestion: let’s all step away from our screens and draw together.Encourage those innate inventive qualities


Make use of basic shapes, arrows, and faces. Find your axis. Above all: Embrace your mistakes.

Mapmaking is a basic human instinct


KIITOS !/THANKYOU !

Richard Ingram

@[email protected]

www.ingserv.com+44 1424 205 383


mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.ingserv.com

http://www.ingserv.com

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You Are Here: Personal Geographies and Other Maps of the Imaginationby Katharine Harmon

Blah Blah Blah: What To Do When Words Don't Workby Dan Roam (@dan_roam)

The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Picturesby Dan Roam

Maps of the Imagination: The Writer as Cartographerby Peter Turchi

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the importance of visualisation – mapping the way forward

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