Pearson Taxonomy
Creating a Framework for Pearson's Training Content and Resources
Senior Content Developer (Project Lead)
Information Architecture, Content Analysis
Training and Development - Content Team
October 2022 - February 2024
Background
As a senior content developer at Pearson, I led the initiative to enhance the organization's enrollment assistance resources by implementing a robust taxonomy framework. The objective was to improve the organization and accessibility of content used to train employees assisting families with enrollment, as well as external knowledge base articles (KBAs) for customers navigating the enrollment experience.
Challenges
This project presented five challenges.
Content Fragmentation
Pearson's enrollment assistance resources were dispersed across various platforms and formats, leading to fragmentation and inconsistency in content classification.
Ineffective Knowledge Management
The lack of a unified taxonomy framework hinders knowledge management efforts, resulting in difficulties in organizing, accessing, and utilizing enrollment assistance content for both employees and families.
Limited Discoverability
Employees struggle to discover relevant resources due to inadequate search functionality and poor metadata tagging, while families face challenges in finding the information they need in KBAs.
Scalability
With ongoing updates and expansions in enrollment processes, Pearson required a taxonomy framework that could adapt and scale effectively to accommodate future changes.
Communication and Satisfaction
Inefficient content discovery processes result in decreased employee productivity and satisfaction, as well as frustration for families trying to navigate the enrollment process.
How can we create a taxonomy to better organize Pearson's training materials and KBAs, ensuring they are accurate, consistent, and easy to find for both Pearson's employees and external users?
Objective
The primary objective is to create a hierarchal framework that classifies all content assets and explains how the business leverages the content to support clients (schools), staff (agents), and customers (families/students) as well as achieve desired business goals.
Process
To create the taxonomy, I had to take a backward approach since there was a already significant amount of diverse content assets dispersed across various platforms and formats. This involved:
Information gathering
Knowledge base audit
Taxonomy design and building
Content labeling
Testing and revision
Information Gathering
The first 1.5 months of the project were dedicated to gathering information about the existing content library and understanding the business. This involved:
Stakeholder Interviews: I scheduled and conducted interviews with key stakeholders across various departments within Pearson, including enrollment specialists, customer support teams, content creators, and technical experts. These interviews aimed to gather insights into their perspectives, challenges, and requirements regarding content organization and accessibility.
Content Inventory Analysis: I conducted a thorough analysis and cataloged Pearson's existing content library, encompassing training content, internal resources for employees, and family-facing KBAs. This resulted in an initial catalog of 800+ KBAs and 200+ training courses and resources.
Review of Existing Taxonomies: I reviewed any existing taxonomy frameworks within Pearson or similar organizations to identify best practices, standards, and lessons learned that could inform the development of the new taxonomy framework for enrollment assistance content.
The current categorization of training content is either role-specific or system-specific, which prevents the current taxonomy from scaling and sustaining.
The majority of the KBAs are outdated due to the existence of separate resources and SharePoint sites maintained by specific teams.
There is a pressing need for a style guide and templatization for KBAs to ensure standardization and consistency across all resources and platforms.
Knowledge Base Audit
Due to the overwhelming amount of knowledge base articles, I found it necessary to streamline and optimize the content inventory by eliminating at least 50% of the entries. This elimination process ensured that only the most relevant and essential KBAs were retained, aligning with the overarching goal of creating a streamlined and organized taxonomy framework.
In our process of eliminating KBAs, I adhered to specific guidelines to ensure that the retained content was relevant, up-to-date, and of high quality:
By applying these guidelines meticulously, we were able to streamline the knowledge base, ensuring that the taxonomy was built upon a foundation of high-quality, relevant, and up-to-date resources, thereby enhancing its effectiveness in assisting schools, staff, and families
Taxonomy Design and Building
The taxonomy was structured around Pearson's organizational hierarchy. This hierarchical approach ensured that the taxonomy aligned closely with Pearson's organizational structure and business operations. Each level of the taxonomy hierarchy corresponded directly to a specific aspect of Pearson's business framework:
Business Unit: At the highest level of the taxonomy, we identified and delineated distinct business units within Pearson. These units served as the overarching categories within the taxonomy, reflecting the broad divisions of Pearson's operations.
Business Division: Within each business unit, we further segmented content into specific divisions that represented different branches or sectors of Pearson's activities. This divisional categorization allowed for a more granular organization of content within each business unit.
Business Function: Within each division, content was classified according to the primary functions performed within that division. These functions represented the core activities or responsibilities undertaken by different departments or teams within Pearson.
Business Sub-Function: To achieve even greater specificity, we subdivided content within each function based on sub-functions or specialized areas of focus. This sub-functional breakdown enabled a more detailed categorization of content, tailored to the specific needs of different teams or departments. This was necessary for content that supported Pearson's clients (state schools), which were already grouped based on regions.
Business Process: Finally, the content was organized according to the specific business processes or workflows within each sub-function. This level of the taxonomy hierarchy reflected the sequential steps or procedures involved in carrying out various tasks or operations within Pearson.
In contrast to the previous taxonomy, which was too specific to individual teams or systems, this taxonomy took a more high-level approach. By categorizing content based on business units, divisions, functions, sub-functions, and processes, this taxonomy provided a broader perspective on Pearson's operations. This high-level framework facilitated a more comprehensive understanding of how training content related to different aspects of Pearson's business framework, allowing for greater flexibility and scalability in content organization.
Content Labeling
In the content labeling phase, we established a systematic approach to labeling and tagging content within the taxonomy framework. This process involved:
Metadata Definition: I defined a set of metadata attributes that would provide additional context and information about each piece of content. This included attributes such as description, visibility, author, keywords, and relevance to specific business units, divisions, functions, sub-functions, and processes.
Metadata Application: Metadata tags were systematically applied to each piece of content within the taxonomy. This involved tagging content with relevant metadata attributes to accurately describe its content, purpose, and relevance to Pearson's business operations.
Consistent Labeling Standards: Clear and consistent labeling standards were established to ensure uniformity across all content within the taxonomy. This included guidelines for naming conventions, formatting, and the use of standardized terminology to facilitate easy navigation and retrieval of content.
Keyword Tagging: Keywords were identified and assigned to each piece of content to improve searchability within the taxonomy. These keywords were selected based on their relevance to the content's topic, ensuring that users could easily find relevant resources using common search terms.
Taxonomy Integration: The metadata and labels applied to content were seamlessly integrated into the taxonomy framework. This integration ensured that users could navigate the taxonomy effectively, filtering and sorting content based on specific metadata attributes and labels.
Quality Assurance: A quality assurance process was implemented to review and validate the accuracy of content labeling. This involved conducting periodic audits to ensure that metadata tags were applied correctly and consistently across all content within the taxonomy.
After completing this phase, I implemented the following taxonomic labeling system that standardized the categorization and tagging of content:
BusinessUnit_BusinessDivision_BusinessFunction_BusinessSubFunction_BusinessProcess_Description_Visibility_Format
Testing and Revision
Following the development of the taxonomy framework, a crucial phase involved testing and revising the taxonomy to ensure its effectiveness, usability, and alignment with stakeholders' needs. The taxonomy was applied in the following ways:
Content Inventory Categorization: Each piece of content within the inventory underwent categorization and application of the taxonomic label, facilitating a systematic organization aligned with the newly established taxonomy structure.
Integration with Microsoft Planner: Utilizing Microsoft Planner, a daily project management system employed by the content team, the taxonomy was incorporated to structure the Kanban board. This integration facilitated seamless navigation and task management per the taxonomy's framework.
Content Assignments Realignment: Content Team members were reassigned to topics defined by the new taxonomy, streamlining content assignments and ensuring alignment with the taxonomy's categorization. This realignment enhanced efficiency and clarity in content management processes.
Reporting: The taxonomy was tested during the compilation of reports, ensuring that data and information were accurately categorized and easily retrievable according to the taxonomy's framework. This validation process confirmed the taxonomy's robustness in facilitating data organization and retrieval for reporting purposes, enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of reporting workflows.
Project-specific Topics: The taxonomy was further stress-tested when certain projects required specific topics to be identified and accessed promptly. This ensured that the taxonomy could accommodate diverse project needs while maintaining consistency and efficiency in content management. Additionally, it demonstrated the taxonomy's flexibility in adapting to unique project requirements and supporting targeted content delivery.
Content for the New Enrollment Portal: Additionally, the taxonomy was instrumental in mapping content for the new Enrollment Portal. This process stress-tested the taxonomy as the portal was built from scratch, necessitating a thorough alignment of content organization with the taxonomy's structure.
By subjecting the taxonomy to these rigorous testing methods, any inconsistencies or inefficiencies were identified and addressed through iterative revisions, ultimately ensuring that the taxonomy effectively met the needs of stakeholders and optimized content management workflows.
Results
The implementation of the taxonomy framework yielded several significant results and benefits:
Improved Content Organization: The taxonomy facilitated a more systematic and organized approach to managing and categorizing training content. By aligning content with specific business units, divisions, functions, sub-functions, and processes, users could easily locate relevant resources, leading to increased efficiency and productivity.
Enhanced User Experience: Users, including employees and external stakeholders navigating the Enrollment Portal, experienced an improved user experience due to the taxonomy's intuitive organization and searchability. The structured taxonomy framework allowed for quicker access to relevant information, reducing frustration and enhancing satisfaction.
Streamlined Content Management Processes: Content assignments were realigned according to the taxonomy's categorization, leading to streamlined content management processes. This realignment provided a foundation for the Pearson Content Development project for creating the new Enrollment Portal KBAs, which increased content delivery speed by 50%.
Effective Project Management: Integration with Microsoft Planner facilitated project management tasks by structuring the Kanban board according to the taxonomy's framework. This integration enhanced task prioritization, tracking, and collaboration among team members, resulting in more efficient project execution.
Successful Launch of the Enrollment Portal: Mapping content for the new Enrollment Portal using the taxonomy framework ensured that information was organized systematically. The stress-tested taxonomy proved instrumental in the successful development and launch of the portal, providing users with easy access to content assets.
Improved Reporting: During the compilation of reports, the taxonomy proved its effectiveness in accurately categorizing and retrieving data and information. This enhanced the efficiency and accuracy of reporting workflows, ensuring that stakeholders had access to relevant insights for decision-making.
Flexible Adaptation to Project-Specific Topics: The taxonomy demonstrated its flexibility and scalability by effectively accommodating project-specific topics, resulting in a 60% increase in project-specific content retrieval efficiency.
The latest iteration of the taxonomy signifies a significant milestone, demonstrating its immediate impact and pivotal role across various operational facets. Despite its iterative nature, the taxonomy has already showcased remarkable utility, driving improvements in content organization, user experience, project management efficiency, and overall operational effectiveness. This proves the versatility and effectiveness of the taxonomy, positioning it as a cornerstone for ongoing enhancements and future scalability within the organization.
Reflection
The journey of developing the taxonomy went far beyond simply organizing content; it became a story of transformation and empowerment within our organization. Initially conceived to streamline content management, the taxonomy soon revealed its broader potential, influencing how we approach workflows, decision-making, and user engagement. It was like watching a puzzle come together, each piece contributing to a clearer picture of our organizational landscape.
One of the most rewarding aspects of the taxonomy's implementation was its impact on user experiences. Seeing how colleagues quickly found the information they needed underscored the taxonomy's ability to support our growing needs and evolving processes. It wasn't just about making tasks easier in the present moment; it was about ensuring that we had a solid framework in place to accommodate future growth and changes. Reflecting on this journey, it's evident that the taxonomy has transcended its initial purpose, becoming a testament to our commitment to adaptability, innovation, and long-term success.
Implementing a robust taxonomy not only streamlines current processes but also lays a strong foundation for future scalability, adaptability, and organizational success.