World IA Day is looking for its next global executive producer
Product: World Information Architecture Day
Location: Remote
Type: Volunteer
Duration: 1-year, from May 2024 to May 2025, with option to extend
The World Information Architecture Association (WIAA) is seeking a passionate global executive producer to oversee the production of World Information Architecture Day (WIAD). This is an exciting opportunity for a volunteer to make a significant impact on the global information architecture (IA) community.
World IA Day is a free one-day annual conference hosted by WIAA and held in dozens of cities across the world. Since its first event in 2012, World IA Day has been held in over 50 cities in 29 countries on almost every continent in the world. Each year, a new theme is selected, new cities are added, and our community continues to grow.
The Global Executive Producer spearheads this global celebration. From providing the vision for the year’s event to supporting the day-to-day efforts of local leaders, this person is in a unique position to help shape the future of World IA Day for years to come and to form lasting professional connections worldwide.
You’ll get to meet the local organizers and connect with them on a regular basis (via surveys, newsletters, Discord)
You’re the liaison between the global board and the local organizers. You’re the advocate for the local organizers when you join the board meetings.
In some ways, you’re also the community moderator for the local organizers, welcoming new organizers, managing the conversations, keeping the momentum going. You’re the year-round cheerleader!
You get to help create meaningful conversations around IA and build lasting connections that happen worldwide.
Up to 10 hours a week:
Slow season (May - October): Less than 5 hours a week
Busy season (November - April): 5-10 hours a week
Ideally, we will be able to automate as many rudimentary tasks as we can so that this time commitment is realistic.
This role can also be shared amongst 2-3 people.
This position runs for approximately one year, from May to May the following year.
As global executive producer of WIAD, you will act as a global representative of the World IA Association.
In general, the GEP
Communicates and collaborates with the Global Board regularly
Serves as a liaison between local event organizers, the WIAD planning committee, and the Global Board
Leads with confidence, assurance, and humility
Maintains a positive and friendly attitude
Is highly organized and detail-oriented
WIAD global planning
Oversees the WIAD global planning committee
Appoints global committee members with help and input from the regional directors
Manages the global committee and ensures communication between them and local organizers
Empowers global team members to be proactive, take ownership of their role, and successfully execute communication and deliverables
WIAD local support
Provides oversight and support for local leaders in multiple countries
Acts as the primary point of contact for local organizers
Maintains regular, positive communication with local organizers
Ensures that local organizers are meeting milestones successfully
Watches for pain points and problem areas and helps local leaders successfully overcome any issues that arise
Develops and/or coordinates documentation and resources for local events, such as slide templates, training documents, etc.
Manages document repository and communication systems (e.g. Discord and Coda)
Coordinates streamlined tools for all local events, such as event registration platform and live-streaming setup, etc.
Communicates effectively with non-native English speakers
WIAD spokesperson
Maintains the holistic vision of the event
Coordinates the city selection process, with direction from the Global Board of Directors
Coordinates the theme selection process and executes the event around that theme
Sets up the location and event pages on the World IA Day website
Responds in a timely fashion to any communications (a 72-hour turnaround time is expected)
Works closely with the Sponsorship Director to communicate donations and/or product/service giveaways
Represents World IA Day to outside parties and fields questions or emails when they arise
We are seeking someone who has
a solid understanding of Information Architecture
Some experience in event planning, speaking or volunteering community events
Must be familiar with World IA Day and its global, distributed nature, whether as a local organizer or volunteer or as part of the global planning committee
If you are excited by the opportunity to shape the future of the information architecture community, we encourage you to apply for this role. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
Email your interest to Grace Lau, [email protected].
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out the following people who have been in this role in recent years.
Grace Lau, [email protected]
Jenny Ear, [email protected]
Andrew Jung, [email protected]
The World Information Architecture Association is a global community of professionals dedicated to the advancement of information architecture, a discipline devoted to the understanding of how information is structured and understood. We are committed to promoting the understanding and practice of information architecture through education, research, and collaboration. Learn more at worldiaday.org