CITS provides students at the University of Maryland Baltimore with technology resources.

It is difficult for people to find the services they need

Due to the current information architecture as well as content layout, it is difficult for individuals to find the resources that pertain to them on the website. This means that core audiences may be less inclined to search for the resources they need via the website - thus decreasing website traffic.
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Improving the information architecture and content layout on key pages would make the website easier to navigate for users and increase traffic to CITS.

Content Inventory

Through our inventory of the website, we determined that in terms of information architecture, it is very difficult for users to find particular services or resources that are of high importance due to the labeling and nesting of menu items. There are also critical services missing from the menu such as Software & Licensing which allows people to download relevant university software.

Heuristic Evaluation

Our evaluation highlighted that the website lacks visual hierarchy and visual cues on several pages. Titles are not large or bold enough, text is packed tightly, and there is no use of color blocks. In terms of flexibility, the website is packed with PDF's and links that do not work. This is common on the Training pages, which teach users how to use specific programs.

Competitive Analysis

We looked at other schools IT services websites such as MICA, Carnegie Mellon and RIT and and determined that there was an opportunity to add "audience cards" to the homepage to make it easier for users to find the resources that pertain to them. We also noted that other websites used language that was more accessible and relatable.

Who uses the CITS website?

To improve the information architecture, we proposed the following :

1. Add Software and Licensing to the navigation menu.
2. Expand the Training category on the navigation menu by adding Blackboard Collaborate Guide, Kuali Research Step-by-Step, Human Resources eLearning, Finance Department eLearning and Desktop/System Admin eLearning under Microsoft 365.
3. Change the name of IT Security and Compliance to Security and Compliance and place UMB IT policies under it.
4. Change Help Desk to Common Help Topics, and remove UMD ID and Who We Support from under it. Who We Support will be placed under About CITS.
5. ‍Add UMB Account to the navigation menu. Include Creating an Account, ID Lockout and Reset and UMB Account FAQ’s cards under it.

Card Sorting to understand individual's mental models

During the testing phase we conducted a 2 card sorts with a total of 26 participants who have used university IT websites in some capacity. The card sort was administered using Optimal Sort, an online card sorting software.

We conducted a hybrid card sort. In a hybrid card sort, participants are provided with categories to sort labels into, while also giving them the opportunity to create their own categories. The categories we provided users with were: Security and Compliance, Training, UMB Account, and About CITS.

Finalizing the information architecture

Our card sort indicated that, participants agreed with our initial recommendations, however there were some additional findings. Participants wanted us to place the category Projects and Updates as a label under About CITS. They also wanted us to add the label Duo Factor Authentication under UMB Account.

Redesigning core pages on the CITS website

The original website lacked a content layout and visual hierarchy that was engaging and easy to follow. As can be seen below, a lot of the elements bleed into one another. Below are snapshots of the original website.