Drowning in data: Living through a content inventory when your customer is an information hoarder

Originally presented at Intranets2014, Sydney, Australia -- It may seem easier to just install another network drive but when your customer irrationally refuses to part with useless information during a content inventory, it can end up costing the company countless dollars in the form of missed opportunities or wasted productivity. It can even create safety or legal concerns when outdated content continues to surface in search results.

During her years of serving as a full-time "information organizer" for a decentralized intranet supporting over 60,000 employees, Gianna has helped dozens of content owners get through the decluttering phase of a web redesign project (usually with a minimum of hair-pulling). In the process she has developed a deeper understanding of the unique relationship people have with their website content, as well as the pathology of hoarding in general.

In this session, she will:
-- Explain the negative consequences of keeping everything
-- Discuss similarities between compulsive hoarders of physical objects and people who hoard information
-- Describe tactics that help maintain trust and encourage customer involvement during the grueling content inventory process
-- Arm you with transferable skills to, in turn, teach your customer -- empowering them to make rational keep-or-toss decisions on their own

Transcript

1. Drowning in Data: Living through a content inventory when your customer is an information hoarder Intranets2014 - Sydney
2. A little bit about me Team Member Researcher Standards author Humanity evangelizer Project Lead 2
3. A little bit about Mayo Clinic Largest integrated not-for profit group practice 60,000 employees at 3 different locations 1.2 million patients seen in 2012 3
4. A little bit about Mayo Clinic Decentralized intranet Team supports 8,000 authors publishing 2,000 individual websites Estimated Size: 1.5 mil pieces of content 4
5. Maud Mellish Wilson Established Mayo Clinic’s first library (1909) 5
6. Photo credit: Bookfinch @ Flickr Earliest Known Relational Database Circa 1911 6
7. Photo credit: Sarah Cady @ Flickr Primitive Information Hierarchy Circa 2007 7
8. “Filing sure is swell!” (…said no secretary, ever.) 8
9. PAPERLESS FTW! 9
10. 10 Disk space is cheap.
11. Disk space is cheap. Source: Mkomo.com 11
15. Extremely under-reported Tends to appear along with OCD (but not related) Typical behavior: Indecisiveness Perfectionism Avoidance Procrastination Trouble organizing Cognitive errors 15
16. Information processing • Perception • Attention • Memory • Categorization • Decision-making Early experiences Core beliefs • Unworthy • Unloveable • Helpless Personality traits • Perfectionism • Dependency • Anxiety sensitivity • Paranoia Mood • Depression • Anxiety Cormorbidity • Social phobia • Trauma Beliefs about possessions • Instrumental value • Intrinsic beauty • Sentimental value Beliefs about vulnerability • Safety/comfort • Loss Beliefs about responsibility • Waste • Lost opportunity Beliefs about memory • Mistakes • Lost information Beliefs about control Positive emotions • Pleasure • Pride Negative emotions • Sadness/grief • Anxiety/fear • Guilt/shame Clutter Acquiring Difficulty discarding, saving Model of Compulsive Hoarding Steketee & Frost, 2007 16
19. Irrelevant search results. 19
22. Wasted productivity. 22
23. Knowledge workers: …cannot find what they need for their jobs about 40% of the time …spend 2.5 hrs/day searching for information …is duplicating information that can’t be found 90% of the time The High Cost of Not Finding Information Susan Feldman, International Data Corporation (IDC) http://www.hi.is/~joner/eaps/notfind3.htm 23
24. ? ? ? ? ? 24
25. Missed opportunities. 25
26. 26 26
27. 27 [Printers] fill the world with pamphlets and books that are foolish, ignorant, malignant, libelous, mad, impious and subversive; and such is the flood that even things that might have done some good lose all their goodness. --Erasmus “ Information Overload, the Early Years Ann Blair, The Boston Globe, Nov 28, 2010 27
28. Too much data can land you in court. 28
29. Too much data can harm people. 29
30. Too much data can kill you. Just Breathe: Building the Case For Email Apnea Linda Stone, The Huffington Post, Feb 8, 2008 30
31. The story so far: What it is Why it’s happening Similarities Why it’s bad 31
32. Tell me about your project. 32
33. Ask the Five Whys. 33
34. Profits are down from last year. We need to work more efficiently. Working efficiently supports the strategic plan. This website will tell you how to do that by increasing your awareness. by 34
35. 35 insight n. 1. The recognition of sources of emotional difficulty. 2. An understanding of the motivational forces behind one's actions, thoughts, or behavior; self-knowledge.
37. Cognitive errors Look out for 37
38. Mistaken beliefs Future events Responsibility Identity/Self-worth Look out for 38
39. Fear Dealing with of the future Documentation 39
41. Fear Dealing with of the future Documentation Communication 41
43. Documentation Worst Case Scenario Plan Communication Fear Dealing with of the future 43
44. Responsibility Dealing with feelings of Editorial Committee 44
45. Editorial Committee Structure 45
46. Responsibility Dealing with feelings of Oversight Committee After-Action Reviews 46
47. Identity & Self Worth Dealing with sense of Facts & Data 47
49. 49 Facts & Data Identity & Self Worth Dealing with sense of Outside authorities
50. External Consultant Syndrome Step Two Designs (steptwo.com.au/tag/intranets) Nielsen Norman Group (nngroup.com/topic/intranets/) 50
51. Filtering Facts & Data Identity & Self Worth Dealing with sense of Outside authorities 51
52. Photo Credit: Marina Noordegraaf @ Flickr 52
53. Let’s review: Establish insight Set project goal(s) Address cognitive errors 53
54. Material that is not personally relevant Hoarder The Value of Possessions In Compulsive Hoarding: Patterns of Use and Attachment Randy Frost, et al., Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 33, No. 8, 1995 PMID: 7487849 54
55. Material that IS personally relevant Hoarder The Value of Possessions In Compulsive Hoarding: Patterns of Use and Attachment Randy Frost, et al., Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 33, No. 8, 1995 PMID: 7487849 55
56. Non-Hoarder Shirts with long sleeves Shirts with short sleeves The Value of Possessions In Compulsive Hoarding: Patterns of Use and Attachment Randy Frost, et al., Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 33, No. 8, 1995 PMID: 7487849 56
57. Hoarder Orange striped shirts Red shirts that go with my black pants Ugly shirts Ex’s Sweaters The Value of Possessions In Compulsive Hoarding: Patterns of Use and Attachment Randy Frost, et al., Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 33, No. 8, 1995 PMID: 7487849 57
58. Teaching organization skills Organizing Skills Tips for Teaching Use visual aids 58 58
59. Teaching organization skills 59 59
60. Teaching organization skills Organizing Skills Tips for Teaching Use visual aids Explain decisions 60 60
61. Teaching organization skills Organizing Skills Tips for Teaching Use visual aids Explain decisions Be a good role model 61 61
62. Teaching organization skills Organizing Skills Tips for Teaching Use visual aids Explain decisions Be a good role model Do it in small chunks 62 62
63. 63 Lack of Motivation
64. Not doing “homework” Unproductive meetings Complains Cancels, comes unprepared Wastes meeting time Lack of Motivation 64
65. Lack of Support 65
66. External Distractions Photo Credit: BuzzFarmers @ Flickr 66
67. Establish a dedicated project room Photo Credit: BuzzFarmers @ Flickr Difficult to find Unlisted phone number Take email/social media breaks Block big chunks of time to be there 67
68. Internal Distractions 68
69. Recognize that this is a stamina challenge Know when to call it quits (for now) Thinking is hard work! Do sprints, not marathons Watch out for perfectionism procrastination 69
70. Congratulations, You made it. Hoarders & Organizing Teaching Organization Skills 4 Common Barriers Recommendations 70
71. I Intranets 71 Congratulations, You made it.
72. Questions? 72