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Spring Meeting 2008 Presentation
The Freelance Taxonomy Business
Presented by Heather Hedden
Heather Hedden's presentation on how to find work in freelance taxonomy was interesting and informative. She began with a brief introduction to taxonomy basics before getting into how to find freelance work in the field of taxonomy. Because there is often confusion regarding the various terms used in this business, Heather first gave us the following three definitions:
Controlled Vocabulary (CV): An authoritative list of terms used to ensure consistency in indexing (human or automated). CVs often contain synonyms and/or See references and may also include a structure or relationship between terms.
Thesaurus: A structured kind of CV in which the terms have relationships, i.e., Equivalence (See or Use/Used From), Hierarchical (Broader/Narrower than), and Associative (related term).
Taxonomy: A hierarchical kind of CV with broader and narrower relationships only and that includes all terms. Heather humorously explained that in reality there is a second definition of Taxonomy that is used more commonly, i.e., as a synonym for controlled vocabulary or thesaurus. No wonder there is confusion about what taxonomy work is!Heather then went on to describe the basic types of taxonomies and for what they are used, i.e., indexing support, on-line retrieval support, and organization and navigation support (often called web site taxonomy or enterprise taxonomy). Once we had these basics down, Heather proceeded to discuss various types of freelance taxonomy and controlled vocabulary projects such as indexing thesauri which could consist of completing a small thesaurus or contributing to a large thesaurus; retrieval-support controlled vocabularies which might be a term-mapping project or support for automated indexing; or work on web site and enterprise taxonomies as a taxonomy consultant or sub-contractor. Heather also discussed potential freelance clients such as non-profit organization, specialized small periodical publishers, thesaurus/taxonomy vendors, commercial reference and periodical database publishers, online commercial services, online news services, portals, web search engines, internet advertising services, and taxonomy consultants. Heather provided advice about what to include, and not include, in your resume when applying for taxonomy related work. She suggested tailoring your resume to include only what is relevant to the particular job. There is no need to include everything you have ever done.
Her numerous and valuable marketing tips on how to promote oneself as a taxonomist included writing articles on the subject for both print and online publications; giving presentations; reviewing books on taxonomy development; networking; attending conferences; creating a website; joining online discussion groups; and writing a blog. These same marketing tips apply no matter what your specialty area is. The idea is to get your name out there so that you become known as a specialist in your field; you want people to know your name so that when they have a project, they think of you as the right person for the job. She cautioned us about what we post on discussion lists or blogs, i.e., be sure of the information you post and how you word your posting. You do not want to post something that puts you in a negative light or makes you look ridiculous. Remember, once something is posted on the internet, it's out there!
Heather also discussed the various software tools for creating and editing thesauri and taxonomies, from spreadsheet software such as MS Excel for simple hierarchies or small navigation taxonomies, to specialized software for more complex taxonomies. Heather provided a number of terrific resources including books, organizations, discussions groups, workshops, web sites, and contact information for potential clients. She concluded her presentation by answering questions from the audience.
__________________________________________________________________________________ Heather Hedden is an Information Taxonomist with Viziant Corporation and Principal of Hedden Information Management. Before joining Viziant Corporation, she was a Freelance Taxonomy Developer and Indexer, and before that she was a Controlled Vocabulary Editor with Thomson Gale. Heather is also a continuing education instructor at Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science, where she is teaching a new online workshop, Taxonomies and Controlled Vocabularies. Heather is the author of Indexing Specialties: Web Sites, manager of the ASI Taxonomies & Controlled Vocabularies Special Interest Group, and a past-president of the NEASI. This presentation was a preview to the full-day workshop, Taxonomy and Thesaurus Creation that Heather presented on April 30th at the ASI 40th Annual Meeting and Conference in Denver, Colorado, which ran from April 30 to May 3, 2008.
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