Design the information architecture for a government services portal

What They’re Really Asking

Can you structure complex, diverse content into a scalable, user-centered system that balances citizen needs with bureaucratic constraints?

Strong Sample Answer

I would start by conducting a stakeholder mapping session with agency heads, service designers, and accessibility officers to identify mandatory content and policy constraints. Using a combination of open and closed card sorting with UserTesting, I’d recruit a representative sample of 30 citizens across age, digital literacy, and language groups to understand mental models. For example, in a state portal redesign, we discovered that veterans grouped services by life event (e.g., 'starting a family') rather than by department (e.g., 'DMV'). This led to a hybrid flat-and-hierarchical IA: a task-based top-level (benefits, health, taxes) with a faceted search for advanced users. In Figma, I prototype a sitemap and conduct tree-jack tests via Treejack, iterating until findability exceeds 85% for critical tasks like 'renew license.' Measurable outcomes include a 40% reduction in support calls and a 22% increase in task completion in the first quarter post-launch. I also built a content inventory with Airtable and documented governance rules for scaling, ensuring cross-departmental consistency.

Common Mistake to Avoid

Company-Specific Variants