Table of Contents
What is the ISO 26514:2022?
ISO 26514:2022, entitled "Systems and software engineering - Design and development of information for users," is an international standard for the design and development of information for users with reference to software and systems engineering. According to Alessandro Stazi of The Craftsman of Babel, ISO 26514 represents the most important benchmark for "the production of information for the use of a software product."
First published in 2008, the standard was technically revised in early 2022. The new version is shorter (65 pages compared to the previous 143) and free of overlaps with other standards that are now evolved and established, but also full of new features.
Note: "ISO" is the acronym used to refer to the International Organization for Standardization, the international company responsible for harmonizing the standards issued by individual national standards bodies regarding technical and metrological procedures. The term "ISO standard" refers to a document with guidelines established by this organization on a particular scope of application.
What’s new in ISO 26514:2022
The main new features found in ISO 26514:2022:
- greater emphasis on the design and development of information for software users
- use of IEC/IEEE 82079-1 as a normative reference for user information (82079 indicates principles and requirements for writing all types of user instructions, for simple and complex products)
- addition of sections regarding APIs and chatbots
Note: a chatbot is a software that simulates and processes human conversations (written or spoken), enabling users to interact with digital devices as if they were communicating with a real person. Chatbots can enable conversations based on a succession of multiple-choice questions, or, in more sophisticated cases, interpret the user’s natural language and respond based on it.
As explained on the ISO website, when we talk about the information development process, we mean the process followed by designers and developers by which they describe how to establish the information needed by users and how this information is to be presented, prepared, and made available.
What kind of information is being referred to?
Chapters 7, 8 and 9 of the standard indicate this:
- in ch. 7 there is a summary of the guidelines aimed at defining the quality of information;
- in ch. 8, in addition to information structuring standards, there are also references to innovative content not found in the previous version, for example, how to define information related to chatbots;
- in ch. 9, the formats to be defined for boxing the information are explained.
When we talk about process, we can only think about its management. Chapters 5 and 6, in fact, outline those aspects of project management and information architecture applied to information development.
Managing information means collecting it, storing it, disseminating it, archiving it, or eventually destroying it. And who can do it better than a project manager (in this case, an IT PM) or an information architect?
The IT PM, i.e., IT project manager, is by definition responsible for initiating, planning and implementing IT projects. Coordinates the project team and is accountable for the outcome of the project.
The information architect, instead, is the key figure and the focal point of all the design activities for a program or a website: structures, organizes, makes content searchable and navigable, help users find the information they need, and balance the needs of users with those of customers.
Why is ISO 26514 important?
ISO 26514:2022 is important because, as well explained on the ISO website:
"supports software users' need for consistent, complete, accurate, and usable information. It includes both approaches to standardization: a) process standards, which specify the way in which informational products should be developed. and b) information product standards, which specify the characteristics and functional requirements of information for users. Provides specific requirements for information for users of software products, based on the requirements applicable to all types of products in IEC/IEEE 82079-1. It focuses on the parts of information management processes that are most applicable to information designers and developers."
Therefore, this normative document serves as a guideline to be strictly followed in the software development process by designers, technical writers and information developers, but not only.
In fact, it is not limited to the primordial phase alone (that of design and development), but covers and includes all subsequent phases, such as strategy or project maintenance. Thus, ISO 26514:2022 provides requirements for the structure, format, and content of information for software users and establishes what information users need, but also how it should be presented, prepared, and made available.
The standard is also useful for an organization’s management team. In the enterprise environment, the quality of software and other computer programs directly affects productivity and performance. Standards serve as a reference and are a means of establishing goals and benchmarks. They also help identify and solve problems in the early stages of development.
Who is concerned about ISO 26514
The ISO 26514:2022 standard is first and foremost international: this means that it applies not only to information designers and developers, but to everyone worldwide. In addition, the document is a reference point for those who have other roles and interests beyond the main ones already mentioned.
Some profiles that could benefit from the rule are:
- those responsible for software development;
- who carries out usability testing;
- technical editors;
- translators and proofreaders;
- graphic designers;
- UX designers, and generally user interface designers and ergonomics experts.
The purpose of ISO 26514 is to provide guidance to software designers and developers, enabling them to create usable and user-friendly software.
In essence, anyone involved in the process of developing a computer program should be familiar with the standard. The essential concepts and analysis procedures covered in great detail should be kept in mind and followed by the entire development team.
Thus, the value of a standard such as ISO 26514:2022 is to provide a common reference point for all stakeholders. With the standard as a guide, developers and designers can work with a common understanding of the principles of information design and produce documentation that truly benefits users.
