Heather Hedden

Meet Heather Hedden, an iconic figure and leading voice in the field of taxonomy for nearly three decades. With her official blog "𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐚𝐱𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭,” she provides an indispensable guide that has helped shape the careers of countless professionals, defining the art and science of 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. Heather is a true builder of knowledge, transforming chaotic data into a structured system that powers 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲.

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🪙 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬
Heather is a dedicated contributor to the professional community and is currently a 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 for the 𝐈𝐒𝐎 (𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧), where she helps review and revise the global standard for thesauri. She has also contributed to the 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐍𝐈𝐒𝐎), co-authoring the technical report "𝐈𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.” Her work in these capacities has quite literally helped shape the international best practices for the industry.

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📚 𝐀𝐧 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 "𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥”
Heather's book, now in its third edition, has become the go-to resource for anyone who finds themselves tasked with building a taxonomy without formal training. In addition to her book, she has taught taxonomy creation for over a decade through Simmons University and her own consultancy, making her a crucial educator for new and seasoned professionals alike.

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🎙️ 𝐀 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐕𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞
As a sought-after speaker, Heather regularly presents at major industry conferences, including Taxonomy Boot Camp and The Knowledge Graph Conference. She has been a guest on podcasts like "The Informed Life" and "Another DAM Podcast," where she shares her expertise on topics from the importance of taxonomies in Digital Asset Management to the distinction between concepts and the labels that describe them. Her blog, also titled "𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐚𝐱𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭,” has been a consistent source of practical, real-world advice for years.

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