More Than a Name: Why the 'Informatics' in TEAM IM Matters

When we founded this company, we chose a name that carried a specific weight: Team Informatics, Inc. While we eventually shortened it to TEAM IM for brevity, the original identity is more relevant today than ever. The founding concepts of solving complex problems and leveraging those solutions for the collective good remain the backbone of everything we do.

But what exactly is "Informatics"?

Depending on who you ask, the definition shifts slightly. At the University of Washington, it’s viewed as the study, design, and development of information technology for the good of people, organizations, and society. The NCRA defines it as the science of gathering, manipulating, and classifying recorded information, while WashU describes it as a transdisciplinary approach using data to solve complex problems. At its most fundamental level, as Wikipedia notes, it is the study of the structure and behavior of systems that generate, process, and communicate information.

What Informatics Is Not

It is not just "IT." While IT focuses on the hardware and software infrastructure, informatics is about the *meaning* and *impact* of that data. It isn't just coding or database management in a vacuum; it’s the bridge between technology and human values. It isn’t just about making apps; it’s about making systems that actually work for the people using them.

How We Embody It

At TEAM IM, we live the definition of informatics every day by focusing on three core pillars:

1. Human-Centric Problem Solving: Like the UW iSchool’s vision, we don't build technology for technology’s sake. We build it to bend information toward better outcomes for organizations and the people within them.

    

2. Transdisciplinary Collaboration: Informatics requires bringing together diverse perspectives. We don’t just act as vendors; we act as partners who understand the "why" behind your data, much like the transdisciplinary approach championed by WashU.

    

3. System Integrity: We treat information as a living system. Whether we are automating a workflow or securing a content repository, we are managing the "structure and behavior" of that information to ensure it remains accessible, accurate, and actionable.

We started as "Team Informatics" because we believed that information, when handled with expertise and purpose, has the power to improve society. Decades later, whether we're streamlining a complex business process or managing global-scale data, that mission is still our "given name."