12 success factors for working with SharePoint that aren’t about the technology
Synopsis: SharePoint can can often seem a beast to be tamed for organizations, full of potential and promise. However, deploying an effective SharePoint implementation is proving to be hard for many and stories of expensive customizations and lack of adoption abound. Here are 12 critical success factors for SharePoint that aren’t about the technology, which Nancy Goebel of DWG will be presenting in New York at the Advanced Learning Institute (ALI)’s “SharePoint for Internal Communications” on May 15th.
SharePoint. How do you feel when you hear that one little word? Are you filled with joy? With dread? With a complicated mixture of the two? Your answer will most likely be dependent on how effectively your organization has deployed the platform, or perhaps on stories you’ve heard from others who have tried.
A tale of two SharePoints
Stories of difficult, IT-driven SharePoint implementations abound in the world of intranets and the digital workplace. The platform, which integrates so neatly within Microsoft’s corporate suite of corporate tools, offers a whole host of out-of-the box functionality that can answer a multitude of user cases. However, if the selection of those functions is not well-thought through from a business perspective, they can overwhelm an organization and its users. Some business are use to using these sharepoint migration tools. This is why there have been toolkits and utilities created that try to make life easier for those businesses that use SharePoint. Some offer a SharePoint migration tool, permissions manager and auditing assistance. The companies like QiPoint (check out their Homepage here) who develop this software help businesses use SharePoint better to help their business grow. But the business that don’t use these toolkits can be easily overwhelmed by all of the features.
That said, there are examples of user-centred, attractive SharePoint-based intranets out there. Coca-Cola’s iConnect is one well-cited case study, while XL Group and Walmart also offer excellent stories around how SharePoint can be adapted to suit business needs.
SharePoint success factors that aren’t about the technology
The road to an effective SharePoint implementation is therefore often an uncertain one for organizations. Along the journey, there are many technology-based laybys in which the intranet and digital workplace team can find themselves permanently parked, eating up budget, time and resources, while the users are left with an unintuitive tool.
[fancyquote]There are critical success factors which DWG’s research has revealed can contribute to a SharePoint deployment centred around users and business, increasing the likelihood of
adoption and value.[/fancyquote]
Nancy Goebel, Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships for the Digital Workplace Group (DWG) will be presenting these success factors, together with common uses and challenges of SharePoint and governance fundamentals, at ALI’s “SharePoint for Internal Communications” conference in New York on May 15th.
Drawing on the conclusions made in DWG’s extensive research report, “The SharePoint 2013 Intranet: An evaluation of SharePoint 2013 as a platform for intranets”, Nancy will be talking her audience through success factors focused on four key areas:
- Adopting a holistic view of how SharePoint fits into your organization’s digital workplace.
- Ensuring that SharePoint is deployed to support the way that teams work and collaborate.
- Approaching SharePoint as an ongoing programme.
- Not losing sight of the user.
A preview of Nancy’s presentation can be seen below, and more information about her talk can be found on the ALI conference website.
ALI’s “SharePoint for Internal Communications” Conference
New York, May 13–15th, 2014
The Advanced Learning Institute has put together an agenda packed with practitioners and experts, from organizations such as L’Oreal, The Walt Disney Company and XL Group, as well as DWG.
They will be coming together in May to present attendees with practical insights on overcoming SharePoint challenges and how to successfully leverage the tool to drive communication, engagement and value. Attendees will also have an opportunity to take part in workshops, panels and roundtable discussions.
You can read more about the conference agenda and register on the ALI conference website.
Related research
The SharePoint 2013 Intranet
Although DWG is vendor-neutral, we recognize that many intranet managers will be involved in discussions with their IT team about SharePoint.
This report extract analyzes the strengths and shortcomings of SharePoint 2013 as an intranet, a portal, a collaboration platform, a mechanism for storing and disseminating documents, and as a means of connecting employees through profiles and social media.
Categorised in: Intranets
