Tom Sheridan IT Director Gas Technology Institute (GTI)

> Independent not-for-profit organization serving research, development, and training needs of the natural gas industry and energy markets > Main facility in Chicago > Other sites in Oklahoma and Alabama > 300 users > Mainly engineers and scientists. Energy & Environmental Technology Center Flex-Fuel Test Facility Offices & Labs GTI Overview 2 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Our product is information Reports, presentations, proposals, software Need a way of managing all of this information Cycles of interest in some of our technologies Older technology could become relevant again Difficulty in retrieving “old” information IT Environment 15 year Lotus Notes environment 2008: Migrated to SharePoint/Exchange/Office 3 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Browser-based collaboration and document management platform Can run Intranet, Extranet and Internet sites Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) Included with Windows Server Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) Standard & Enterprise Additional functionality and features Additional Cost 4 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

5 Windows SharePoint Services (WSS)Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS)

Collaboration Workspaces, Tasks, Forums, Surveys, Blogs, and Wikis Portal Presents information from diverse sources in a unified way. Search Enterprise search across SharePoint and other organization resource areas such as file shares Enterprise Content Management Includes document management Business Processes & Forms InfoPath forms for workflow applications Business Intelligence Web-based dashboards 6 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Problems with Lotus Notes Standardize on Microsoft technologies Network, Active Directory, Office, SQL Server Integrated security Need an Intranet platform Document management features Back-end tool for Office to encourage collaboration 7 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Training is a critical part of a successful deployment Both technical & end-user Training for end-users Document management & other features need to be explained Users are familiar with file shares and folders Not everything goes into SharePoint The value and use of metadata 8 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

SharePoint environment is very complex Integrated with and dependent on Internet Information Services (IIS) Microsoft’s’ web server product SQL Server All of the SharePoint data is stored in SQL Server Database administration and performance is critical Necessary to develop internal expertise to support the extended SharePoint environment 9 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Graphic design How to design consistent sites, develop navigation rules, and understand good user interfaces. Information Architecture Develop a corporate taxonomy or hierarchical classification for documents and other objects Do these skills exist within IT or elsewhere in the organization? Generally not IT strengths 10 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Senior level management sponsorship SharePoint should be a corporate initiative Led by key departments with IT support Information architecture Does the organization have a strategy ? Need rules for SharePoint sites Otherwise things will get out of control very quickly Set up control mechanisms at the beginning Standard site template with consistent navigation 11 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

SharePoint computing needs are extensive Don’t skimp on hardware Do not use existing SQL Server databases Dedicated SharePoint database on dedicated server Site Information Architecture How to organize “areas” in SharePoint When to create a new site collection Hierarchical collection of sites managed together These are critical design decisions Could have a big impact on performance and use 12 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

SharePoint integration with Outlook not great Cumbersome to move messages Doesn’t scale to large number of messages Deployed a 3rd party add-in product for Outlook Evaluate the usefulness of the My Site feature Use built-in features of SharePoint if possible Question need for customization or add-ons Not necessary to use every SharePoint feature Document library check-in/check-out 13 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Backup & Restore May need a 3 rd party product Security Use Active Directory instead of SharePoint groups Assign access to groups rather than individuals Don't “oversell” SharePoint to users SharePoint is just a platform Sell features, not the product itself SharePoint is not the right tool for everything 14 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

If organization is not prepared for collaboration then difficult to adopt any collaborative tool Easier to deploy in larger organizations Need for collaboration more easily accepted Not as obvious in smaller organizations Institutional intimacy Users know who to “go to” to find information Have to sell the long-term value of collaboration Also many users work in relative isolation in a research organization 15 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

Need for Extranets Collaboration projects with other organizations Using SharePoint as a platform Leverage knowledge gained building Intranet Information could be maintained in just one place Available to both Intranet and Extranet users Exploring SharePoint for public website One common technology for all website activities 16 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective

SharePoint should be a corporate commitment Need senior management support Address the support and training needs Information architecture issues need to be resolved Combination and integration of all of its features make it a compelling product SharePoint 2010 released this month A substantial upgrade Even more powerful & complex 17 Implementing SharePoint: An End-User Perspective