Need a Way to Untangle Projects? Use a SharePoint Intranet
These days, practically every project gets tangled up in document management issues along the way. Different file versions floating around, people missing emails, someone missing a deadline and causing a big scheduling knot…
Resolving such issues seems like it'd take a lot of work. But it's simpler than most people know.
Use an intranet.
An intranet provides an internal, central location to store files, share a calendar, manage assignments, and provide access to internal services like
CRM.
Typical Intranet Capabilities include:
- File Management/Storage
- Team Calendaring
- Collaboration on Project Documents
- Access to Internal Applications/Services
When it comes to building intranets though, the setup can get expensive. Or time-consuming. Or both.
Pre-built intranet software does exist. But one alternative provides a much better value and a lot more capability –
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.
MOSS 2007, as it's called, lets you do much more than just store files and calendars. Developed as an intranet, it helps you automate processes such as workflow approvals. Manage multi-user projects. Centralize collaboration to save everyone time in chasing down input.
And give you back better productivity, so everyone can do their jobs without management delays or communication snags.
MOSS 2007's Intranet Capabilities
- RSS Feeds
Create project-based RSS feeds, so everyone can track what information is added or changed in their projects.
- Project Collaboration
SharePoint's core design is to make it easier for people to collaborate on their projects. File versions are tracked, so everyone knows where the latest version is. Communication delays are fixed with reminders (#11 below). Status details are viewable by everyone, so nobody's behind.
- Microsoft Office Suite 2007 Integration
Use your everyday applications to update data on the MOSS intranet. Share worksheets in Excel, update document libraries with Word, check reports with Access, etc.
- Integrates with Exchange and OCS for Unified Communications
By integrating, users can check a co-worker's status from the intranet itself. And contact them immediately by IM or VoIP phone without any additional steps.
- Real-Time Dashboards & Business Intelligence Tools using .NET Web Part Framework
Access LOB (line-of-business) data from multiple sources (KPIs, shared Excel spreadsheets, SQL Server 2005 reports). View important customer or market data, all in one place.
- Enterprise Document Management
Gather together all the content in your organization. Reports, emails, customer data, services information, team plans, you name it. All categorized and searchable.
- Knowledge Base and/or Wiki
On an intranet, knowledge bases collect everyone's input about certain topics as a reference. You can do this in a database-like format, or as a Wiki, an interlinked collection of pages everyone can edit in real-time.
- Build a Portal to Internal Apps/Services
Most intranets have a portal of some sort. With MOSS 2007's plug-in Web Part functionality, you can link to internal services like CRM, centralize document libraries, & even control an entire department's operations from one spot.
- Integrate Existing .NET Intranet Applications
Since MOSS 2007 is written with .NET, integrating any existing applications for everyone's use is easy to do.
- Team Calendaring
Shared calendars have long been a staple of modern business. By centralizing them on the intranet, you add to their viewing capacity, and lower overlaps between individuals AND teams.
- Automated Workflow Approvals
Sometimes you need Management to approve documents, right? Avoid delays here by using MOSS 2007's automatic workflow reminders. Emails sent every few days until workflow is approved.
- My Sites
My Sites are personalized intranet webpages. They're used to monitor projects, store any relevant information you have, communicate with co-workers…you can even show them to customers as demo sites.
Why Work With PM To Build Your SharePoint Intranet?
As you can see, there are a lot of capabilities built into MOSS 2007. So many that many users simply never take advantage of them. Sometimes they don't even know about these!
Which is why this statistic makes sense – over 75% of intranets are not used to their full potential. Users become nervous about managing documents, or never learned how to make a My Site, etc. And they stop using the intranet.
This is why one of PlanetMagpie's SharePoint Intranet Services is
User Training. Our consultants train you on as many of the above capabilities as your organization needs.
On top of that, we provide
MOSS 2007 Setup, Intranet Configuration and
Regular SharePoint Maintenance. Having 3 SharePoint/MOSS 2007 experts on staff means we can train your users while the intranet is being configured!
PlanetMagpie’s SharePoint Clients include
Relax your brain. Let the untangling power of MOSS 2007 keep track of all the projects. And save time & money on putting in an intranet. Call PlanetMagpie for a
free intranet consultation and demonstration of MOSS 2007 capabilities at 408-341-8770.
