purposeful collaboration in the cloud with confluence on demand - james dellow

JAMES DELLOW • GENERAL MANAGER • RIPPLE EFFECT GROUP • @CHIEFTECH

Purposeful Collaboration in the Cloud With Confluence OnDemand

Ah! The cloud!

• Standardised platform• Maximum 2,000 users• Frequent upgrades• Its about business

outcome

Myth-busting Confluence Cloud

• Government program• Managing hundreds of

projects with different external stakeholder groups

• Projects physically completed across a wide area

• Coordination and communication needed, not task management

Case Study

M O C K U P O N LY

Loose pieces, joined together

T E M P L AT E S !

• Consistent layout for key content pages• Pre-defined Navigation• Reporting

M A C R O S !

• Content re-use (for efficiency)• Reporting• Additional functionality using add-ons

S PA C E D E S I G N !

• Support better usability for external users• Flexibility around different project needs

Three strengths of Confluence Cloud

1

2

3

Strong suite of default macros

A growing marketplace of add-ons

Already externally accessible

Purposeful Collaboration

Shift away from the industrial era of IT

• Breakdown silos by bringing internal and external users together

• Avoid complex workflows where social workflows are good enough

• Use a combination of templates and macros to support repeatable business processes

Designing for purposeful collaborationP R O T I P : !

• User centred design (UCD) provides an ideal approach for creating purposeful collaboration flows in Confluence

Permissions models

Designing permissions for the cloud

Usage Scenario Supported? Permissions Model

All private content No anonymous users

Some public content Anonymous users in some spaces

All private content + internal & external users

Do not use confluence-users in spaces

Some public content + internal & external users

Anonymous users in some spaces; Do not use confluence-users in

spaces

C O L U M N T I T L E C O L U M N T I T L E C O L U M N T I T L E

Simple “user macros”

• Use the Atlassian Connect framework to create Static Content macros• Draft in Confluence and simply copy the storage format• Minimal configuration and static content macros only require “read” access• Each add-on can contain

multiple macros• Deploy as a private add-on

Designing simple add-ons

Hosting your add-on

• You can use low-cost static content hosting options (just make sure its reliable)• Must support HTTPS to be deployed through the marketplace• A custom domain is not required• e.g. Firebase https://www.firebase.com

• Minimum files needed:• atlassian-connect.json (the add-on configuration file)• An icon (image file) for your add-on• A text file containing your storage format code (one per macro)

• More complex javascript-based macros can be hosted in the same way

• Simply design in Confluence!

Example: Get the storage format

L A B E L S • Use to control the content included in your macroPA G E S

• Create other dynamic or navigational elements

I M A G E S • Store with the add-on or in some other shared location

• Once installed, just use it!

Example: Use like any other content macro

P R I VAT E A D D - O N • You control who can use this add-on

• Consistency and dependability• Easy to update - changes apply everywhere it is used• Works in context• Low risk

Example: Benefits

Key takeaways: #atlassian

• Confluence Cloud is more flexible than you might think• Work closely with users to understand how to best apply Confluence Cloud

attributes for purposeful collaboration• Setup permissions (and spaces) to take advantage of the cloud• Simple static content macros are a starting point for new efficiencies and workflows!

James Dellow@chieftech

rippleffectgroup.com