zero to 365 in one hour: processes and tools for effective sharepoint solutions

Zero to 365 in Sixty Minutes

Processes and Tools to Effectively Build SharePoint Solutions that Work

Introduction

Brought to you by…

www.lightlever.ca

AGENDAProcess Overview

My Toolbox

Design Process

Build Process

Data Migration

Pilot Test Process

Training

Wrap-up

Process Overview

A process to organize and engage…

Step A

Step B

Step C

Step DHappiness

Development Context

Business Case

RFP / Response

Develop Site

Develop Governance

Support & Maintain

Our Focus Today

Business Case

RFP / Response

Develop Site

Develop Governance

Support

Development Work Plan

Plan DesignDevelop

& Migrate

Pilot & Migrate

Train & Support

Project Management / Expectations Management

Project Management

• Approved Work Plan• Project site on SharePoint • Formal Change Control• Status reporting• Steering Committee• Managing expectations

My (rather sparse) Tool Box

Tools for faster, easier, better results…

• Templated• Save time• Improve quality• “Fill in the blanks”

approach• Always refining

SharePoint Tools

Web Interface• Building Sites, Lists, Libraries• Applying permissions• Project Management• Communications• “Eat your own dog food”SharePoint Designer• Workflows• Minor visual and functional changesInfoPath• Advanced Forms (when required)

Microsoft Office

Word• Proposal, Work Plan (template)• Design Document (template)• Status Reports (template)Excel• Project Cost Management (template)• Data Migration (template)Visio• Site Design (template)• Org Charts (template)PowerPoint• Training and Presentations (template)

Design Process

Form Design Team

Overview &

Examples

Identify Objects

Prioritize Objects

Sign-off for Build

Design Process

User Engagement and Education

- Design Team, SharePoint Champions, Department Reps, call it what you will.

- Look for cross section of interested people- Quick learners preferable at this time- Enthusiasm would be nice- Staff working alongside Lightlever for organic

learning and smooth transition.

Form Design Team

- Teach SharePoint basics- Show Example sites (with

permission)- Start training process NOW- Create shared understanding- Avoid “blue sky” thinking- Generate excitement- Set expectations

Educate

• Use this phase to co-create the site, build relationships and trust.

• What is the PURPOSE of the Intranet?• Overall Structure• A funky name helps • What are the Lists and Libraries we

need to help us communicate and collaborate?

Design

Design Document

• The key communication and agreement tool

• Start with template• High-level and practical• Live on screen at every design

meeting• Always available on project site• Updated “as we go”• Used for copy-paste-build of objects• Used for map of permissions• Captures ideas for future• Wikified for reference

Structure Diagram

• In SiteDesignGraphics [Visio]• Provides overall visual• Shows URLs• Aids understanding• Helps permission planning• Assists the build process• Repurposed for training,

site overview

Standard Divisional Objects

Ibid.

Standard Divisional Objects

Home Site Ojects

Legend

Inside Homehttps://inside.virl.bc.ca

Projects(/p)

Standard Divisional Site

Commun-ications(/com)

Intranet Proj. (/98154)

Project B

Project N

Divisional Files(/fls)

Out of Office

Calendar (/cal)

Links and Resources

(/res)

Announcements(/annc)

Order and Item

catalog

Printable Brochures (part

of /fls)

Newsletter (part of /fls)

etc...

etc...

Testing & Training

(/sandbox)VIRL Files (/fls)

Announcements (/annc)

Contact List (/contact)

Events Calendar

(/cal)

Quick Links(/link)

FAQs(/faq)

Intranet Suggestion

Box(/suggest)

Briefings

Reports

Business Manual

Training

Templates & Forms

My Files (Web part

View)

Wiki (/SitePages)(Wiki home page and

sub-pages for Employee Handbook, and linked to

Business Manual, Training, Divisions, etc.)

Images(/img)

Divisional Wiki (/

SitePages)

Site

List

Library

Other

Folder

Visio to Identify …

• “What information do we need to capture and share?”

• Draw upon my experience, and their business needs

• “What’s causing the most pain?”

• Visio Template, live on screen

Announcements

Contact List

Policy and Procedures Wiki

Forms and Templates

Project List with Status

… and Prioritize

• Visio Template, live on screen• “What will serve the most

people, save the most time, reduce the most pain, or do all three?”

• Sticky notes to vote priorities• Change width of objects in

Visio to identify priorities.• All very fast• Paste into Design Doc

Files (Forms, Templates, Business Manual, Training, Reports, Briefings, Policies)

VIRL Announcements (Link to briefings and other artefacts as required))

Contact List(Internal/External Connect to Outlook)

Org Charts (with pics) – May be part of Contact

List

Events Calendar(Connect to Outlook)

Wiki(Web pages, Inside

links with context)

Quick Links(Hyperlink to teams, documents, websites, forms, etc.)

FAQs(Searchable, askable)

Intranet Suggestion Box

Emerg-ency

Announcements

Images(including Logos)

My Files (Web part

View)

Permissions Design

• After structure is largely done

• Educate as you go

• Use my blog post and video

Permissions Design

WHO?User/Groups

CAN DO WHAT?

Read, Contribute, Full Control,

etc.

TO WHAT?Site, List,

Library, Folder, Item,

Document

• Principles & Conventions• List logical Groups of

users• List Securable Objects• Assign Permissions• All in Design

Document (super handy during build)

Build Process

1. Build based on Design Doc (Site Overview graphic and Copy-Paste)

2. Present and refine with co-creators (Design Team)

3. Permissions done at end; (Inherit for now)

Building is Easy as 1-2-3

Iterative Build

Build Comp-onents

Present

Refine Design

• 2 – 3 iterations• 1 – 2 weeks each• Design Doc and site

always live and in sync• Present live (best) or via

webcasting.• Some migration can

occur here to make the site useful/meaningful

• Refer to Site Overview graphic• Copy-Paste from Design Document • Leverage standard lists, add fields,

create views, add workflows• Update Design Doc as you have

“aha’s” (it’s open to that page anyway)

• Add content if that will help presentation

• Present to Design Team• Repeat as time/budget allow

Building Sites, Lists, and Libraries

• Create Groups (Copy-Paste from Design Document)

• Group Owner should be “SharePoint Admins” group

• For objects with unique permissions:– break inheritance – remove or change permissions

• Double-check based on Design Doc

Applying Permissions

Data Migration

Content Migration

• Can be the hardest part of the project.• Files!, contacts, calendars, other SP

objects.• Many tools available like Sharegate,

HarePoint, AvePoint, Idera, MetaVis, and Metalogix.

• I have developed a low-costExcel tool

Migration Plan

Develop Mini-Plan

Capture File

Listings

Copy to Staging

Clean Up

Move to

Share Point

Set Servers Read-only

File Migration Using Excel Tool

• Command Line Directory Listings– Full Directory Listing– File Details Listing–Paste into Excel file migration tool

• Tool strips out invalided characters (including spaces if you want)

• Shows file and path length (important)• Filter records by date, size, type, etc.• Copy list of commands• Paste into Batch file, and run it

• Contact List–Copy from AD–Copy/Paste in SharePoint–Or Drag and Drop in

Outlook • Employee Handbook

–Word to Wiki in 1 hour– See how to blog post

Other Content Migration Examples

Pilot Test

Pilot Testing or “Pilot” Phase

• A chance to test the site in the realworld

• A small group of “Pilot Participants”• Practice training, support.• Gather feedback• Prior to go-live, update site based

on Pilot Group’s ideas and issues.• May migrate files at the same time.

Pilot Plan

Develop Mini-Plan

Identify Participants

Prepare

Comm-unicate

TRAINAssign

Activities

Support & Engage

Final Focus Group

Apply Learnings

Pilot Handout and Next Steps

• Key Pilot information on one sheet.

• Everything else you need is on SP (less paper, more current).

• Follow instructions when you get back to your computer.

• You will receive Alerts with activities.

• More training will follow.

Training

• Training Purpose: 1. Ensure there is buy-in (WIIFM);2. Ensure the site is understood

and used;3. Empower the client Admins to

do most (not all) of what I do.• Custom training works best for users• Classroom training for Admins• Include “Support videos” • Every meeting is a training

opportunity

Training Overview

Wrap-Up

Questions and Ideas

In Closing...

• Processes and (templated) tools help you build faster, easier, better.

• Co-create with your users as much as feasible.

• Be gentle, enthusiastic, and fun (positivity).

The End…To Be Continued.

Thank you!Lightlever Systems Inc.

Gerry Brimacombe gerry@lightlever.ca

www.lightlever.ca

BONUS: Org Chart from Contacts List

Org Chart from Contact List

1. Have a “reports to” field in your contact list

2. Export Contacts to Excel3. Use Visio “Org Chart Wizard” to

generate from Excel4. Save as… Web Page5. Save html files to SharePoint