A well-known pitfall for web and intranet projects is to focus too much on what the technology can provide rather than what your business goals for the project are. For example, when developing a web strategy, it is tempting to rush into selecting technology or creating roadmaps for implementation, as this will immediately make the project more tangible.
Lately there has been some insightful debate on why Microsoft SharePoint governance documents are missing the mark by doing just that – relying too much on technology to do the job. When governance becomes about system settings and operations procedures, you are missing a key ingredient: the business.
SharePoint sometimes undeservingly gets such business adjectives attached to it. During our research on why organisations were choosing SharePoint, we often got the explanation that the IT department had decided to use Microsoft technologies – particularly SharePoint – as their strategic platform.
However, web strategy has little to do with platforms, and much more to do with supporting the goals of the business and establishing a common direction for your web activities. Just as with governance, in order to ensure implementation, you need to involve stakeholders on different levels.
If you don’t focus on these things, and instead leave the strategy and governance to IT, you could end up with a situation where simply going live is your only criteria of success. I’ve talked to several business units who felt they were left stranded, trying to find the best way to make use of SharePoint, when IT moved on to new projects.
With all platforms, and especially one as flexible as SharePoint, you really need to focus your development, testing, and training efforts on delivering business value. Your strategy and business case can guide you in prioritizing requirements and help to avoid a situation where you need to change course in the middle of your implementation. As any implementation of SharePoint requires a considerable investment, it makes good business sense to focus on more than just the technology.
Have you included technology in your web strategy? You can read more about our take on what should and what shouldn’t be included in a good web strategy in our latest research on Best Practices for Creating a Web Strategy and hear other practitioners’ take on SharePoint at The International SharePoint Day in Copenhagen on June 18th.
Kenneth Ley Milling» Blogarkiv » Sharepoint får høvl hos JBoye April 2nd, 2009 10:07
[...] til dette indlæg kom, efter jeg læste Dorthe Raakjærs indlæg ‘Why you should leave IT – and Sharepoint – out of your webstrategi‘ – på bloggen JBoye.dk. Her får Sharepoint og IT-folk på puklen for at fokusere næsten [...]
Jed Cawthorne April 3rd, 2009 10:07
Obviously I could not agree more, via my employer Prescient Digital Media, I often end up working for clients where IT has chosen SharePoint, and then the owner of the Intranet – invariably Communications, needs to re-jig its ‘intranet strategy’ around the options provided by the platform. Or of course they don’t have a strategy, or any governance structures at all – in which case all the great technology in the world is not going to help them…… !
cleve April 4th, 2009 10:07
I can understand where you’re coming from but don’t think its a simple matter of IT in or out. Agreed, the web strategy should not include specifics around tools such as Sharepoint. Sharepoint, like some other bigger CM Systems, tend to strongly influence the web strategy and governance. This really needs to be the other way round.
I think IT needs to be around to ensure that the web strategy is feasible. Whether IT validates the strategy post fact or are involved throughout is really an ‘it depends’ answer. The trick is to ensure that IT focus on the what’s and don’t delve into the how’s during the strategy phase. It’s too early for that sort of talk.
This responsibility falls to content strategists that need to find a balance between IT, IA, Creative and the business, to name just a few…
Michael Sampson: Currents April 14th, 2009 10:07
News Updates (April 14, 2009)…
Enterprise 2.0 Disillusionment … Dennis argues that the promise of Web 2.0 as applied within organizations is quite difficult to grasp, and may yet not materialize. “The second and most serious problem with the analysis is its reliance on ‘jam……
Debbie April 16th, 2009 10:07
I totally agree. Just today someone asked me via my blog how to get his company to use social networking tools. I advised that you forget about the tools- do some analysis on the gaps in the business and communication; the pain points in collaborating and the holes that need filled. AFTER the need is identified then it is time to come up with a solution. Having the need drive the solution rather than telling users that the solution is the answer is the way to go! Enjoyed your blog!