Engaging in a Successful Design and Implementation Process

Many IT projects don't involve the user community much, if at all, but it is critical that an implementation of Windows SharePoint Services or SharePoint Portal Server 2003 involve this community. The implementation can have the most powerful, fault-tolerant, and scalable infrastructure, but if the SharePoint 2003 environment does not meet the needs of key users and knowledge workers, the project may not succeed, and the new tools offered may not be adopted.

Figure 4.1 shows a sample methodology that, if followed, greatly enhances the success of the SharePoint 2003 implementation project.

Figure 4.1. SharePoint 2003 implementation methodology.

Creating the Right Team for the Discovery Process

The team involved in the discovery, design, testing, and implementation of SharePoint 2003 should be created as soon as possible to ensure continuity throughout the process. Ideally, the core members of this team see the process through to completion, and additional resources are added as needed during different phases of the project.

Key team members for a small project include

• Project sponsor

• Project manager

• Technical lead

• Power users/early adopters

For a larger project this team generally expands to include

• Key stakeholders

• Departmental managers

• Solutions architect

• IT administrative/help desk staff

Depending on the scope of the project and the skill sets and experience levels of the team members with SharePoint 2003, it may be prudent to bring in outside assistance. Chances are the individuals involved already have hefty workloads and cannot dedicate their time to the SharePoint 2003 project. Bringing in an outside firm or "new blood" can be advantageous on a number of levels. The new talent will have experience with other companies that have gone through similar implementations and will have experience with different types of organizations and the challenges they encountered.

At the early stages of the SharePoint 2003 project, these individuals are dedicated to the discovery process, are not constantly distracted by their day-to-day IT management or support responsibilities, and are less likely to be affected by political situations or power struggles within the company.

TIP

Look for firms and individuals with recent experience designing and implementing SharePoint 2003 solutions for companies the same size or larger to ensure that they are familiar with the latest version of SharePoint 2003 and related products, such as antivirus, backup, management, and customization tools and utilities. Working with consulting firms or contractors who have experience with companies in similar lines of business (such as retail, manufacturing, banking, or nonprofit) is also a bonus.

Key stakeholders and resources from within the company should stay involved with the project, from discovery through design and testing. During the discovery process they bring their years of experience with the technology ecosystem to the table and add perspective to the information gathered. As the project moves forward, these individuals can be involved in the many decisions that need to be made and learn about the key features and capabilities of SharePoint 2003 so that they can support the end solution.

Organizing Information for the Discovery and Design Process

After the team has been defined, the discovery and design processes can commence. Often the two overlap, due to short timelines, limited budgets, and busy schedules. Often questions arise during the actual design discussions that require additional data gathering to answer. Similarly, questions can arise that can only be answered during the testing process because they may have to do with migrating existing data, or implementing third-party add-ons to SharePoint to provide specific business capabilities.

Ideally the following information should be available before starting the design and planning sessions:

• An updated network diagram

• Server inventory information including which applications live on which server and where the data resides

• Desktop and laptop inventory information, including operating systems in use and productivity software such as Microsoft Office products

• A list of business goals and expectations for the SharePoint 2003 project

• A list of requirements for the document management and collaboration features of SharePoint 2003

Additional tasks that should take place and information that should be clarified during the discovery and design processes are as follows:

• Clarify who uses what types of data (what file types are used besides the standard word processing and spreadsheet files, such as .pdf, .ppt, or .vsd files).

• Clarify how users access data (do they actually use the VPN, the intranet, or other vertical market applications that may be in place).

• Better understand areas of growth in the organization to better plan the SharePoint 2003 infrastructure.

• Build enthusiasm for the project by sharing information on the capabilities of SharePoint 2003 and through a display of the competence of the team created to drive the project.

Compiling the Discovery Information

One or more resources need to be tasked with keeping records of the discovery process and updating existing documents. Having a resource dedicated to documentation through the life cycle of the project is ideal. This person will understand the whole history of the project and can create support documents for the administration and help desk staff as well as training documents for the end users.

Documents created during the discovery process will prove helpful later in the process. Having a good record of the information gathered on the hardware and software in use, the business processes affected, and the meeting minutes can be invaluable later in the process. When it comes time to actually create SharePoint 2003 sites for the different groups and departments in the enterprise, these notes on their requests and expectations are helpful. The following is a summary list of the documents that should be created during the discovery phase:

• Clarification of the goals for the SharePoint 2003 project

• Notes from discovery meetings with key stakeholders in the SharePoint 2003 project

• Appropriate levels of documentation summarizing network servers, software, and infrastructure hardware in place

• Details of the amount and type of data stored on the network and current methods of sharing and accessing this data

• Documentation clarifying the document management and collaboration processes that will be affected

• Documentation clarifying the business processes in place that will be affected by the SharePoint 2003 implementation

• Scope of work (what's in and what's out of the project)

• The design document (how the hardware and software will be configured)

• The migration document/project plan (how this technology will be introduced)

High-Level Goals for the SharePoint 2003 Project

An important component of the design process is a clarification of the business and technology goals for the project. Often these goals can only be sketched out at the beginning of the process but become more clearly defined as the process moves forward. For example, the budget may not be clear when the process starts because the organization may need to outsource the whole implementation and doesn't know how much prototype testing and training will be needed. Or the organization may need advice on the server configuration in terms of number of servers, RAM, and storage space. The organization may also be undecided whether to perform other network upgrades at the same time (such as upgrading to the Microsoft Office System 2003 products or to Exchange 2003), which will affect the goals for the project.

When defining the project goal, try to include a wider range of discussion topics to ensure that the discussion is thorough:

• High-level business goals that SharePoint 2003 will help the company meet (such as better products being developed, delivery of services that better meet the clients' needs)

• Document management goals that the SharePoint 2003 sites will need to meet (such as moving existing data from NT file servers to SharePoint 2003 document libraries)

• Collaboration goals that SharePoint 2003 will help the organization achieve (such as enhancing teamwork through the use of discussion boards and meeting workspaces)

• Budget constraints broken down by what is available for hardware, software, and labor services

• Timeline for the project broken down into the phasesfor example, pilot testing and then a phased implementation that includes training

• Division of labor for the project phases, focusing on which internal resources will be used and whether external resources will be needed

• Training and support goals (for example, a "train the trainer" type of implementation where the departmental administrators receive training during the implementation and then are responsible for training their users)