Setting up SharePoint in 2016? Talk to the Business First
Jason Firth
365 / SharePoint and Power Platform Consultant @ MindPoint | Empowering Business with SharePoint, M365 and The Power Platform
Possibly the biggest mistake of all is to assume that “if we build it, they will come”. Many times we have seen this approach often taken by IT departments when someone has decided to install SharePoint simply because they have seen it mentioned somewhere, or have been under pressure to “just do something” or even because everyone else has it!
The problem with this approach is unless you have a plan of where you want to go and have some way of measuring if and when you have got there; then you are likely to either end up somewhere else or not get anywhere at all. Speaking to people in and across the business to identify specific business needs - itches the business is desperate to scratch - is absolutely essential if you are going to create a solution and not just create another tool that your end-users won’t know how to use or buy into. SharePoint can and does positively change the way your people work but they need to be brought along on the journey from the get-go.
SharePoint is essentially a process enabler that underpins a larger strategy so it is generally not a strategy in itself. It is crucial that you build clear objectives where the outcomes your business requires are not only known but fully defined from the get-go. Many businesses whose SharePoint projects failed found that, on reflection, their objectives just weren’t clear or coherent to start with and that they weren’t ready - or even able - to expose themselves to the full suite of features.
Once you have courted opinion and identified your specific business needs then you can plan for what it will then take to then build the right solution for those needs - and also measure their success or failure. What’s the killer application that will deliver the greatest benefits to your business?
If you are planning a SharePoint installation or upgrade in 2016 please do speak with us first. There's no sales spiel or hard sell - just straight talking and practical advice. Book your free call with us here.