1. You could need a list if… Sarah Haase Best Buy

2. My background History – Technical writing – CMS implementation & support – Knowledge management – Information architecture – Librarian – Code-free… Current role – Collaboration Manager for BestBuy.com

3. My personal bias Businesses shouldnt be run via spreadsheets stored on shared drives Left to their own devices, well-intentioned people will live in information chaos. My job isnt about giving users what they want. Its about giving users what they really need. SharePoint markets itself…once you deliver your first couple of wins.

4. Agenda Definitions Tunnel vision 80/20 rule Lists – when, what & how How to implement Real-world examples Best practices

5. Definitions Document library A collection of files you can share with your team members A file repository List A collection of information that you share with your team members A collection of similar items stored in a series of fields that define a metadata schema

6. Key features Document library 1-click document access Easier versioning Easier editing Meets people where they live Unstructured content Unknown scope, function, audience List Transaction management (granular data store) Structured content Better reporting Tie-in with Access Keeps people from using folders Extendable Common display vehicle for data inside & outside of SharePoint

8. Shared Documents alone or with a myriad of other doc libs No (or outdated) announcements Poor use of landing page No organized look & feel Lack of targeted information Everyone hunts

9. The typical user site User complaints – SharePoint doesnt have any good functionality – SharePoint makes it harder to find things – SharePoint isnt flexible enough… – No one likes to use SharePoint… – SharePoint isnt any better than our shared network drives

10. The typical user site Built for the creator – No site design/planning – No content analysis or audience profiling – A personal file share no one gets but you Fails to follow the best practice 80/20 rule

11. 80% lists 20% other Ideal SharePoint site

12. Whats the 20% other? Slide library Document libraries Search KPIs Filtering RSS feeds Discussion boards Presence Blogs Surveys Wiki

13. 80/20 zone The choice... Significant investment with large ROI Easy entry w/accidental ROI Moderate investment w/nominal ROI

14. The price Audience analysis Content analysis/information architecture Storyboarding/UI design Business process redesign Development time/resources The reward Application-level SharePoint sites Specific, measurable ROI Smoother user adoption All the free marketing you want

15. Knowing when to bail… The 80/20 rule isnt foolproof – Consider your audiences content needs – Determine whether the ROI warrants you being there Estimated ROI Hours to implement

16. How do lists deliver? Ease of use Structured content Lower level of granularity Multiple author friendly Content types Extendability Data view web parts Custom workflows OOB & custom forms Automated charting & other jQuery solutions Tie-in with Access Joining & complex queries

17. When Replace spreadsheets Enable structured data capture Track complex multi-person processes Host content in central location Deploy easy online forms What Manage content traditionally overlooked by CMS systems Reduce duplication of effort Provide a common data store Provide deep metrics Identify outliers How Single or connected lists Effective use of list views Filtered list web parts Data view web parts Reporting/KPIs Extensions

18. Finding the right opportunity Business PAIN Simple problems that hit a lot of people Succinct business need – ideally with repeatable elements Frequent business rhythm Early adopters Business team that includes key influencers Solution you can build with OOB components (and limited SP Designer) Right-sizing – you need something you can deliver quickly Quantifiable ROI

19. Storyboarding Phase I Meet with business owners – Ask about their vision for the future – Find out what business need(s) theyre trying to solve – Get details on their current work process Highlights Pain points Bottlenecks – Get a wish list of things they dream about

20. Storyboarding Phase I Meet with business owners – Demo similar functionality already in production – Connect them with business owners that are up and running – Revisit the wish list and high-level goals

21. Storyboarding Phase II Audience analysis Be formal about it Find the critical success factors Content analysis Map out input & output processes Look at existing content and think structured lists Business process redesign If a step doesnt add customer value, cut it Determine if the ROI warrants you being here…

22. Storyboarding Phase III UI design Formal storyboards if needed Document all requirements Present vision Get management sign-off Start iterative development cycle

23. Prepare for the deluge…

24. Case studies

25. Fraudster queue Need – Team needs to track known fraudsters Solution – Single SharePoint list – No bells or whistles Benefits – Time to implement = 2 hours – Filtering enabled – Better searching – Storing information 1x – Easy filtering of 37,000+ items

26. Collaboration dashboard Need – Collaboration team needed a way to track ongoing projects, store design requirements, and track key work tasks Solution – Single SharePoint list – Automated priority calculator – Custom workflows Benefits – Workflows automate boilerplate emails – Projects automatically ranked by relative priority – Full history recorded for all development projects – Cuts 3 hours off the Collaboration management process each week – Total savings = $845/month and $10,140/year

27. Weekly Lockdown Need – Content teams used multiple versions of a single Excel spreadsheet to submit, track & assign key issues for Sunday turnovers Solution – Single SharePoint list per team – Data view web part with conditional formatting – Web part filters create automated work queues Benefits – No more work compiling & sharing multiple spreadsheets – Everyone can add/view issues simultaneously – No more duplicate reporting of identical issues – Cuts a half a day off the weekly lockdown process – Total savings across Dotcom = $11,267/month and $135,200/year

28. Key design elements Online data store No more copying/pasting Simultaneous editing No duplicate issues reported People integration Automated work queue Assign issues to 1 or more people Involuntary participation model Technical specs Conditional formatting Save list as template No coding needed

29. Outlet Center Need – Outlet Center team had a manual process for setting up SKUs Solution – Several SharePoint lists – Automated submission forms for all SKU types – Filtered web parts find rogue SKUs & queue them up for review – Custom workflows send assignment emails Benefits – No more time spent shepherding each SKU through the setup process – SharePoint maintains a historical record of all SKU data – All team members can access data (no more Outlook silos) – SKU setup process shortened from 6 weeks to 2 weeks – Total savings = $5,634/month and $67,600/year

30. Key design elements Online data store No more Excel trackers Everyone inputs data to single shared location People integration Automated emails for SKU assignments No more Outlook silos Smoother handoffs Technical specs Content types SPD workflows Outliers float to the surface

31. UAT charting Need – Project Managers manually built charts and graphs to report daily UAT test results Solution – SharePoint list template – CEWP and jQuery to incorporate Google Charting API – Hidden list view web parts control additional pie charts Benefits – No more work formatting Excel spreadsheets and building charts – Automated charts include up-to-the-second test results – PMs freed up to focus on value-add tasks at critical time in project lifecycle – Total savings = $36,000/year

33. Best/worst practices

34. Bad practice #1 Failing to break the document barrier – Most of SPs value lies in managing discrete data – What is discrete data? Document metadata Structured list content Anything you can query/sort/view Folders dont count

35. Bad practice #2 Doing all the work but failing to quantify the results – ROI calculation can be easyeven for me – Dollar figures have their own voice – Once built, you have an automatic business case – Think of clever ways to store your $$$ data

36. Bad practice #3 Expecting lists to wash your car, too…. – Remember list limitations Handling complex relationships Large numbers of items – Use the right tool for the job

37. Best practice #1 Follow the 80/20 rule – Content analysis, audience analysis & usability design do make a difference – Know what lists can do and when & how to use them – Know when the ROI warrants your time – Dont forget to optimize your remaining document libraries

38. Best practice #2 Make sure youre using the OOB functionality – List view web parts – Data view web parts – Content Editor Web Part – Key Performance Indicators – SharePoint List Filter

39. Questions Sarah Haase Collaboration Manager at Best Buy sarah.haase@bestbuy.com http://twitter.com/sarahhaase sarah.haase@bestbuy.com http://twitter.com/sarahhaase