Collaboration software designed to help project teams work together more efficiently is widely used in the private sector and beginning to make inroads with federal and state governments. One popular tool is Microsoft's SharePoint software. But while applications such as SharePoint offer the potential for increased efficiencies, program managers must watch out for some pitfalls when they prepare to get a project off the ground, warned Scott Lock, principal consultant with Excella Consulting.
Lock said setting up a SharePoint or any other collaboration software project is less about the technology and more about the underlying information architecture and governance. By making the experience user-friendly and seamless, he noted that customers would be more likely to adopt SharePoint. He warned that the advantage and disadvantage of SharePoint is that "you can do a lot out of the box." But without strong information assurance and governance practices, there will be customer dissatisfaction.
A common failing in both the commercial and private sectors is a lack of prioritization in projects, Lock said in an interview. He explained that it is ultimately the organization's responsibility to prioritize activities such as whether it is more important to identify all the people involved a project or to document all of the effort's goals.
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