Why A Phased SharePoint Implementation Is Right For Most Organizations

Stephen Lamb, CIO of the British Columbia Institute of Technology, wanted a social enterprise collaboration platform to help the BCIT’s network of 1,800 faculty members and support staff connect and work more effectively. Rather than mapping out a detailed implementation plan, he dove headfirst into implementation, as described in a blog post from The Huffington Post. He even bravely told his boss he didn’t know how likely the implementation was to succeed.

This is certainly a nonconformist approach to deploying a collaboration platform such as SharePoint. The typical approach involves a phased implementation that starts with a handful of departments. They then spread the word throughout the organization, sharing their experiences with using the platform and allowing the organization to build support the grassroots way.

For 99 percent of organizations, this is the best way to deploy SharePoint. There’s less risk involved since the deployment can be altered or even discontinued before a significant amount of money has been invested. Plus, there’s more time to receive feedback from users and ensure that the implementation is going as planned.

The approach outlined in The Huffington Post blog post is followed by the 1 percent. It requires the right leader, the perfect business culture and the necessary budget. But of the 1 percent bold enough to take this approach, 99 percent probably succeed. Why? It’s because they have the right pieces in place to make it work.

Lamb’s efforts at first ran into trouble because he lacked support from top leadership. But three years later, with a more progressive leadership team and a change in location, Lamb told The Huffington Post that he’s seeing his colleagues more receptive to new models of collaboration and innovation.

Lamb said he doesn’t subscribe to an implementation strategy that relies on prototyping and focus groups. “It’s really an all or nothing commitment,” he says.

With that said, there certainly are plenty of sleepless nights, as everything must go right for that type of deployment to work. And Lamb hints at the potential pitfalls of such an all-in approach: “It will either be a mutually assured disaster, or a mutually assured success.” Again, for most organizations, a phased approach is the best way to deploy any collaboration platform.

Learn more about collaboration by checking out Michael Noel’s ESPC13 conference presentation on ‘SharePoint Security Options for SharePoint 2013 Farms‘. Downlaod Now>>

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