DESIGNING AN INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE FOR SHAREPOINT

Many organizations use Microsoft SharePoint because it seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Office; however, few organizations implement it correctly. Unaware that SharePoint is designed to capture metadata, which facilities creating lists and views, system owners create libraries that resemble shared drives with folders and several layers of nested folders. Consequently, searching for documents is a time-consuming and frustrating task.

To work around the problem, organizations designate “Librarians” who are the first contact for users to checkout and check-in documents. Users become frustrated with such a bureaucracy and go back to keeping documents on desktops and shared drives. In response to users’ frustration, management decides that the only recourse is to introduce a new content management system and start over again. The problem is not SharePoint, and replacing it with another content management system will not solve the problem—it is how people use it that is the problem.

This webinar teaches when a shared drive is appropriate, how to use metadata to manage documents, and best practices for creating and managing libraries.