All Content
Timespan
explore our new search
Creating Your Third SharePoint Intranet: A Comprehensive Guide
Image Source: Shutterstock.com
SharePoint Online
Oct 19, 2022 9:06 PM

Creating Your Third SharePoint Intranet: A Comprehensive Guide

by HubSite 365 about Ellen van Aken

Pro UserSharePoint OnlineM365 Hot News

Upgrade your SharePoint Intranet with my expert advice; discover efficient document management and customization techniques.

A New Era: Transitioning to SharePoint Online for Enhanced Business Operations

The blog post authored by Ellen van Aken chronicles her journey towards the transition of an organization's old, outdated intranet to a state-of-the-art SharePoint Online platform – her third and most likely, final intranet project.

Before her intervention, the organization was entangled with an impractical platform that was cumbersome to operate – creating news, updating content, and managing documents was a nerve-racking task. The platform, moreover, was a burden on the company's budget while an unutilized Office365 lay dormant, paving the way for a transition to SharePoint Online and other Office365 applications.

Ellen points out that the shift was not a question of if but when. The project was initiated and expected to be launched before her retirement.

The Path to SharePoint Out-of-the-box

Apart from the issue of superseded platform, another roadblock was the unclear governance model for the organization's intranet and document management system (DMS). To solve this issue, Ellen proposed to separate the intranet and DMS into two distinct projects with different teams and ownership. Once this was agreed upon, the focus shifted to the intranet project.

What set this project apart was its unique model. Unlike her previous experiences, this time there were no customizations needed. In essence, the Microsoft cloud service had evolved significantly since her last engagement, and there were several success factors that paved the way for the hassle-free transition.

One of these success factors was the organization's decision to use SharePoint out-of-the-box and without any customizations. The requirements were simple - News, formal information, and an entry point into applications like the HR system and the DMS. Keeping the project free of complexities was a prerogative to avoid extended timelines and additional costs.

Implementing a Streamlined Intranet for Business Excellence

Since Office365 was already being utilized within the organization, Ellen didn't need to worry about the technical implementation. It was a matter of setting a Homepage and ensuring the creation of Hubs. Additionally, the intranet was not a major shift as the employees were already familiar with it.

The project team was small and consisted of the project manager and intranet owner from Communications, an external Microsoft consultant, and Ellen. They worked effectively without getting entangled in endless discussions. Their approach was to share progress with the organization and work on the received feedback to develop the new intranet.

Ellen sheds light on the reasons behind the organization not requiring additional branding. Instead of migrating old content, they chose a fresh start. Site owners who wished to move content from the old intranet to the new one were motivated to refresh their content as most of it was outdated. Ellen also states that in order to empower publishers, they were provided with guidelines on how to visually display their News and pages.

The old intranet was given a hard shut-down date before November and was finally shut down three months before the payment date. While there were some initial challenges in adjusting the News part of the intranet due to the numerous News channels and publishers, these were eventually overcome.

The Upshot of the Journey

Eventually, the intranet transition project was completed in about six months. The author states that it was a most enjoyable final project as it proved that customizations are not necessary for a good intranet.

The outcome has been highly positive. The intranet manager is quite pleased with SharePoint Online. She finds it easy to work with and makes frequent changes to the homepage, creating an ever-evolving, dynamic intranet environment.

Furthermore, publishers are also thrilled with the new platform, finding it user-friendly. Their enthusiasm has created a positive vibe that encourages each other to refine their posts and pages, thereby enhancing overall business communication.

In conclusion, making a switch to a standard out-of-the-box SharePoint platform provides a multitude of options that have been strategically designed for intranet use, eliminating the need to reinvent the wheel. A worthwhile investment to consider!

Read the full article My third SharePoint intranet

SharePoint Online - Creating Your Third SharePoint Intranet: A Comprehensive Guide

Learn about My third SharePoint intranet

In this era of rapid digitalization, SharePoint Online has become an essential platform for fostering collaboration and communication in organizations. My third SharePoint intranet project underscores the efficiency and user-friendly features of SharePoint Online, making it a stellar tool for creating dynamic, modern, and effective intranets.

When I took up the project, the task at hand was clear but complex. The existing digital platform used for the organization's intranet and document management system was out-of-date and laden with numerous limitations causing many governance issues. Transitioning to SharePoint Online was the need of the hour.

As a Microsoft expert, I recognized the potential of leveraging our Office365 subscription to make the most out of SharePoint Online. This seemed like a clear-cut solution, given not only the cost-effectiveness but also the capabilities of SharePoint Online that enhanced user experience and productivity.

  • As a first step, we separated the intranet and document management system into two different projects, which enabled us to tackle them more effectively. This arrangement was important for project management and made the transition smoother.

  • Conducive to our needs, we decided to utilize SharePoint Online as an out-of-the-box solution, eliminating the need for customization. This decision not only saved us from undue complexity and cost but also significantly shortened our timeline.

  • As Office365 was already being used in the organization, the technical implementation was straightforward. The familiarity of our colleagues with Office365 meant that the transition incurred little to no inconvenience.

  • Our project team was a small unit of three people, which proved highly effective. With specific roles for each individual, the project progressed smoothly. The triad comprised the content and design lead, an external SharePoint Online expert, and myself as the IT facilitator.

Our approach towards branding was minimalist, keeping everything standard, with an exception for icons representing the intranet and Document Management System (DMS). Content migration was also pinpointed as a task to be handled by individual site owners, resulting in a fresher, rejuvenated content edition on the new platform.

In order to assist the content publishers and maintain consistency across the platform, guidelines were established for page publishing and news posts. This decision was met with a warm response from the community and proved to be a practical approach.

However, one of the major challenges we faced was managing the abundance of News content on the SharePoint Online Hub, as it led to shortened visible time for each news item. Nevertheless, effective communication and fine-tuning the number of items led to significant improvement.

In conclusion, this SharePoint Online project was a rewarding experience, meticulously planned and executed over 6 months. The post-launch feedback from users has been overwhelmingly positive. The Software exhibits significant potential in creating user-centered and efficient intranets. For organizations looking to enhance their intranet experience, SharePoint Online presents a panoply of options that are well-suited for various needs.

More links on about My third SharePoint intranet

My third SharePoint intranet - Ellen's Digital Workplace
Oct 9, 2022 — We tried to help people see that the intranet and the DMS (document management system) happened to live on the same platform (at that time under ...
Plan an intelligent SharePoint intranet
Jul 12, 2023 — Learn about how to plan a new SharePoint intranet with focus on bringing sites online quickly and getting a return on your investment.
Intelligent intranet overview - SharePoint in Microsoft 365
Sep 18, 2023 — Keep employees informed and engaged by providing a shared place to securely view and collaborate on content, and to connect and communicate with ...

Keywords

SharePoint intranet, third SharePoint, my SharePoint, SharePoint development, SharePoint design, SharePoint 3rd edition, SharePoint solutions, business intranet, SharePoint implementation, SharePoint services