Challenging Collaboration: Using SharePoint as a Collaboration Tool
Although Microsoft sells SharePoint as a collaboration tool, it really isn’t. It is a process and storage
tool, and actually does a reasonable job at that. Many of our larger clients have thousands (if not
millions) of documents stored in SharePoint. But in terms of supporting collaborative interactions
between team members, SharePoint has some bolt-on technology at best.
Ancient Architecture
SharePoint architecture, which is not inherently collaborative, is based on a much older model of
“publish and subscribe.” It is very top-down and hierarchy supportive, more like a Web 1.0 (or preWeb) application than today’s Web 2.0 social applications. SharePoint is really a Web 1.0 tool more
focused on content than people.
SharePoint’s architecture comes from a time of “non-transparency” where security was more
important than sharing. Each site can be its own mini-silo and can’t see any others (based on
topology and access settings); Microsoft recommends a “governance framework” to fix this.
SharePoint sites are, functionally, ASP.NET 2.0 Web applications that are served using IIS and an
SQL server database as a data storage back-end. If you are not technical, all this means is that
there are lots of I.T. guys behind the curtain making sure things work.
It is also hard to figure out a topology for SharePoint sites, which can be expensive to set up and
can require a lot of I.T. resources. It is often hard to find documents on “sites”—sometimes even for
the people who created those documents. One of the issues with SharePoint is the proliferation of
sites, many of which are “abandoned,” have not been updated, or have been deleted or archived.
This is more of a policy problem than a technology problem.
Additionally, the search functions in SharePoint (MOSS search provides the ability to search
metadata attached to documents) are very limited. Microsoft has focused on fixing this in the more
recent 2010 version by adding FAST search technology to make search not only more useful but
more granular. Even so, it is often hard to find specific information in SharePoint unless you are in a
specific site or at the top level of the hierarchy.
Issues with SharePoint
SharePoint has quite a range of functionality. Yet here are some common issues:
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When you save a file back to SharePoint from your desktop, it does not delete the old
version, which can cause confusion and a proliferation of documents.
Write directly on a wiki (edit and save): easy to compare old and new versions. Microsoft
wiki template is very limited in these abilities and not strong in many others.
If you choose to “deactivate” a site, you lose all the customization information in that sit
You can only add “list” templates to “list-based” sites.
You can only add a picture from a Web address; you can’t browse your desktop to do it.
Often it is difficult to trace a path back to the document. Sometimes the creator can’t find it
Most I.T. shops have to send employees out for SharePoint training or bring consultants in.
It is not an easy platform to develop applications for; its development cycle is 50% longer
than most other options.
50 % of users find that the development of custom solutions requires more effort than
expected (AIIM report, 2008).
SharePoint 2010 is only offered as 64-bit server and requires all new 64-bit servers to
support it (64-bit Windows Server 2008 or 64-bit Windows Server 2008 R2). It also will
require 64-bit SQL Server 2008 or 64-bit SQL Server 2005—a rip-and replace exercise if you
don’t already have these servers for the 2010 version.
SharePoint uses Web parts (like widgets) for customization. A number of third-party
Microsoft partners build templates and widgets. Microsoft does defray some of the partner
support costs through the SPDS program.
SharePoint…the Path of Least Resistance
SharePoint 2010 is relatively new (about a year in production), and many companies are looking
at upgrading their 2007 servers because Microsoft offers the upgrade free as part of its enterprise
license. However, the initial cost for the software often is the least expensive part of TCO (total
cost of Ownership). Some Microsoft partners like Apps4Rent offer access to SharePoint on a multitenant architecture for $60/mo. (Platinum plan). This option seems to be more popular with small
and medium sized organizations rather than the IT groups in large enterprise.
Although SharePoint 2010 claims it is able to create communities for large enterprises, many
enterprises choose Jive, Lithium Technologies or SocialText to extend their “social” features to
SharePoint. But in many cases these online community tools can work with SharePoint.
Most enterprises today are more externally than internally focused. With cloud-based collaborative
services (CBCS), there is no longer the need for expensive server-based solutions like what
Microsoft and IBM/Lotus offer.
Without any bad intentions, most I.T. departments take the path of least resistance (in this case
SharePoint). The smart ones look at adoption and usage six months later. What often is easiest for
I.T. is not always the best for the business units they are serving. But because the collaborative
solution I.T. chooses does perform some of the functions needed by the business, the enterprise
will often adopt SharePoint because it has I.T.’s blessing, and I.T. has a strong relationship with
Microsoft.
IT and Situational Applications
These days, I.T. is an appropriate resource for ERP applications, but absolutely the wrong resource
for what I call “situational applications”— that is, applications you need right away for specific
purposes and that may be used for only a short time or a specific situation. Many of today’s 2000plus collaboration tools fall into this category, and many of them are free to try and inexpensive to
subscribe to. This moves collaboration from a line item in a budget to a monthly expense. So
many groups, departments and teams in the enterprise are finding their own collaborative
solutions that fit their needs rather than following the choice of I.T.
SharePoint still only runs on Windows, and it was not originally built as a collaboration tool, but
Microsoft keeps bolting on collaborative functions and calling it a collaborative tool. As I said, the
marketing is pretty convincing — but you make your own decision.
—The author, David Coleman, is an author, speaker, analyst, and expert in collaboration and has
followed this area for over 20 years. For more info, visit the Website www.collaborate.com, phone
(650) 342-9197, e-mail davidc@collaborate.com, or visit dcoleman100 on G-mail and Twitter.