The Intersection of People and Process

How do you decide where you’ll Spend Your 8?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:31:38 PST

How do you decide where you’ll work? Let PPT Help!

In theory EVERYONE gets to decide where they’ll spend their time for their 8+ hours a day. Of course, this theory often breaks down for a lot of reasons. I’ll let you fill in the reasons why in your head and in your comments below. But, assuming we do get to make decisions on where we work, where we spend our time and how we “Spend Our 8” I have a very simple model that I use that I call PPT.

Perhaps PPT can help you decide where you’ll Spend Your 8.

Note: I mention 8 here --- this is the allusion that people still work 8 hour days. I don’t know about you, but I typically spend a lot more than 8 hours a day on work tasks. I’m guessing you do too. One key difference is that they may not be a “contiguous 8” like they used to be on the factory floor.

How do you decide where you will Spend Your 8?

For me I use PPT. No, I don’t mean Microsoft PowerPoint. However, I’m sure there have been a lot of decisions made about where people work based on more than a few PPT slides.

No, to me PPT is People, Process and Technology

What do I mean by PPT?

For each point I have added a brief description. Of course, these can be adjusted to match specific roles and companies. However, I think the general points about each are generic enough that they apply to almost every company.

People	I want to work with people that are passionate, capable and accountable.
Process	Businesses RUN on processes. That’s completely understandable and I’m OK with that. However, I want processes that help drive the business forward and are not just in place because that’s how it’s always been done.
Technology	There are two angles to consider here: 1. Bleeding Edge – The companies that are building the newest, coolest and shiniest object can be a lot of fun to work for, but there are risks. 2. Tried & True – There is nothing wrong with old school products and services. In fact, this is where *Operational Excellence* and *Customer Intimacy* are even more critical.

There you have it … my simple model of PPT.

What do you think?

Does this work for you?
Could you use this to make a big decision like where to Spend Your 8?
How did you decide where you’d Spend your 8?

Drop me a note in the comments or at one of my contact points below. I really would like to hear what you think --- good or bad.

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This is part of a new series of blog posts I am just starting called The Simple Series. Look for more from me and a collection of guest bloggers in the coming days. If you want to be a guest blogger drop a comment here or ping me at my other contact points – Twitter, Facebook , LinkedIn or email.

About The Author: I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Run or Ride --- You Make it Happen

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 18:04:26 PST

Today was the second weekend of 2012 to get out and be an active participant of Shop Local Saturday. I hope you made it out today and made your mark. If not there is still time. You can support your community by shopping on Sunday. Remember … You Make it Happen!

A little Snow cannot stop Seattle

If you live in the Seattle area we had a cold front blast through that carried some snow, but that didn’t stop people from making it over to the Grand Opening of The Plateau Runner.

Plateau Runner

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Where to find the Good Stuff

Two of my favorite local establishments had big events today. The Plateau Runner had their Grand Opening and Pacific Bicycle had their annual Bike Blow Out with great deals on bikes for all levels of riders --- whether you ride (or want to ride) on the street or in the dirt.

For those that have been reading my blog posts for a while you know I Love My LBS. For those that don’t --- My Local Bike Shop (aka My LBS) is the best. They take care of me and keep me on the trails.

A few things I saw at The Plateau Runner that I liked

Great stuff for your feet from New Balance and Ecco, goodness for your seat (heated bun warmers – good for games, golf carts and more) and the good stuff for your head (Yurbuds are sweat and water resistant).

Plateau Runner - The Good Stuff

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The Grand Opening and the Bike Blow Out continue thru Sunday. If you are local to the Seattle area – both shops are in Sammamish – please take a moment to stop in and say hello and perhaps spend some of your hard earned money to support the community. Every dollar helps.

Even if you can’t make it to see them in person you can still Like Pacific Bicycle and the Plateau Runner on Facebook too. It’s easy – just click on their names then click Like.

No matter where you live I hope you are getting out and helping to Keep it in the Community. You Make it Happen!

Community Matters --- Shop Local

Begin with the End in Mind

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 09:58:29 PST

If you are in business … think about what you want to happen at the end of a conversation or transaction, if you prefer. Typically that means … obtain a new customer or obtain revenue from an existing customer. Both situations are OK, but there are other options.

Sometimes you might be after something else. Perhaps it is customer evidence in the form of a case study or win wire. Perhaps you are seeking a reference or a permission to use their logo or likeness.

The point is you should think about WHY you are having the conversation. You should Begin with the End in Mind.

This is not to say that every customer engagement NEEDS to end in some form of a transaction. However, typically both you and the customer are looking for the reason why you are having a conversation.

Yes, this might sound very clinical and cold. That is not the intent. The intent is that the smart thing to do when considering a conversation is to Begin with the End in Mind. Think about why you are there (or on the phone or even in an email).

What do you want to get out of the next conversation with your customer? With your colleagues? With your spouse? Kids?

Think about the end result. Begin with the End in Mind and you might find the conversations go a lot smoother, faster and in some cases won't be needed at all.

What do you think?

Does this work for you?
Do you do this today?
If not, Will you start?

Compliments to Steven Covey and his “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” for his inspiration for creating the Drill Bit and Hole metaphor.

Hearsay, Guesses and Reading Between the Lines

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 09:10:53 PST

This is no way to run a business. If your colleagues and employees are making decisions based on hearsay. If your peers are reading between the lines based on vague or non-existent plans. If your team is making guesses about your business plans you are doing a disservice to your company, your partners and your customers.

A few phrases that may indicate that your team is guessing:

But I heard …
Aren’t we going to be …
I thought we were doing …

The End Result

Lack of focus on your business
Lack of focus on your customers
Lack of focus on your partners

All leading to … a Lack of Business.

What can you do?

Be Transparent
Communicate Your Goals
Include your Partners and Customers

If you don’t share your plans … your employees, colleagues, partners and customers will be forced to make decisions based on Hearsay, Guesses and Reading Between the Lines.

Don’t let that happen. The future of your business depends on it.

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28 Seconds to MARS --- Search for Success

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 14:59:21 PST

The title 28 Seconds to MARS refers to the speed at which information can be made accessible. Your Mileage May Vary, but the reality is that if you have paper or electronic content it can be captured, processed and indexed very quickly.

What is MARS?

MARS is my acronym for Making All Repositories Searchable

I saw an incredible demo from Concept Searching where they were able to process and classify terabytes of data at the rate of about 28 seconds per document. This is where I came up with the title of this post.

Speed Matters - More than likely some content can probably processed much more quickly and some perhaps a little more slowly (think paper based content that needs to be scanned first). That’s why I mentioned above … Your Mileage May Vary.

The key points are … it’s possible and more businesses are going to need to embrace enterprise search. Thus forming the Search Enabled Enterprise. The Search Enabled Enterprise is going to be much better positioned to not only react to situations (lawsuits, business conditions, market dynamics, etc.) but to create new offerings that exactly meet the needs of the customer.

The demo documents in this case were from the US Air Force (unclassified content, of course), but the same model and algorithms can be applied to any data --- structured or unstructured. Concept Searching is paving the way for the Search Enabled Enterprise.

Perhaps even more interesting was that the data --- metadata, taxonomy and the content all went into Microsoft SharePoint. This was impressive. One click and voila … captured, processed and indexed content.

What is needed to realize and enable MARS scenarios?

Some of the key points are listed below. Of course, these a just the starting point. There may be conditions that apply based on access (both physical and electronic), security levels (especially in governmental organizations (think wikileaks) and by the various industry regulations.

Key points include:

Critical Issues:

Information Assurance
Records Management
Rights Management

Issues

Findability (for FOIA)
Access - The right person at the right time on the right device and at the right place
Don't PREVENT people from accessing information ... just CONTROL it.

Records Management

A realistic and defensible plan needs to be created to insure the Records you declare today are the right ones AND that if (or when) you find yourself in court you can find the documents you need … and ONLY the documents your need (think about opposing councils data discovery now, before it’s too late).

One example, In the US Government …
- Radiology has a 75 year records retention plans and reports that span decades (dosimetry data going back 50+ years)

A few more things to consider:

Decision Points

When to declare a record?
What is a record?
What is a document library?

Policies and Policy Decisions

Access - making info available to the right people
Information Rights Management
PII (Personally Identifiable Information) needs to be managed
Information Management / Records Management - insures proper preservation (Data Rot)
Workflow - insures appropriate coordination of efforts with routing, escalations and timelines
Content Management Systems withOUT policies is effectively a File Share

These are just a few of the ideas needed to consider and create plans around for a Search Enabled Enterprise. If you have other examples and have points I may have missed please feel free to share them in the comments on this site or drop me a line at one of my contact points below. I look forward to hearing what you have seen and heard and to hearing about what works in the real world.

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

A Year in Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 12:23:25 PST

On January 1st 2011 I took a picture of a Stand Up Paddle (SUP) board session with my son Nick. Little did I know it was going to turn into a year long obsession.

I’d like to say I’m clever enough to think this up on my own, but alas … I am not! It was inspired by my friend Betsy Weber (@betsyweber) If you don’t know Betsy you should. She is the Technical Evangelist at TechSmith – where they make great products like SnagIt, Camtasia and Jing.

Betsy tweeted out something in early January that she was going to try and take a picture a day for the whole year. I thought that seemed like a fun and do-able goal. So, I co-opted her idea and started clicking and tweeting every day. The results of which are listed below. I didn’t take pictures of the same thing everyday. I was VERY sure people would NOT want to see a picture of me everyday throughout the year.

Enjoy The Year In Pictures

So, please enjoy a little trip down memory lane with me as I highlight some of my favorite pictures from the Year that was 2011. See my note at the bottom about image usage. It’s simple … If you like ‘em … use ‘em!

My First Picture of 2011

My Daughters First Solo Pumpkin Carving

This was my ride in college

Home

Any UW Fans out there? (these are soda boxes)

Nick --- Ropeless in Seattle

What did you do in July? Me: I broke my leg

Living Large --- 8+ boards is a Good Start

Summer on the Oregon Coast

Cohaset Bay

Corduroy and SanO --- ‘nuf said

The Year of my Birth created a Unique Corvette

Free Hugs Kids on the Santa Monica Pier

The Atrium at the Hyatt in DC

Snoqualmie Falls

Ellie --- What Collection would be complete without her?
(yes, Ellie is in a LOT of pictures)

Ellie - 2011

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The Last Picture Show

I have not taken the last picture of 2011 yet. Got any recommendations? I’m going to get out for a ride today and we have our annual crab feast with friends tonight. So, I will likely get a picture or two from there. You will just have to wait and see what the last picture of the year is … perhaps you’ll be in it!

Thanks for taking a few minutes to …

(stop & enjoy the magic)

I hope you have a Fabulous 2012.

Happy New Year 2012

Note: If you like any of these pictures please feel free to use them --- All I ask is that you attribute the image credit back to me. If you want a full size of the image let me know and I’ll be happy to send them to you. If you want to see all of my pics from 2011 click here.

SharePoint and Paper Belong Together

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 11:10:26 PST

In case you haven't heard ... SharePoint is a platform to manage information. SharePoint doesn't care if this information was "born digital" or created in the traditional paper based world. When that information is “born” in a paper based format SharePoint needs a little help to get the information from “Paper to Digital” format. This is where partners come in.

Paper has been around for over 5000 years and will still be with us for a while. Paper is not the Enemy and Paper does have a Future. The trick is to manage paper wisely, to insure the right paper is kept and the paper that is not needed is discarded or digitized.

Start at the Start

It's easy to work with SharePoint and paper. A few examples have been documented in this post about the Ideal Capture Strategy for SharePoint and in this post where I discuss that SharePoint Adoption is not an Oxymoron. These are not the definitive discussion on what it means to get SharePoint and Paper working together. However, together these posts should help start a discussion and get people thinking and talking about what could be and what should be.

A few places to get started

As mentioned above SharePoint needs a little help to get the information from the paper format to an electronic format. The simple way to describe this is to call it “digitization” – there are a lot of steps required in the digitization process. Some are subtle, but critical to the overall success of extracting the desired information from the page. These topics have been discussed in previous posts and will undoubtedly be the topic of future posts.

Because SharePoint is a Platform for managing information and because SharePoint cannot (and should not) do everything (as mentioned in this post (What CAN’T SharePoint do?) it is important to pick the right partners to get SharePoint and Paper working together.

Note I say partners in the plural form --- this is correct --- because of the way the Microsoft Partner Ecosystem has evolved there are often multiple partners addressing specific business and technical challenges. This is why partners are the secret sauce and critical to the success of your SharePoint deployment and to the ultimate success of your business process.

Kodak has a few options that Start at the Start:

Kodak has created a series of videos highlighting some of the options here.

Kodak Smart Touch provides One Touch scanning to a lot of applications that you probably use everyday … including SharePoint.

What Can You Do with Scan and View? Click here for a few examples. Then Let Us know what you built!

Kodak Document Viewer and Kodak Scan-and-View
is the first product from Kodak specifically build for the Microsoft SharePoint market.

Try it today for free!

Video showing how to
Scan-to-SharePoint

More Videos showing a lot of options available with Kodak Capture Pro

Kodak Capture Pro
When you have more advanced needs for putting Your Paper to Work Kodak has got you covered.

If you need to read barcodes, do OCR or even perform database lookups on the information you read from the barcodes or OCR ... Kodak Capture Pro has got you covered.

Be Ready … SharePoint is here to stay

SharePoint is going to continue to gain market share as a platform. Something to think about is that SharePoint Adoption is not an Oxymoron yet it does require thinking, planning and execution to insure adoption is handled in a predictable and repeatable manner.

Growing Together Helps Every Business

SharePoint will continue to grow and expand core capabilities. Kodak will continue to grow and expand core capabilities. Together Microsoft and Kodak are working to insure Paper is a First Class Citizen in a SharePoint environment. Microsoft has made a commitment to the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) space. Kodak has been leading in the ECM space for over 100 years. Today it is still true that ECM Starts with Paper --- we expect this to be true for a number of years.

Because paper will continue to be a part of a lot of business processes the smart companies are making plans to include managing paper in their business processes. Proving the point that SharePoint and Paper Belong Together. Kodak and Microsoft are working together to insure your business can manage paper effectively and efficiently. Let us show you how.

Contact your local partner or Kodak representative for more details. If you don’t know where to start --- click here: www.kodak.com/go/sharepoint – you can download a free 30 day trial or use the SharePoint sandbox Kodak created for evaluation purposes.

For a limited time you can get a FREE Kodak i920 scanner when you purchase Kodak Scan-and-View. Details are here (see below): Click on either Document Viewer or Scan and View – then click on Product Specials. Review the details on the claim form to get started with your Kodak i920 desktop scanner.

The Just in Case Document

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 09:54:32 PST

Everyone’s got them. That receipt you think you might need. So, you keep it … Just in case. That document from a key customer that you keep … Just in case.. That note from a colleague that your hold onto … Just in case. Just in case documents are pervasive.

How many do you have?

How many receipts and documents do you have in your wallet, on your cork board, in your glove box and in other places you might not even be able to remember if called upon to produce said document.

Capture it

Capture these documents at the time they are generated.

Better yet … Skip the Paper and get the electronic version whenever possible.

However, when that is not possible … capture the document (yes, a receipt is a document) at the time it is generated. Almost everyone these days has a mobile phone with the capability of taking a picture. A mobile phone is a great way to capture information on the fly. Once the picture is taken you can send it to yourself over MMS or email or just keep it on the device until you sync.

If you have higher volumes of documents consider a desktop scanner. There are numerous options available and many of them also scan business cards too --- which you can drop into your CRM or other contact lists.

But Wait … I have a paperless office

If you are one of the lucky few that can truly say you have a Paperless Office … then good for you. Most everyone else encounters paper that they need to handle and manage daily.

For example, if you travel you pick up taxi fares, hotel bills, lunch or dinner receipts and other assorted documents come along with travel schedules. How many of these do you keep because you have to? How many do you keep Just In Case?

I still think we will see a flying car before we see a paperless office.

Even Mr. Spacely had paper in his meetings.

Reality Check:

Paper is not going away … and this is OK.

If you have Just In Case Documents … don’t worry. Everyone has them. The good news is that you can handle them and manage them wisely with just a minimal of effort.

Image Credit: Hanna-Barbera

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Will Talking Sections be the New Smoking Sections

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:37:03 PST

On a recent flight the person behind me was jabbering incessantly on his mobile phone. While I don’t begrudge his right to speak on the phone. I was not happy he was right behind me … and right next to a few people too.

I get it --- WiFi in the Sky is inevitable

It's happening. It's happened. Fait accompli.

However, I think there need to be some rules to go along with WiFi in the sky. Perhaps a code of conduct. Perhaps a special helmet. See the picture of a stewardess / flight attendant uniform designed by Emilio Pucci circa 1960.

I’m not a complete Luddite. I want technology and access to my information Any Place, on Any Device and Any Time.

However, I will do what I can to be respectful of my fellow passengers.

Skype in the Sky is a FAIL

Again … I get it. Access to technology and WiFi in the sky will allow people to do things they never could at 30,000 feet. This is great. However, it doesn’t mean I want to be subjected to someone with a loud and boisterous voice … booming over the sounds of the jet engines themselves chatting about … well anything.

One of the Last Three Bastions of Privacy

Flying used to be one of the last three bastions where you could not be disturbed. Sure, you had the occasionally crying baby or the chatty seat mate (which you had (some) control over).

Will Talking Sections be the New Smoking Sections

I’m wondering if this will be the case. Will we see cordoned off areas like we see on the ground at airports for people that want to smoke? I’m guessing this will not happen for security purposes and also because it never happened for smokers. All that happened for Smoking Sections was that the air would still waft over all the other passengers. Second Hand Smoke, Anyone?

I can envision stewardesses (as they were called back then) standing and working in a haze of blue smoke.

Will flight attendants (as they are called today) and all the passengers be subjected to a haze of blue language and everything else that comes out of passengers voice boxes?

WiFi in the Sky is inevitable

It's happening. It's happened. Fait accompli.

However, this does not mean we need to sit by idly and listen to every utterance of our fellow passengers. The airlines are doing what the people want. They are adding WiFi in the Sky. Overall, this is OK. However, it’s going to be up to the airlines and perhaps the Wifi operators to put some controls on the use of said technology. Perhaps with a Passenger Bill of Rights. I think it will also be up to the passengers to use common sense. Just like when there was Smoking in the Sky … I’d like to think someone would refrain if asked.

Passenger Bill of Rights

I know a few airlines have posted something like this for ground times and how long the will wait before discharging passengers during inclement weather or other ground delays. However, I don’t know if they cover “technology usage" guidelines.” For the record - I’m not a fan of more regulation. People should be able to “do the right thing” and know what’s right and wrong. However, occasionally people have lapses of judgment. A rule can help.

One thing I don’t want to see is that flight attendants are put in the position of arbitrator for offending passengers. They have enough to do.

What do you think?

Do you want WiFi in the Sky?
Is Skype in the Sky a good thing?
Will you be respectful of your seat mates?
How will you respond to offending passengers?
Will you support a Passenger Bill of Rights that includes using Skype in the Sky?

Drop a comment here or on the social media channels where you saw this post.

Note: I’m not picking on Skype. I just liked the alliteration of Skype in the Sky. I’m referring to VOIP, Video Conferencing and any other form of communication that can be enabled by having WiFi in the Sky. For the record … I’m a fan of Microsoft’s latest $8.5B acquisition … as I wrote about when it was announced.

The Future of Paper

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:34:38 PST

Paper is not going away. It will be around for a long time. This is OK. Paper is not the enemy. The big question is … What is the future of paper and how will it affect you?
As I have mentioned before --- I still think we will see a commercially available flying car before we see a completely paperless office.
Sure, some people do have the notion of a completely paperless office.
Note: In the picture there are remnants of what I call “nostalgic paper” --- diplomas, certificates, photos, etc.)
However, very few companies have completely paperless offices. This is OK. Paper is not the enemy.
Why? Because if people travel there are hotel bills and other expenses that still come in that pesky paper format. Shipping departments still receive bills of lading and other shipping related documents. Accounts Payable still receives invoices and purchase orders in that cantankerous paper form too. Most companies still also receive postal service mail too.

My Request: If someone runs their entire business in a completely paperless mode I would like to talk with them and write a case study on how they did it. They are an inspiration to us all and their story should be told.

Some Paper Facts


4 trillion papers produced and *GROWING* 22% annually	Over half of all organizations have *MORE* paper than ever before	Most paper documents are *NOT* indexed

Paper is NOT the enemy
Getting rid of paper is an admirable goal. Smart companies just need to manage their paper based assets wisely. Don’t get me wrong getting rid of paper should be a goal, but getting rid of paper should not be the ONLY goal. Paper can still play a vital role. The goal is to capture it right the first time and manage it effectively. By managing paper effectively costs can be reduced, profits can be increased and compliance efforts can be maintained.
The Future of Paper

The future of paper is quite secure. Paper will not be going away anytime soon. This is OK. Paper is not the enemy.
Paper is an Asset. Treating it wisely and managing it effectively helps to insure your paper does not turn into a liability. What this means to you is that the paper that crosses your desk or the paper that enters your household or business needs to be managed. Managed wisely … Paper is an Asset.
Next Up: How to manage paper in your office in an automated fashion. Also, Why SharePoint and Paper are made for each other.
Source: Paper Facts came from AIIM (click on link)

The Fail Trails --- Why Intent is NOT always enough

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 10:07:56 PST

Great Tools combined with Intent (power) do NOT always equal great Results

Case in Point: Pepper Spray at UC Davis
They had a tool (pepper spray), they had power (which they mis-construed as intent) and as we all know the results were not as expected.
The officers in charge, the UC school system and notably the dean of UC Davis have ended up in a bunch of slippery muck.

Case in Point: Fail Trails at Soaring Eagle Park
Much like the people that will try to use the trails at Soaring Eagle Park will be when they bear the brunt of these great tools (rakes and mattocks) combined with power (which they misconstrued as intent) combined with free labor and a gaggle of neer-do-wells and the result will not likely be what they expected. They too will end up in a bunch of slippery muck.

What the trails SHOULD look like

Real Trails

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What they ACTUALLY look like (post raking)

Fail Trails

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Snug and Smug in their Snuggies
While these Neer-do-Wells are Snug & Smug in their Snuggies this Winter the real trail users will be dealing with the mess they created.
Instead of seeing orange tinted evidence of their ill-fated efforts (like the UC Davis Pepper Spraying cops). All they will see is chocolate brown because they (these neer-do-wells) raked all the orange leaves off the trail.
My Hopes for the Neer-do-Wells
My hope - they never return
My sub-hope: they do return to see the damage they have wrought ... After it has rained for a few days.

My assumption is that they actually want people to use the trails.

Contrarian View: It's possible this is not their intent.

I hope these neer-do-wells see the fallacy in their thinking. They are not helping the trails. In fact, they are doing irreparable harm. Mud and muck will accumulate on the trails … and on peoples clothes. People will avoid these trails and perhaps create bypasses to get around the “work” these neer-do-wells did.

My recommendation for the trails: Leave the leaves in place. They are part of the natural process of decomposition and part of the experience of enjoying the trails and enjoying nature.
My suggestion for future activities by the neer-do-wells: Go to your local hardware (at least they can do some good by shopping local) and buy a bunch of brooms. Then head over to the Burke-Gilman trail and start sweeping. People walking, running and riding bikes on those trails appreciate a nice clean surface. Help them!

Image Credits: Business Insider, Ward Productions

Wow … SharePoint Saturday Utah … Rocked!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 09:33:41 PST

I don’t get to write about every SharePoint Saturday I attend (15+ in 2011), but I’ve got to give a shout out and a big hand to the organizers of the SharePoint Saturday Utah event. Christian Buckley and Joel Oleson did a great job as hosts and organizers. I know I am missing at least a few people that worked hard behind the scenes to insure this event was so successful.

Notably, Josef Nielsen --- Josef leads the Utah SharePoint User Group. The picture to the left is how you can recognize him. It was below freezing outside and there was a light snow falling, but Josef was taking it all in stride (literally). Anyone that can pull off Birkenstocks in the cold is A-OK in my book.

Sessions I Liked

I rarely get to sit in on other speakers sessions. However, at SPSUtah I was able to slip into a few of them and get a feel from the other side of the stage. A few of the sessions I saw with a few comments are listed here.

Note: This is just a sampling of a few speakers. There are multiple tracks occurring simultaneously to address different attendee needs. There are tracks for Developers, IT Pros, Business Users, Real-World Use Cases and for Newbies to SharePoint.

Erica Toelle @EricaToelle How to Staff the Adoption Resources on your SharePoint Project	This was a great session on the organizational dynamics needed to insure your SharePoint solutions are successful
I really liked Kipp’s interactive approach to the idea that SharePoint deployments always have some give and take	Kipp Sorenson @kbes SharePoint Jiu-Jitsu: Success through governance and adoption
Becky Isserman @MossLover Epic SharePoint Battle: Silverlight vs. HTML5	I was very surprised by Becky’s opening points. After hearing her logic I tend to agree. You’ll have to see her session to get the details.
Owen is leading the charge for what SharePoint can and should become. He’s driving the message that SharePoint is much more than a technology.	Owen Allen @owenallen SharePoint as a Platform for Internal Business Applications
Carsten Winsnes @skifaster123 Mastering SharePoint Calendars and Tasks	This session showed how to sync calendars and contacts in a predictable and repeatable manner.

Of course, as has become a tradition with SharePoint Saturday events … No event would be complete without a SharePint event to wrap it all up. Thanks to RackSpace for making that happen. The Jeff’s (K and D) and Javier (of RackSpace) are staples at the SharePoint Saturday events (much like Christian Buckley, myself and quite a few others have become).

What? You’ve Never Been to a SharePoint Saturday event?

If you’ve never been to a SharePoint Saturday. Check the SPSat website for an event near you and go. You will not regret it. Even if you are new to SharePoint you will find the community is open and embracing. If you are an old hat --- perhaps you should sign up for a speaking slot to share what you know.

If you’ve ever wondered why SharePoint continues to grow … it’s the Community. If you have ever wondered why The Clan of Raving Fans keeps going to SharePoint Saturday events … It’s the community baby!

My Session --- Paper and SharePoint Belong Together is posted to SlideShare here and below.

Share point saturday utah --- sharepoint and paper - 2 dec 2011

View more presentations from Jeff Shuey

See you in 2012

I just attended my 15th or 16th SharePoint Saturday in 2011. It was the last one of the year (that I know of). For 2012 --- There are a lot of SharePoint Saturday events being scheduled now. Virginia Beach and Austin are in January 2012. More will be added --- keep an eye on the SharePoint Saturday web site.

If you see me please come by and say hello. I love to hear what’s happening whether it’s good or bad in the SharePoint world. We are one big community. Knowing what’s going on, what works and what doesn’t is what keeps the community engaged and strong. I encourage you the be a part of it and I look forward to seeing you in 2012.

image credits: @PinkPetrol

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Your Sandbox or Mine

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 08:27:23 PST

The SharePoint Sandbox is a great place to play and test.

Sure, the SharePoint Sandbox has some limitations, much like every sandbox does.

This is OK. The good news is you can test things on your own and you can invite your colleagues, co-workers, partners and even potential customers to step into the sandbox for a play session.

The Sandbox may be the best out-of-the-box innovation of the whole SharePoint experience.

Don’t let the limitations stop you for taking the best of what the SharePoint Sandbox has to offer. Which is … A place to play and test … then reset or restart at any point.

This is what Inspired this post

If you’ve been playing in the sandbox this cartoon may describe you. If so, that’s OK. The SharePoint is the place to test your ideas before you put them into production.

Is this your SharePoint Sandbox Experience?
via Betty of @GoComics - http://bit.ly/vq9cuL #betty #GoComics

So, Your Sandbox or Mine

Where you play is not as important as that you play. So, let’s get started and start playing. Because, guess what? What you build in the sandbox could turn into the next great SharePoint solution. The potential for solutions is huge --- vertical markets, horizontal markets and so many niche markets that they cannot possibly be all described here. After all, as I’ve written before … SharePoint is WIP Smart.

Let’s get started!

image credits: Betty by Gary Delainey and Gerry Rasmussen

About The Author:
I have spent the better part of the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text in Nov 2008). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Shop Local Saturday --- Get Out and Do your Part

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 09:50:04 PST

Saturday, November 26th is Shop Local Saturday --- All you need to do is pick (at least) one local business and buy. That’s it!

Get out and do your part!

Support YOUR local businesses. Support YOUR community. Let them know you appreciate their investment in your community with YOUR investment in their business. Everyone wins!

Even Twitter is in on it …

This morning I sent out a tweet about the BIG DAY tomorrow. Right away Dave Barger replied with the note below. He’s right!

Thanks to @DaveBarger for his reply. He nailed it … Our “locals” are different. This is why we love ‘em and need ‘em.

Local Businesses are the Lifeblood of your Community

From my article about my community and a new local business.

Up and Running - The Plateau Runner

Community Matters

I like to see local businesses open and I encourage everyone reading this to make the time to Support Your Local Businesses.

… take the time to Invest in YOUR Community. These local businesses did … make sure they know you appreciate their commitment to the community.

Your neighbors may own it, your kids may work there and they play a vital role in keeping our communities vibrant, growing and great places to live.

Tomorrow is Shop Local Saturday --- All you need to do is pick one (or more) local businesses and buy. That’s it!

Get out and do your part!

Try it this Saturday and every Saturday. Everyone wins!

A Few Things I am Thankful for

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 14:42:16 PST

2011 has blown by in a flash. A lot has happened and a lot will still happen in the final weeks of the year. As I think about the year and how things have changed I am also thinking about a few things that I am thankful for.

From a document imaging perspective there have been a lot of changes that will affect our business for the coming months and years. Content Creation, Convergence and the Consumerization of IT are at the forefront of the changes that we will all see.

First, the good news. Content continues to grow in size and complexity. While you may not think this is a good thing. In fact, it is. We now have devices with hundreds, even thousands, of times more processing power than existed on the Space Shuttle. Think about it ... at the end of your wrist you have enough processing power to launch a manned mission to the moon. That's pretty impressive.

Now the bad news … The challenge of managing all of this content is going to continue to grow and it will expand to require the more and more of our attention. This is not all bad news … there will be countless opportunities for hardware, software and service vendors to create solution to exactly meet the needs of this ever expanding market.

Living in the Valley of Convergence

The days are long gone when a camera was a camera, when a music player was a music player, and when a phone was a phone.

Mobile phones of today have the ability to snap a (relatively) high resolution picture, to take hi-def video and to recognize and translate what we say into meaningful actions. Mobile phones can also be used as a "scanner" - perhaps not in the traditional sense, but for all practical intents and purposes a mobile device is a mobile scanner.

Convergence is Here. The Consumerization of IT is here.

How will consumers look to embrace and extend their mobile devices?
How will the (Document Capture) Industry look to embrace and extend the mobile devices available today? Tomorrow?
What will the impact be of mobile devices that can capture pictures, video and audio?

A few technologies to watch include mobile devices, emerging hardware and advances in software (with my comments):

Siri (Turning Talk into Action … hmmm?)
Microsoft Kinect (Turning Gestures into action … hmmm^2?)
Box.net and Dropbox (Turning Sharing into Reality)
SharePoint (Turning Corporate Content into Consumable Data)
Office 365 (Turning Ease of Use into Mainstream Solutions)
Scan and View (Turning Scanned Images into Assets)

How will Convergence Impact Document Imaging

From my segment of the world … Kodak continues to lead the industry in hardware, software and service. Kodak hardware continues to get better and to add increasingly advanced image processing functionality. Historically, Kodak scanners have helped customers around the world to capture and manage their Paper Mountains. Kodak continues to evolve the software segment of the business and recently added the first ever Microsoft SharePoint specific offering with Kodak Scan and View. In 2012 and beyond Kodak will continue to evolve and encapsulate the Business Document Automation needs customers and partners have come to expect from Kodak.

FACTOID: 700 Billion pages have been scanned with Kodak scanners since 1990.
How many more will be scanned in the next 25 years?

Paper is not going away. As I have said for many years there are 2 kinds of paper - nostalgic and business critical. Both are still important and both still have their place in the document capture world and in the bigger picture business document automation world.

In my 100,000+ miles of travel last year and speaking at dozens of events with customers, partners and fellow technology platform providers I still run into people that look at me with a little incredulity and they ask and wonder … You scan paper?

The simple answer is yes. And we will continue to do so for as long as people want to scan paper --- nostalgic, business critical and whatever other forms they might take in the future.

Even in these challenging and convoluted times there is a lot to be thankful for. The technology we have created and become reliant upon continues to improve and I think it continues to make our lives easier. I am looking forward to next year and to the continued advances in Content Creation, Convergence and the Consumerization of IT.

I hope you and your business are taking advantage of all that technology and and the advances in technology brings us. 2012 will bring even more advanced technology to the forefront in the form of hardware, software and service. Kodak will be there to help make the most of it and we hope to be able to share our vision with you.

A Few Things I am Thankful for

I am thankful for the fact that the industry I have worked in for the past 20 years continues to grow and adapt to the ever changing demands of the market. I am also thankful for the people I work with on a regular basis. They are smart and committed to advancing the efforts to redefine the intersection where people meet technology (and process). Finally, I am thankful for the people I have met in the past few years via the various social media channels where I engage. I have met new friends that have had an incredible impact on my life and my view of the world.

What are you thankful for?

==========================

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

We were promised Jet Packs

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 07:38:36 PST

Back when I was young … we were told that we’d have flying cars, we’d never need to know how to type, that we’d have colonies on the moon and that we’d have jetpacks.

So, far none of that has come true.

Where is my Jet Pack?

While I don’t really want to fly around in a jet pack … although it would be kinda cool. I do want to see the day when we have flying cars --- which I think we will see before we see Paperless offices.

I also want to see the day where we can talk to our computers like Scotty on Star Trek (video) circa 1986 in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Perhaps Siri will get us closer, but it will take a few more years for the technology to improve.

Where (or What) is your Jet Pack?

What did you expect to see by now?
Do you think you’ll ever see it?
What do you expect will be common place by 2025?

Image Credits: Star Trek

TED Talks ROCK -- My Top Five

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:59:32 PST

Today, I was asked by @WindyCitySocial about my favorite TED Talks. While it’s almost impossible to narrow it down to just a few talks I have put together a list of my top 5 picks for this week. Maybe I’ll make this a regular blog post with my Picks of the Week.

In case you don’t know what TED is … you should.

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design.

But, really, TED stands for so much more. TED Talks are a chance to peek into the minds of some of the smartest people on the planet. TED Talks provide a unique opportunity to hear and see incredible ideas and stories about things that we may never get a chance to see in person and often about things that affect us all. Put simply … TED Talks ROCK!

My Current Top 5 TED Talks

Note: They change every week as new stuff pops up … either by people sending them to me or by using the very cool “Inspire me” option on the iPad.

	A 12-year-old app developer Need I say more? A 12 year old software developer … this is our future.
	Eric Sanderson pictures New York -- before the City An incredible look at the history of The Big Apple
	Daniel Kraft: Medicine's future A fascinating look at the use of technology to address the rapidly advancing field of medicine
	Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation Motivation is NOT what you may think. Dan Pink tells why …
	Leonard Susskind: My friend Richard Feynman As a longtime fan of Feynman I loved this perspective on the man that could explain complex things in laymans terms --- as I wrote about here: *Surely, you must be joking*

My favorite way to consume TED talks is on my iPad. I travel a lot and as such I have a lot of time to catch up on TED talks.

Two Little Known Secrets

1. Offline - TED Talks can be “Saved for Offline Viewing”

2. Podcasts - iTunes lets you save them offline

If you have never heard a TED Talk you owe it to yourself to take a look and a listen. You will not be disappointed.

What are your favorite TED Talks?

What’s your favorite TED Talk? Drop a comment here or reply via any of the social media channels.

Up and Running - Get on over to The Plateau Runner

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:50:14 PST

There is a new place to check your gait and get your gear.

If you are a runner, or thinking of becoming a runner, or know someone who is a runner you should make a trek over to Saffron in Sammamish.

We have a new business in town. I hope you all find the time to swing by and see what they are up to.

It’s The Plateau Runner - Sammamish’s newest business

While you are at Saffron --- there are a few other great local businesses to check out. My personal favorite is Pacific Bicycle. I buy all my bikes here. If you are a tri-athlete you might want to make a few trips back and forth between Pacific Bicycle and The Plateau Runner.

A few local businesses you should check out. Click on their logo to go to their web site or facebook page. We’ve got Yo Plateau, Moore’s Music, Game Stop and our own version of local dining at Sammamish Café and Ristorante Simone.

Plateau Runner
Pacific Bicycle
Yo Plateau
Game Stop
Sammamish Cafe
Ristorante Simone

Community Matters

I like to see local businesses open and I encourage everyone reading this to make the time to Support Your Local Businesses. Whether you live in or near Sammamish or wherever you live … take the time to Invest in YOUR Community. These local businesses did … make sure they know you appreciate their commitment to the community. Your neighbors may own it, your kids may work there and they play a vital role in keeping our communities vibrant, growing and great places to live.

When Can I see you again?

I hope to see you our running with gear your picked up at The Plateau Runner. Or riding your road or mountain bike you picked up at Pacific Bicycle or perhaps relaxing after a run or a ride at Yo Plateau.

Who’s Next?

If you don’t happen to live here in the Seattle area … my offer is always open to get out on a ride with me. If you are visiting the area … ping me. I have taken at least 20 people on mtn bike rides, wake surf sessions and Stand Up Paddle (SUP)board sessions. Are you next?

Four Things I wish I knew when I was a Teenager

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 09:55:17 PST

Yesterday I was able to give back by speaking to Pam Hoelzle’s class at Northwest University about things I know and what I have learned in the 20+ years I have been in the business world.

After thinking about it for a while I came up with Four Things I wish I had known when I was a teenager or young adult looking to make a difference, to make a career, to make a life.

Here are Four Things I Wish I Knew When I was Your Age:

1. Be Fearless --- You are young. Try lots of things, fail a few times ... you will learn a LOT!

2. You don’t have to do it alone - there are a lot of people that have skills and expertise in areas you don't. That's OK.

3. You don't have to know everything - Again, there are a lot of people that know things you don't know & shouldn’t have to know. Create Partnerships to expand your knowledge base.

4. Volunteer --- for anything. The people you will meet, the good you will do, the things you will learn will last a lifetime.

There you have it. I’m sure you have other suggestions and tips for things you wish you knew when you were a teenager. Please share them here or drop me a note at one of my contact points below. If there is a sizable response I will aggregate them and re-post.

What about you?

What did you wish you knew when you were a teenager or young adult?

Drop a note in the comments here or at any of my contact coordinates below. I’d like to hear your thoughts.

Thank You Pam ---

I want to thank Pam for inviting to speak and helping me put my thoughts into a perspective that would resonate with her students. If you have not met Pam – she is a great resource and a wealth of information. She is willing to share what she knows and she has been an invaluable sounding board for me.

You can reach Pam here Twitter, Hope24Seven and her business Seattle Business Consulting.

==================

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Partners Make The World Go Round

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 10:27:50 PST

This morning on CRN it was mentioned that Apple is courting Microsoft partners. Specifically in the mobility space, but more generally the article alludes to the need for qualified Microsoft Exchange and SharePoint professionals that can span the Microsoft and Apple gaps.

Smart Move

This is a Smart Move. Why? Because, Partners Make The World Go Round. Partners have three things that Microsoft and Apple traditionally cannot provide.

Feet on the Street
Subject matter Expertise
The ability to walk in and speak with the CxO’s

For Microsoft --- Partners are part of their DNA. I'm glad to see Apple is getting on that bandwagon too. I think they are looking at it differently -- mainly because that's what Apple does and also because Apple has a different go to market model.

I think the winners in this case are the CUSTOMERS. Sure, the vendors (MSFT and AAPL, et al) will win too, but as we enter this "Consumerization of IT" society the end users (and Line of Business managers in this case) will determine how, who, when, what and where technologies / solutions will be selected and deployed.

What do you think?

Are Partners the Secret Sauce?
Will Apple re-invent the partner model?
Are Consumers / End Users really in charge?

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

The Sun Never Sets on the SharePoint Empire

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 10:40:06 PDT

This is a saying that was adapted from something that used to be said about the British Empire and the Spanish Empire. Today it can be applied to the SharePoint Empire.

There are at least two ways to look at this. One … eventually the sun will set on the SharePoint Empire. The other is … The Sun Shone for many, many years on these far flung Empires. I predict the latter will be the case for The SharePoint Empire.

For a few reasons why I think this will be the case see these:

SharePoint Saturday - The Secret Sauce

SharePoint Saturday events are just one example of how the Sun Never Sets on the SharePoint Empire.

The tireless work of the organizers at the various SharePoint Saturday events that happen all over the world is a testament to the pent up demand for Everything SharePoint related.

Three SharePoint Buckets

I say there are three primary categories of SharePoint Experience Needs. They are simple and a little all encompassing, but they fit.

IT Professionals
Developers
Line of Business

In the past, many of the events focused on the first two buckets almost exclusively. Now, there are entire events dedicated just to the Business Side of SharePoint.

Business Happens

Focusing on the Business Aspects of SharePoint is the right way to go.

Don’t get me wrong … we need Developers and IT Pros to understand how to create web parts, wire web parts together and do the very challenging (and creative) task of developing the next generation of SharePoint Solutions. We also need IT Pros that know how to stand up and administer servers (and services) to insure users are able to access the information that reside on SharePoint Servers and other repositories where SharePoint surfaces data.

Where Will You Get Your SharePoint On?

Check the SharePoint Saturday site (link) often for an event in your region. Since this is run entirely by volunteers events pop up all over the place. See the 50+ events on the list of Past Events. Check often for an event popping up in your region. Better yet … Create your own SharePoint Saturday event. There is a lot of pent up demand for All Things SharePoint. If you don’t know where to start --- look to your local SharePoint Users Group (SPUG) or reach out to the local Microsoft office or connect with the SharePoint Saturday leaders and event organizers in other regions.

A Clan of Raving Fans – See my post with the same title here

Kudos to Michael Lotter (@michaellotter) for creating the SharePoint Saturday organization. Michael is just a regular guy – with apparently too much time on his hands – so he did what every passionate SharePoint enthusiast would do … He created SharePoint Saturday.

The Sun Never Sets on the SharePoint Empire

I’m convinced that The Sun Never Sets on the SharePoint Empire and it won’t set for a long time. Why? It’s because of the Community. Not just the one that has been created by Michael Lotter. There are numerous SharePoint User Groups (SPUG’s) and there are new events being kicked off every week for IT Pros, Developers and lately for the Line of Business users. It’s the Community that keeps it vibrant, growing and sharing.

What do you think?

Have you been to a SharePoint event?
Will you go to a SharePoint event in 2012?
Will the Sun Ever Set on the SharePoint Empire?

Image Credits: SharePoint Saturday, Michael Lotter, Guillaume Dargaud

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Are you in it to Win it or Watch it?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 08:09:51 PDT

Seth Godin posted another seminal article that got me thinking.

Are you in it to Win it or Watch it?

Are most people more comfortable just watching and commentating? (arm chair quarterbacks)

-or-

Are more people interested in putting in the time and effort it takes to win?

The post was called Form and function and the point was that the old way of thinking has given way to a new way of thinking and that quite often the players from the old way are NOT the players in the new way.

The key point to explore was:

When a change in form comes to your industry, the first thing to discover is how it will change the function.

Fortunately there are a lot of people all over the planet will put in the time and effort to make it happen. They will at least try to win it. Sure, there will be failures along the way. But to me … I think those those that try (whether they win or not) will be more happy than those that comment from the sidelines.

Are you in it to Win it or Watch it?

What do you think?

Do you take an active approach to discovering new approaches?
Does your company?
In your experience, what happens to people and companies that take to the sidelines to commentate?

image credit: Fantasy Trophies, Public domain image pictures

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

What role should SharePoint play in a comprehensive ECM strategy?

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 15:39:10 PDT

The role of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is well established. Smart companies realize they need to manage their critical assets – both paper based and those that are born digital – to control costs, improve profitability and to maintain compliance efforts.

The role of SharePoint in the enterprise is also well established. With 100+ million seats, 50,000+ server licenses sold and over $1 billion in sales, the sheer size and scope of SharePoint coverage is impressive.

However, size and coverage does NOT mean that SharePoint is deployed everywhere. In fact, Microsoft’s greatest boon is also their greatest risk. Microsoft and the entire SharePoint partner community needs to make sure those seats are deployed.

Therein lies the rub. Deployment is hard. Deployment takes work. Deployment takes Partners. The Microsoft sales teams are incented to renew enterprise agreements. Partners are lining up to fill the gaps in the SharePoint platform and help them achieve their goals. Of course, this cannot happen without customers.

Customers need to recognize the need for a comprehensive ECM strategy and allocate resources to deploy solutions.

Does this mean that SharePoint can be written off as
part of a Comprehensive ECM Strategy?

Not a chance. The upside for Microsoft is that they have a foot in the door. Every deployment of Windows Server has the option to turn on SharePoint Foundation Services.

How does SharePoint fit in a Comprehensive ECM Strategy?

One Word - Partners

It is up to the Microsoft partner ecosystem to help customers understand the possibilities. And the possibilities are endless.

Microsoft has continued to develop SharePoint and with version 4 (SharePoint 2010) they have struck upon gold by building SharePoint as a Platform. As a platform play it allows Partners (and Corporate IT development teams) to extend and enhance SharePoint to create solutions that exactly meet their needs.

What’s next for SharePoint?

Microsoft has not completely exhausted the Enterprise space, but the next step for SharePoint is to further penetrate the Small Medium Business (SMB) space. As the price point continues to be lowered --- especially with the release of SharePoint Online (currently part of the Office 365 offerings) Microsoft will be able to blanket all markets at all price points.

The role of SharePoint as a critical component of a comprehensive ECM strategy is set. All markets will have a “flavor” or SharePoint to serve their needs. Adoption will continue. Partners will continue to fill gaps. Customers will smile.

What’s next for the Legacy ECM vendors?

The traditional ECM vendors will be required to provide integration to SharePoint environments. Over the past few years it has become increasingly clear that the traditional Big Three ECM companies (IBM – FileNet, EMC – Documentum and Open Text) are spending more time talking about how they work WITH SharePoint instead of talking how they are BETTER than SharePoint.

Does SharePoint do everything out of the box?

No. The bigger question is … Should it?

In my opinion, No! This is where the Microsoft partner ecosystem comes in. Partners can innovate faster and fill gaps that Microsoft will likely never fill.

For example, Document Scanning and Storage — what I refer to as Pillars 1 and 4 of an ECM system, will likely never be filled. Not because Microsoft can’t do these, but because they don’t need to. Microsoft strengths is to leverage the skills partners bring to the table.

When this happens … Microsoft wins. More importantly, the customer wins.

Why will SharePoint continue to grow in the ECM space?

The main reason is because Microsoft has developed SharePoint as a platform. Which allows for a Superior Price Point, Better Distribution, Unlimited Extensibility and for the continued Growth & Development of the best Partner Ecosystem on the planet.

What do you think?

Does SharePoint play a critical role in your ECM plans?
Is SharePoint part of your Comprehensive ECM strategy?
Do you see partners as the secret sauce to continued SharePoint expansion and adoption?

Want More? See the following links and tell me what you think.

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Awareness, Adoption, Revenue

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 09:56:57 PDT

Whether you have a great idea for a new product or a better way to deliver a service you need to let people know you (and it) exist.

It doesn’t matter whether you want to sell a product to a big or small company. It doesn’t matter if you have a new and improved service to help people do more (or less) of whatever it is they are doing. What matters is that they need to hear about it. They need to know you and it exist.

You’ve got to start somewhere. That somewhere is what I call the Awareness stage. Once they are aware of what you have to offer you need to get them to consider if it’s right for their needs (The Evaluation Phase) so that you can get to the Adoption stage. Assuming this phase goes well you will be on your way to the Revenue Phase.

Pretty Simple, Right?

The goal is to compress this cycle. However, each step must be covered. It is important to consider each step and to be prepared to work with those that want to linger (because they aren’t ready or aren’t convinced) to move from Awareness to Adoption to Revenue. Your goal is to help them.

A few things to think about:

Are there any cases where you can skip Awareness?
Are there some products or services that EVERYONE just knows about and needs?
What tips do you have to compress the A-A-R cycle?

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Ambassadors of SharePoint

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Shuey) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 07:07:42 PDT

In case you haven’t heard … SharePoint is a Community.

The best thing I like about working with SharePoint is without a doubt the community of people that make it so fun, enlightening, engaging and yes entertaining. If it wasn’t fun --- why would we do it, right?

There are a lot of people I see at the various SharePoint events on a regular basis. Most of them spend their days immersed in the intricacies and nuances of SharePoint. However, there are a few people that spend their days on other technologies and in other places. Yet, they choose to spend their time and energy with the SharePoint community. I call them ambassadors. They bring an outside perspective – a different way to think about the people and technology that SharePoint touches.

We Need More Julie’s

We need more people like Julie. In case you don’t know Julie Kremer she is a former Microsoft employee (just like me) and she is passionate about technology and all the things technology can bring us (again, just like me).

Julie is the consummate connector. She knows a lot of people. She knows a lot of stuff (really good stuff). And she is willing to share it. She makes connections with others. She even talks about cross product collaboration and technology development ideas (GASP!).

Embrace Them

If you find an ambassador in your community Embrace Them. They, like everyone else, have choices. They have chosen to work with your community and should be allowed and encouraged to move freely amongst the members.

Represent

Who are your favorite ambassadors to the the SharePoint Community?
Are you an ambassador to other communities?
What have been the best things you’ve learned from being one or working with ambassadors?

About The Author:
I have spent the last 20 years working in various aspects of the ECM industry. I am currently with Kodak as a Director of Business Development. In my past I have spent time at Kofax, Microsoft, FileNet, K2, and at Captaris (which was acquired by Open Text). Prior to that I was a Unix VAR running my own company. Follow me on Twitter, check my blog, send email or find me on Facebook or LinkedIn.

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