SP Governance Resource Links

Links/Resources

Governance Resource Center for SharePoint 2007: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb507202.aspx

SP Governance article: http://www.informit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=1222425

DOD 5015.2 Resource Kit: http://www.microsoft.com/sharepoint/capabilities/ecm/dod5015.mspx

CodePlex SharePoint Governance and Manageability site, a workspace designed for governance and manageability samples and tools designed to help IT professionals.

• Microsoft SAT SharePoint Cross-Site Configurator 1.0. For standardization and consistency of master pages, auditing, content types, etc.
• Microsoft IT Site Delete Capture 1.0. Captures sites that are deleted by end users and backs them up to disk – like a site recycle bin, available only to administrators. Works with Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) 3.0 and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.
• MSIT Site Life Cycle Management 1.0. Notify, backup, and then delete unused sites.
• MSIT Usage Reporting Framework 2.0. Simple reporting framework to gather usage and storage metrics.
• Toolbox.net
• TweakSP central admin extensions. TweakSP extends SharePoint’s Central Administration, providing additional functionality.

Note that more may be added to this post over time.

SharePoint Governance

I am likely to write several blogs on this topic, bear with me.  The reason is simple, I am engaged in this topic daily.  Now on to some thoughts.

I recently read an article by Eric Landry which sparked some thought on this topic.  Eric does a great job outlining some critical factors in “achieving and sustaining” a SharePoint environment.

However, I wonder how many senior executives will change THEIR habits and actively sit on a steering committee.  How many will engage with and support subordinates tasked with developing the corporate governance model?  Remain engaged to support and enforce the governance model?  And how many will stick with the SharePoint implementation through arguments and dissenters who don’t want to change or are afraid of change?

If the answer is anything other than “every one of them” your SharePoint success will be limited at best.

I wonder how many of Mr. Landry’s readers can reply with that answer to my questions.  My cynical side cries out ‘not many’, but my pure-of-heart SharePoint side prays for answers of ‘most’.  I want SharePoint to succeed.  I have seen many technologies and initiatives go by the wayside not because they had faults beyond their benefits, but because ‘corporate America’ refused to engage fully.

Executives have busy schedules.  Executives are paid big bucks for their decisions.  Executives are not known for their willingness to change their own behavior.  Nor are they generally open to embrace something completely that they aren’t fully certain will result in success.  Selling executives on SharePoint, teaching SharePoint to executives, and painting a picture that allows executives to believe in SharePoint is what is needed.  Exactly how that is done in your environment I can’t say, but I thank Eric Landry for supplying us with one excellent weapon to use in this battle.