We have often been asked about how best to introduce knowledge management capabilities into Microsoft-centric organizations. As mentioned in the lead article, our recommendation is to begin with a focused initiative built upon a technology that can scale with growing user needs. Experience has shown us that SharePoint Portal Server is an excellent choice for those organizations that are already leveraging other Microsoft technologies. SharePoint’s “out of the box” functionality provides maximum results balanced against modest investment. There are several key considerations to make when deploying SharePoint. Our engagements have typically involved the following four components.

Hardware

It is important to note that SharePoint is server based. It needs to be installed on a computer running Windows 2000 Server. We recommend that no other server software (i.e. SQL Server or Exchange) exist on the same computer. Therefore, organizations are typically faced with the decision to purchase a new computer or allocate an existing server exclusively to KM. We work with our customers make the best decision around hardware selection and work with their IT group to integrate it into their networked environment.

Taxonomy

Organizing corporate documents is a challenge that many companies face. Proposals and specifications tend to get buried on a network drive or exist (in various versions) on several personal drives. SharePoint offers web-based centrally located document management, allowing document searches as well as versioning. Although these functions exist within the product core, they are best utilized when proper effort has been placed organizing and classifying the documents. We recommend taxonomy templates based on our past experiences and analysis of the breadth of documents. We also determine if there are other document characteristics that can be stored to facilitate sharing.

Deployment

The installation of SharePoint server software is wizard-based and very user friendly. The first SharePoint dashboard can be created in a production environment in about a day. Connection to the dashboard is browser based. Access to the SharePoint portal requires the user to have a client license (described as a CAL). Organizations typically purchase one seat license per user (the cost is approximately $72 per seat). SharePoint utilizes basic Windows Authentication so it recognizes the user and can apply any security to content within the dashboard. We support our customers through the process of creating an initial dashboard, applying their document taxonomies and establishing a base level of stored data. We also recommend processes to help foster continued sharing.