In any-sized organization that actively uses SharePoint, a SharePoint Governance Plan is necessary. Unfortunately, the prospect of putting together the Governance Plan is often daunting and is easily neglected. But crafting a SharePoint Governance Plan doesn’t have to be intimidating, and it doesn’t have to be complicated.
This blog is part one of a series of posts covering the wonderful topic of SharePoint governance! I know, I know... I can see your eyes glazing over and your brain disconnecting. But let me tell you, this governance thing is not a big scary monster, and the satisfaction of having a governance plan is akin to
finally getting around to cleaning the garage, or knocking out that to-do list. Once it's done, you'll be glad you took the time to do it, and ultimately it'll be
less work for you in the long term.
SharePoint is a very powerful tool, and can be used in so many different ways, it’s difficult to answer the question “What does SharePoint do?” because it does so many things.
I work with multiple organizations who all use different versions of SharePoint in very different ways. In some instances, companies use SharePoint almost exclusively for task assignment and management. In other companies, SharePoint is used for a shared document storage hub. In other companies, SharePoint is a central place for employees to access HR documentation and submit forms online. No matter how your organization uses SharePoint, if there are more than three people with access to it, you should have a Governance Plan.Putting together a SharePoint Governance Plan can be accomplished in a few simple steps (we’ll cover these in more detail in the next few blog posts):
- Select a Governance Committee: This series will help you determine who should be on the team that decides the rules and guidelines for SharePoint. Once the team members have been chosen they can meet and make the necessary decisions for the next step.
- Determine the purpose and vision for SharePoint your organization: Once you have decided who will be on the Governance Committee, the most important thing to establish is the vision for SharePoint within the organization. This statement should be a simple sentence or paragraph that sums up SharePoint’s purpose, and all other rules and guidelines will be subject to this vision.
- Establish roles for SharePoint maintenance and administration: Some of these are listed in this blog series, but you can add or remove roles as necessary for your company's specific needs.
- Determine simple guidelines for the end user: This establishes what a user can or cant do on SharePoint and gives them a clear communication path for requesting access or features.
- Publish the SharePoint Governance Plan: This is the final step, which puts makes the plan accessible to the end user to view in a clear and concise manner.
See? Simple! I'll walk you through the entire process. Best of all, you don't have to do this alone. Bit-Wizards has a team of Office365 specialists (I'm the SharePoint guy) that are here to help, and would
love to help you make the best use of your SharePoint environment. Get in touch!