Making Technology Work for you instead of you working for IT

The last couple of years I have been taking in part in a class at the Chemeketa Small Business Development Center on Small Business Management.  One of the recurring themes that runs through all the classes and exercises is spending more time working on the business than working in the business.  Much of the philosophy for the class comes from Michael Gerber’s excellent book, The E-Myth Revisited.  For me this means that I need to develop systems and process that allow me to deliver better services to my clients.  With this thought in mind, one of the most valuable tools we are using in the office is a Microsoft solution called Windows SharePoint Services (WSS).

 Windows SharePoint Services is a document manage system to track and index the documents that we know that we are going to need to reference in the future.   This little gem allows us to create and upload documents into it and then find them again via a Google like search.  How would you like to be able to find any document you need again just by performing a search like you do on the Internet.

With WSS you have the ability to categorize files and information like you would on a file server ( or not) but with the some added benefits.  WSS is a web based application which allows you to access all data via a web browser as well as the familiar windows explorer or even Microsoft Outlook.  You can even make the data available securely over the Internet if that is a requirement without any special connections or security software.  Other benefits include document version tracking and workflow tracking.  Workflow provides a mechanism for pre-defined actions to be taken on documents as they are uploaded or changed.  One example might be that after I fill out my expense report in a WSS form, the workflow would notify my supervisor that a new expense report has been added and is waiting approval.  Upon approval a notification could be sent back to me.

WSS includes features such as a company calendar, great for tracking vacations and company events, contacts database which we use for tracking vendors, customers or even marketing databases.  There is even a Web links feature to collect import Internet Links for sharing among WSS users.   Examples of how WSS can be deployed and configured include:

• A document collaboration solutions useful for team working on a RFP
•  
  Project Management solution
• Meeting or Event Management
• Develop your own customer solution to meet internal company needs.

Windows SharePoint Services and its big brother, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) are the type of tools that can have bottom line impact on your business.  The ability to easily search for your own information just like you do on the Internet is huge.  With a little vision and understanding, WSS and MOSS can be configured and designed to support your business processes thus making your business more profitable and putting you in control of your data and business.  More information on these tools is available at http://www.microsoft.com/sharepoint.