SharePoint Tip of the Month

October 2010: Using SharePoint as a Project Management Tool

SharePoint has matured to the point that many application suites are now being developed and deployed on the SharePoint platform. Examples of such applications include Learning Management Systems, Performance Management Systems and Project Management Suites.

In this Tip of The Month, we look at using SharePoint as a Project Management tool – one of the top uses of SharePoint.

At one end of the project management spectrum is the standard out-of-the-box SharePoint Project Management template which allows for the capture of project tasks, management of issues and a Gantt chart view. Now, in the 2010 version, task dependencies can be captured and shown in the Gantt chart view as well. This template can be enhanced by adding risks and many additional views.

On the other end of the project management spectrum, is Microsoft's Project Server platform which integrates with SharePoint and has all the advanced tools for sophisticated and complex project management. With the built-in integration of Microsoft Project, project members can update their MS Project and synchronize with Project Server. The team members can be anywhere in the world, and the project manager can see a view of the status of all of the projects within the portfolio and drill down into individual projects.

In the middle of the project management spectrum are several third-party add-on products for SharePoint that offer much of the same functionality of Project Server without the need for the extra server component. Some of the key features of these products are:

• Portfolio View:
  This allows for a consolidated as well as rolled up view of all projects within a portfolio. Summary views show the project health, project costs and work schedule. You can then drill down into the specifics of each project. Also within the portfolio view, you can see a consolidated list of all issues, risks and tasks.
• Project Request Workflow
  This includes a workflow that allows for users to enter requests for projects which are then evaluated against certain criteria. Once a project is accepted, the workflow kicks off to automatically initiate the project workspace.
• Resource Management
  Resource loading and the ability to see the spread of the work across projects is very powerful. Some of the more sophisticated project management solutions provide for the easy reallocation of work across the team via a Silverlight interactive view.
• Consolidate view of tasks
  When a user logs in they can see a list of all tasks, issues and risks that have been assigned to them across all projects.
• Reporting
  Reporting is one of the more powerful functions of these packages as several use SQL Server Reporting Services and come with many prebuilt reports. Dashboards, KPIs and standard reports are included in the initial setup and can be readily enhanced.
• Time sheet management
  Some of the packages include a fully integrated time sheet module that allows users to enter their time against projects, issues and tasks. Of course, this adds additional complexity; however, some organizations have seen the need for this feature and are planning to implement it so that they can have consistency in reporting and work allocation.
• Multiple project templates
  Some of the packages offer additional project templates other than the standard waterfall project management template. One vendor offers Agile and Service-oriented templates.
• Hosted versus On-Premise
  As with many packages today, some of the vendors offer a hosted model which allows an organization to get started on a pilot and determine how best to use the system before they make a full commitment. Also, the hosted model can be great for one time projects such as systems integrations, business acquisition integrations and so forth.

The figure below provides a comparison of different vendor’s functionality against specific criteria.

Currently we have a customer managing more than 200 projects a year that is having difficulty keeping track of who is doing what and evaluating the impact of a missed schedule. They have elected to change their current processes in order to leverage the capabilities of one of these solutions and enable better control of project schedules and improved time to market for their products.

If your organization is considering using SharePoint as a platform for project management but is not satisfied with the out-of-the-box functionality, we can help you assess the alternatives based on your business needs.

This month’s tip contributed By Hank Edwards, Abel Solutions Senior SharePoint Consultant.