Your Feedback on Seamless Teamwork

So I wrote the book ... and you've now read it. What did you think? I'd love to get your feedback below ... please leave a comment.

Comments

[Roger (posted by Michael)]

By email, Roger writes: "I would like to thank you for writing such a good book, frankly it should be a text book for Universities. I also want to thank for not taking the history of SharePoint blah blah… approach that I see in a lot of these books about SharePoint. You broke it down to what it is, a tool, and how to use it. Your insight into project management was also an added bonus."

[Mike Mitchell (posted by Michael)]

From Mike Mitchell on Amazon:

"I thought this book was great! It is very readable and user friendly, and lays out the details of setting up a project. Very impressed, and I'm currently running a project based on the methods in the book. It could use a little more in certain area's but the two online chapters go more into that and the author has also been extremely helpful."

Link: http://www.amazon.com/review/R27ZB9F0J6CEZ5/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

[Rolf Kremer (posted by Michael)]

From Rolf Kremer:

"So, the book describes mainly the information management and team coordination of a project. Most topics are described step by step and with many screenshots. The speech is generally understandable and easy to read. Besides reading the book from first page until last page, you can use the book as a reference, if you have questions about a specific topic. If you look for a book about Sharepoint for beginners I can recommended it."

Link: http://rkremer.wordpress.com/2009/04/26/book-review-seamless-teamwork/

[Ivor Davies]

Michael - An excellent book from a non-technical perspective! It is especially usefull for project managers and team members.

I do have a technical question to put out there - "Is is possible to create a templated solution for SharePoint (one master site that contains the two subsites) that can be deployed automatically when a user selects that specific template or better still if the template is part of the Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 (MOPS) environment?

I am really interested in finding this out...

Thank You.

Ivor

[Tony Byrne of CMS Watch (posted by Michael)]

From Tony Byrne of CMS Watch (by email, and posted with permission):

"Michael Sampson's Seamless Teamwork is a very practical guide for the project manager or collaboration leader looking to employ SharePoint 2007.  The book takes a unique, "outside-in" approach that doesn't just go through SharePoint functionality feature by feature, but instead shows you how to use the platform from the perspective of key operational needs, like joint document editing and idea vetting. Before you settle on SharePoint as a teamwork platform, you should do your research, but if you decide to go with SharePoint, be sure to pick up a copy of this handy book."

[Mark Orange, Intergen New Zealand (posted by Michael)]

From Mark Orange at Intergen New Zealand, by email (and with permission given to post here):

"I think you've nailed it with the whole approach to the book, it really puts the use of SharePoint as a tool in context. What, when and why rather than just a how! You'd probably struggle if that was the only SharePoint book you had and/or you hadn't done any training, but that is not the point of this book. If anything at times there is too much prescriptive HOW where there could be a little more general discussion and options, but depending on the reader that may or may not matter.

Key thing is that SharePoint is a tool that business need to learn to use, not IT departments and this book is the first I've seen to answer that need."

[Michael Gannotti (posted by Michael)]

Michael Gannotti from Microsoft writes: "I have just finished reading a book that quite frankly I wish we gave out en-mass to all customers who purchased SharePoint. The book, “Seamless Teamwork – Using Microsoft SharePoint Technologies to Collaborate, Innovate, and Drive Business in New Ways,” is just the prescription for those looking for a practical business use focused, eminently practical approach to using SharePoint to help you and your team get your jobs done."

Cool!

Read more at http://sharepoint.microsoft.com/blogs/mikeg/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?List=1b3bbb8f-4b5a-4f72-94c4-94cb80bc3866&ID=1489

[Chris Brogan (posted by Michael)]

Chris Brogan posted the first video review of Seamless Teamwork:

"Here’s a book review of my friend Michael Sampson’s book about Microsoft Sharepoint called Seamless Teamwork. If you want to skip the video, my answer was: if you’ve gotta do something with SharePoint, this is the book for you. Lots of extras beyond the software install to explore."

See the video at http://www.chrisbrogan.com/video-book-review-seamless-teamwork/

[Isaac Garcia (posted by Michael)]

Isaac Garcia from Central Desktop writes:

"Michael's emphasis on team collaboration shines through in his recent book titled, "Seamless Teamwork: Using Microsoft SharePoint Technologies to Collaborate, Innovate, and Drive Business in New Ways." From personal conversations, I knew that Michael was working on this book and I've been anticipating it for some time - in spite of its emphasis on a competitive product to my Company. Over the holidays, while in the local Southern California mountains with my family - in between snowmans with the children and whisky shots with the adults, I devoured the book - below is my analysis and review.

[Disclosure: I'm shamelessly and proudly biased in writing this review. Not only is Michael Sampson a friend - but I own and operate a collaboration software company (Central Desktop) that markets itself as a SharePoint Alternative.]

To begin with, this is a must-read book for anyone seeking how-to advice, clear direction and best practices for implementing a team-based or project-based collaboration solution within an enterprise or organization. This is a fantastic book for project-leads who have struggled with motivating their team and creating a clearly defined path to successful seamless teamwork."

For an extensive set of comments, see http://cdblog.centraldesktop.com/2009/01/seamless-teamwork-using-sharepoint.html

[Sean Earp (posted by Michael)]

As a review on Amazon.com, Sean writes:

"This book is everything that I hoped SharePoint for Project Management: How to Create a Project Management Information System (PMIS) with SharePoint would be. While "SharePoint for Project Management" is rather simplistic and aimed at someone who has never used SharePoint before, Seamless Teamwork really has some great ideas on how to use SharePoint to collaborate on projects. Even while going deep into the capabilities of SharePoint, the book and recommendations are very readable and easy to follow. Beyond even the amazing capabilities of SharePoint, the author discusses considerations for virtual teams, working offline, and how to convince teams to work on SharePoint instead of falling back on e-mail. I have been using SharePoint heavily for the last year and still got some great ideas on ways I could use SharePoint to better manage ongoing projects. This book is HIGHLY recommended for anyone that uses SharePoint to collaborate on projects."

Link: http://www.amazon.com/review/RG8XGRMWAI0YN/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

[Matt Moore (posted by Michael)]

Matt writes, "A longer review may appear elsewhere but for now, let me say it's pretty nifty and I've already recommended it to some people who are using Sharepoint for team collaboration. If you're new to managing virtual teams but not using Sharepoint then it's still worth a look."

He has a couple of points of criticism, too.

Link: http://engineerswithoutfears.blogspot.com/2008/12/seamless-teamwork.html

[Lynn Warneke]

As many reviewers and SharePoint bloggers have already noted, Michael Sampson has taken a rather novel approach with Seamless Teamwork, his new book from Microsoft Press on using SharePoint technologies "to collaborate, innovate and drive business in new ways". Having constructed a fictional 'Project Delta', undertaken by team members in different companies, cities and time zones, Michael then seeks to contextualise, explicate and maybe even evangelise SharePoint firmly within this 'real world' narrative. Along the way he includes plenty of the 'how', illustrated with screen shots, but what differentiates this book is an equal focus on the 'why', the 'who' and the 'when'. Thus step-by-step instructions on using Wiki pages rub shoulders with "The Rules on Brainstorming"; and creating a blog post is described hand in hand with a section on "Winning Trust Through Blogging".

I found the chapter on "Analyzing the Options" particularly useful. For example, those struggling with determining an appropriate approach to structuring files stored in SharePoint libraries should find the section "Organize Documents by Metadata or Folders" worth the price of purchase alone. I've devoted many hours to analysing options and 'best practice' on this subject for clients, exploring the pros and cons of folders and properties in SharePoint, and developing workable recommendations and guidelines, so have first-hand experience of how businesses can struggle to make sense of just this one aspect of SharePoint. Michael's clear and succinct overview addresses a very real need, and is enhanced with simple examples that are easily grasped by business users, no matter how rudimentary or even nonexistent their understanding of metadata. The penultimate chapter, "Concluding the Project", also contains useful advice which, in my experience, has rarely been considered to date by companies implementing SharePoint, let alone implemented successfully. As a result, business benefit from project work may not be fully realised.

Well structured, clearly written and obviously the product of much in-depth research and analysis, this book represents Michael's view of effective use of SharePoint for team work and, to a lesser extent, his thinking on characteristics of successful projects, such as "Creating a Shared Vision". Some organisations or SharePoint experts may disagree with some of the opinions and recommendations - for example, provisioning three related SharePoint sites for every project, or creating linked Announcements from the Team Site home page to Wiki pages where the bulk of the team information is captured and worked up. However, it is always clear why Michael recommends the approaches that he does. As this book presents "a set of possibilities for doing your work with others in better and better ways", no doubt he anticipates that organisations will - indeed, should - use the book as a foundation for exploring ways of working effectively with SharePoint that are best suited to their own cultures and practices. His advice above all aims to help make use of SharePoint for team collaboration a more "natural approach to take". In other words, seamless.

[Thomas Duff (posted by Michael)]

Thomas writes, " ... in terms of framing the use of a software package within the context of a real world scenario, few have done it this well .... If you're ramping up a SharePoint environment in your organization and need material to help the business get a handle on why they need yet another piece of technology, Seamless Teamwork should be required reading. The business users will thank you because they'll "get it" when it comes to using SharePoint, and the IT area will thank you because they won't have to spend as much time "selling" the business benefits."

Link: http://www.duffbert.com/duffbert/blog.nsf/d6plinks/TADF-7MHQCD

[Stu Downes (posted by Michael)]

Stu writes, "I found the book an easy read and could relate the advice and recommendations to my every day project work. I think everyone will learn something from the book, I certainly did. Even better is the price, its about the cost of let me think, minutes worth of consulting, yet give this to key evangelists within the business and rewards will be great. This is especially true for most organisations where the business leaders aren’t savvy enough to make best use of the IT they are provided. If you are running a SharePoint implementation and would like better adoption then give this book to key people, read its message and use the techniques in your self help implementation.

It makes me realise that as IT organisations we miss a trick after we’ve delivered a project - but actually makes me think that vendors should all offer works such as this to help business users gain from their solutions. I’m sure it will do the rounds in for my local readers."

Link: http://www.sdownes.co.uk/2008/12/16/seamless-teamwork/

[James Robertson (posted by Michael)]

James writes, "Team-based collaboration is now a key part of project delivery in many organisations. Despite this, success can be hit-and-miss, with some teams prospering and others not.

Tools such as SharePoint are spreading rapidly through organisations. While these can bring significant new capabilities, they are not simple tools, and can often be daunting for project teams. Teams may also not have the necessary people and planning skills to fully benefit from collaborative approaches.

This book addresses both these issues in a unique way."

Link: http://www.steptwo.com.au/columntwo/book-review-seamless-teamwork/

[Mark Miller (posted by Michael)]

Mark writes, " ... what is usually missing in function set instruction is the context for the End User and Information Worker… not "how" would I use this thing called SharePoint but "why" would I use it, what can it do for me? I think Seamless Teamwork is a good step towards filling that gap."

Link: http://www.endusersharepoint.com/?p=1038

[Oscar Berg]

I find "Seamless Teamwork" to be very well written, easy to follow and overall a very usable introduction to anyone who is using SharePoint out of the box and wants to set up SharePoint sites for projects, team collaboration and meetings. It helps you navigate the complex environment of SharePoint, to find the essential features and how to set up SharePoint sites for team collaboration.

In fact, the book would have been very helpful for me when I first started using SharePoint for the purpose of team collaboration. Now I can simply recommend colleagues and others who seek my help for setting up SharePoint for project and team collaboration to buy and read "Seamless Teamwork" instead of consulting me. ;-)

The book also does a good job at explaining how to use new tools and technologies such as wikis, blogs and RSS. In this way, it also serves as a good introduction to these tools and technologies for those who are not familiar with them or don't yet understand the business value of a technology such as RSS.

Furthermore, the book touches on some of the things that are really essential for making collaboration work, such as creating a shared vision. These kind of "collaboration essentials" are well integrated with the more practical hands-on instructions throughout the book.

From a personal point of view, it would have been great if the book also had touched upon situations where team members might not be using computers with Office 2007 installed, when accessing SharePoint from outside the corporate firewalls or when you need to collaborate with partners and customers.

To sum up – I find "Seamless Teamwork" to be a very valuable resource that I would (and do) recommend to anyone who is interested in how SharePoint can be used for team collaboration.

[Nicholas Bate (posted by Michael)]

Nicholas writes, "And that's where Michael's excellent new book comes in: Seamless Teamwork. Michael can write, he can structure, he can explain and he has brilliant examples. Read this book and you'll understand how you can use a technology to get better creativity and teamwork. A great book, sorely needed by many of us who think shared calendars and e-mail are as good as it gets."

See more at: http://nicholasbate.typepad.com/nicholas_bate/2008/12/better-teamwork.html

[James Dellow (posted by Michael)]

James posted an extensive review of the book (thanks James!), writing:

"I'm really excited about this book - not because I'm using SharePoint to collaborate right now, but because I like the way Michael uses a story and weaves a combination of practical SharePoint how-to's with some useful concepts around collaboration theory and process. Read this book improve how you collaborate with SharePoint now, but even as SharePoint evolves or if you start using another platform you'll still have some useful concept to use."

See the full review at http://chieftech.blogspot.com/2008/12/book-review-seamless-teamwork.html

[Kent Duston]

Kent says, "Having had a few days to dip in and out of the book, I just wanted to
say that I think it is incredibly well written. As someone who cares
about language and how it is used - and who has always aspired to
write well - I can say that it is a joy to read. It is comprehensible
without being dumbed down, and it has excellent narrative flow - there
have been many passages where I have been caught up in the story of
the people and the issues and the software, where I've completely lost
the sense that I am reading a technical treatise that is designed to
teach me something. It's a very difficult trick to achieve, but you've
somehow managed to turn what could have been a very dry tome into a
book that (for us geeks, anyway) is rewarding to read simply for the
pleasure of learning."

[Kanwal Khipple (posted by Michael)]

Kanwal writes,

"Seamless Teamwork is a refreshing approach to SharePoint and how to use it effectively.

This book is not for IT Professionals or Developers, rather this book is for anyone who has to work with people through SharePoint (for example: project managers, program managers, business managers, team members, information workers, end users).

Need help with finding a team, creating a shared vision and knowing your options within SharePoint, then Seamless Teamwork is worth a read.

If you are the individual who is managing SharePoint, you might want to purchase this book for those key team members who can benefit from it. Even if SharePoint was “pushed” onto your organization and you are having difficulty with making SharePoint work for you, then this is the book for you."

Link: http://www.sharepointbuzz.com/2008/11/30/review-giveaway-seamless-teamwork-by-michael-sampson/

[Chandima Kulathilake (posted by Michael)]

Chan writes, "I recommend this book if you are a project/program manager or a team member of an organisation who has a SharePoint deployment and want to understand the context of how and when to use SharePoint to help form a team and work towards achieving an outcome. Michael's way of writing brings home some very common scenarios that typical projects go through and outlines how SharePoint can actually help facilitate the process. It's purely from a perspective of using the out of the box functional aspects of SharePoint and has some practical examples of how to achieve what you want without having to rely on IT or developers."

Link: http://www.chandima.net/Blog/archive/2008/11/27/seamless-teamwork-great-job-michael.aspx

[Peter O'Kelly (posted by Michael)]

Peter writes, "Seamless Teamwork is a timely and useful resource for information workers who want to understand how to use Microsoft SharePoint in order to foster effective collaboration. The book explains key SharePoint concepts and tools, along with complementary offerings from Microsoft (e.g., Outlook, OneNote, and Groove) and other software vendors (e.g., Colligo)."

See more at http://pbokelly.blogspot.com/2008/11/amazoncom-seamless-teamwork-using.html

[Eric Mack (posted by Michael)]

Eric says, "You'll learn about the capabilities of SharePoint and the lessons learned from collaborative implementations gone well and those that didn't go so well.

I think Michael has created a practical and unbiased guide to showing how to take advantage of Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies to enhance collaboration, fuel team productivity, and improve business processes."

Link: http://www.ericmackonline.com/ICA/blogs/emonline.nsf/dx/its-here-seamless-teamwork-by-michael-sampson