Monthly Archives: July 2012

IT Must Take a More Active Role as a Driver of SharePoint Adoption

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The objective of driving end user adoption of a platform like SharePoint 2010 provides an important opportunity for IT departments to potentially deliver substantial reductions in the cost of supporting end users as well as developing applications for business line processes. All of these cost savings will result from an organization successfully implementing a single platform for a wide range of daily computing activities. BYOD and other attempts to consumerize IT threaten to undermine attain of this objective. Therefore, we think that IT organizations need to take a more active role as a driver of SharePoint adoption.

VisualSP™ from Rehmani Consulting, Inc. provides IT organizations with a powerful tool, which can be used to hasten end user adoption. After all, user training for SharePoint 2010 is often cited as a key impediment to better adoption of the platform. The in-context, task-specific access to video training content that VisualSP™ delivers, we believe, will go far to empower end users with required training content at an optimum moment — meaning when they are in the midst of performing tasks — and, specifically, on the very procedures that need to be accomplished to successfully complete tasks. In sum, we think it makes sense for most IT organizations managing SharePoint 2010 implementations to carefully consider our product for a role in an end user training system for SharePoint.

The fact that custom video training content can be served to users along with our video tutorials by the VisualSP™ system provides IT organizations with a means of designing training content with unique features that non computer savvy end users at specific organizations may, in fact, require, in order to build a comfort level using SharePoint 2010 for daily computing requirements. We think that adding just a few custom video tutorials will typically suffice to provide end users with a more familiar look and feel to our core set of video training content. Of course, creating merely a few custom video tutorials will likely be less expensive a procedure than would otherwise be the case if a complete set of custom videos were required.

We welcome opportunities to demonstrate the capabilities of our system for IT organizations that understand the importance of end user training to attaining adoption objectives. You can either telephone us at +1 630-786-7026 or contact us via email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

VisualSPtm from Rehmani Consulting, Inc. Takes a Video Training Solution for SharePoint 2010 a Step Forward

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With VisualSP™, Rehmani Consulting, Inc. has delivered a product that, effectively, raises the bar on the minimum requirements for video training system usability and overall value. We think that, going forward, SharePoint 2010 users in need of a video training system for SharePoint 2010 will expect an in-context, task-specific access component.

We base our assumption on a gap that we have often observed between users of SharePoint 2010 and training content. The results of this gap are widely known:

  • Poor rates of SharePoint user adoption
  • Under-utilization of SharePoint features and capabilities
  • Failure to collect useful business performance metrics for Business Intelligence (BI) objectives

In most of these cases there is no lack of training content; rather, content is available, but not utilized, or the training content is somehow not relevant to the needs of the SharePoint 2010 user community. In fact, we look at these cases as examples of training system inefficiency. In other words, a training approach has failed to magnetize user interest with the result that few end users have been empowered with the information they require to extract true value from SharePoint 2010.

Many of these examples exhibit a lack of video training content; rather, written content has been provisioned to end users who, in fact, seldom have the time, or the interest, to study the material. Where an organization is equipped with video training content, but the community of users still reflect a low average level of understanding of SharePoint 2010 operation, either the training access method for users is not integrated within a SharePoint 2010 working environment, or the content, itself, is not packaged properly. Video training content that is not packaged properly is usually comprised of videos that are too long in length for users to effectively use for training up on specific tasks, or else the training attempts to cover too many topics at the same time. Finally, some examples feature far too many videos for an average user to sort through to find just the training course that is required for a specific task.

As we have covered over several of the most recent posts to this blog, with VisualSP™, three of these issues have been corrected:

  • The video training content is delivered directly in-context and organized strictly by task; therefore, users can’t miss the classes as they appear directly in the SharePint 2010 ribbon
  • Our videos are very short in length. We never treat more than one topic in a video class. Finally, they are entirely topic-specific, non abstract, with none of the “bobbing heads” that are characteristic of other video tutorial content on SharePoint
  • Finally, no more than 5-7 videos are offered for any task training requirement. There are absolutely no long lists for users to wade through with our product

We think that once the market gets a taste of our system, there will be no looking back. If you share our enthusiasm and need to learn more about our product, please do reach out to us. Please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

End User Technical Training for Daily SharePoint 2010 Tasks is a Powerful Contributor to Platform Adoption

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We have written frequently in this blog on the necessity for organizations in the private and public sector with a substantial commitment to SharePoint® to drive end user adoption of the platform as a prerequisite to realizing meaningful return on investment (ROI) from their commitment. Simply put, achieving this objective of pervasive adoption of the SharePoint platform requires that end users abandon alternative computer procedures in lieu of comparable SharePoint procedures. An obvious example of this type of SharePoint positive abandonment would be a dramatic decline in the use of file shares as document repositories, coincidental with heavy production of SharePoint document libraries.

Technical training is very often cited as a key activity that can lead to targeted levels of user adoption of SharePoint computing procedures. Yet the failure of these efforts is equally a frequent mention in press on the subject. Whether as a result of the cost of providing in person technical training for groups of users, or a lack of interest on the part of user communities to make use of technical training resource that have been provided to them, frequently training efforts fail to provide the necessary support for user adoption efforts.

With VisualSP™, Rehmani Consulting, Inc has introduced an alternative method of providing user communities with technical training content for SharePoint, one that we think promises much more positive results than its predecessors.

As we have noted over the last 2 posts to this blog, the principal features of our product:

  • The application, itself, which provides a task-specific set of video training content that is exposed directly in a SharePoint context, within the ribbon and
  • The video training content, strictly comprised of to-the-point, short video content that simply provides a recording of computer procedures performed by a SharePoint Subject Matter Expert and MVP, complete with an audible set of instructions

promise to deliver software training in an entirely optimized manner to our customers.

We think that organizations that must achieve widespread user adoption need to take a closer look at a solution like VisualSP™. As well, understanding the benefits of achieving this objective, including access to more meaningful and relevant business performance data as well as heightened labor efficiency through minimized duplication of efforts, etc. should provide all of the impetus required to prompt a look. Please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Revisting the Value of Video Training Content for SharePoint that is Accessible In-Context and On Demand

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Rehmani Consulting Inc introduced VisualSP™, on-demand, in-context SharePoint Help. The design of this product resulted from our discussions with customers and colleagues who expressed a keen interest in a method of accessing training content for SharePoint 2010 that would be entirely task specific and include content accessible on demand, whenever needs arise.

We understood the importance of this interest. VisualSP™ was designed to meet the accessibility requirements of our customers and colleagues. We opted to build a native SharePoint application that would utilize the SharePoint 2010 ribbon as the optimum method for providing task-specific access to training content. When users need to work with SharePoint 2010 Document Libraries, all they need do is select a specific library. Once the document library is accessed, video training content specific to document library tasks will be accessible via point and click selection directly from the SharePoint ribbon. In fact, we have added a tab to the ribbon, labeled “Help” from which all of the targeted training content on working with document libraries can be accessed.

The response to our Press Release has been very positive. We think this interest makes sense. After all, as we noted a while back in this blog, training for SharePoint is a key component of healthy user adoption of the platform. Exploring a method like VisualSP™, one which provides users with an optimized means of accessing training content, certainly promises a positive impact on user adoption of SharePoint. Of course, it makes even more sense to include our product as a primary feature of an overall SharePoint Training plan, meaning an architecture that can be properly used to inform SharePoint users of their new training content repository, while encouraging them to make use of it.

For larger organizations with a substantial commitment to SharePoint, user adoption is an important and unavoidable milestone that must be successfully reached. We are confident that our in-context, on demand SharePoint training solution can be used to make substantial progress towards reaching this milestone. If your organization has a high level of commitment to hastening user adoption of this platform, we think you ought to consider our product. Further, we are entirely confident of the crucial role that technical training plays as a means of supporting user adoption of the SharePoint 2010 platform. You can either telephone us at +1 630-786-7026 or contact us via email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Exposing Task Specific Video Training Content for SharePoint Supports End User Divergent-Thinking, a Key Component of Problem Solving

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As noted in an abstract on the John Wiley web site for John Baer’s The Effects of Task-Specific Divergent-Thinking Training, ” . . . there is a growing body of evidence indicating that divergent-thinking skills may be very task specific . . .” (BAER, J. (1996), The Effects of Task-Specific Divergent-Thinking Training. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 30: 183–187. doi: 10.1002/j.2162-6057.1996.tb00767.x). It should be noted that divergent-thinking, essentially human creativity, has been shown to be a key component of human problem solving. Therefore, exposing task-specific video training content for a complex software product like SharePoint® should stimulate end user divergent-thinking about specific procedures, which ultimately ought to reduce support demands and translate into quantifiable cost savings.

VisualSP™ from Rehmani Consulting, Inc. accomplishes precisely the exposure required to contribute to increased self management for SharePoint 2010 end users. Our product facilitates an optimal method of accessing video training content for end users — task-specific exposure within the SharePoint ribbon. This video training content, as noted in a post to this blog published yesterday, best communicates the efficacy of asychronous behavior modeling, which is equally powerful as a benefit for end users to hasten their adoption of SharePoint by mastering more procedures.

Initial response to the debut of our product has been very encouraging. Representatives of organizations of SharePoint users have expressed a strong interest in learning further about how our product works and, specifically, how our video training content is exposed within a SharePoint work environment. Of course, this response is inspiring. This enthusiastic market response has lead us to publishing these most recent blog posts which, actually, have more to do with learning theory than with SharePoint itself. Through these posts we hope to let our readers know why a product like VisualSP™ is uniquely representative of the very best in contemporary theory as regards human technical training. If properly implemented, our product can lead to substantial reductions in the cost of support for groups of end users. After all, theory posits that these users will learn best from training aids that are located like our video content and available on demand, in other words asynchronously.

If you would like to learn further about our solution, please do reach out to us. We will be happy to elaborate on these references to learning theory with further information as to how our product can be used to deliver quantifiable reductions in the cost of support. Please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Video Training for Computer Software, Including SharePoint 2010, Leverages the Efficacy of Behavior Modeling as a Training Method

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It is quite helpful to understand the relationship between video training content for software products like SharePoint®, and behavioral modeling as a training method. We think that gaining an understanding on this point can provide businesses and organizations in the public and/or not-for-profit sectors with a useful basis for forming an opinion about a solution like VisualSP™. After all, VisualSP™ is an optimized delivery method that makes task specific video training content for SharePoint for end users available directly within a SharePoint 2010 work environment from the SharePoint Ribbon.

As noted on the About dot com web site with reference to Behavioral Modeling as a Technique for Teen Parenting, “Social learning theory, which provides the foundation for behavior modeling, asserts that most behaviors are learned by observation and modeling.” We think that this definition is also applicable to “Behavioral Modeling” as regards computer software training.

In fact, in 2004, the IEEE released an article, The Efficacy of Behavior Modeling: A Comparison of Face-to-Face and Online Asynchronous Software-Training Methods. The IEEE researchers’ “[r]esults indicate that when conducting software training, it may be almost as effective to use an online asynchronous behavior-modeling method as it is to use a more costly face-to-face behavior-modeling method.” Of course, video training content, which may be accessed strictly on an on-demand basis and, specifically, within a task-specific context lends itself very well to “asynchronous” use on the part of end users. Therefore, we look at this article from the IEEE as something of a ground breaker that provided much of the rationale for the development of video training content for software products like SharePoint.

The “Behavioral Modeling” aspect of video training content is to be found in the recorded computer screen operations, which can be played back as frequently as users require in order to master the same techniques. After all, the computer procedures are taken by a human instructor, utilizing a mouse and, therefore, meet the requirement that human behavior (in this case in the form of computer procedures) provide the actual content to be mastered by users, if the objective is to provide the most promising training method as regards likely user retention.

With this understanding, we think organizations can do a better job of determining optimum training solutions for SharePoint 2010 end users. In fact, video training content is specifically designed to provide users with a behavioral modeling method which, given the citations noted above, is radically different from text book based learning. If you would like to further explore how VisualSP™ and our video training content can best support user adoption of SharePoint 2010 for your organization, then please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

In-Context Video Training Content for SharePoint is Especially Useful for End Users

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As noted on the web site of the Journal of the Medical Library Association, “An information need (the problem) cannot be divorced from its context. The problem context determines the urgency, granularity of detail, authority, and level of certainty required for an acceptable answer and dictates the expertise and resources that can be brought to bear.” Therefore, we think that the very best location to provide end users with access to video training content for SharePoint 2010 is directly from the SharePoint Ribbon. After all, what other location within a SharePoint working environment affords end users a comparable opportunity to juxtapose a technical challenge directly with a recommended solution?

With VisualSP™, Rehmani Consulting, Inc offers support and development teams a delivery method to provide end users with the video training they require to successfully perform daily tasks with SharePoint 2010. We think that VisualSP™ can save each end user, at a minimum, at least 20mins per work day that would otherwise have to be spent researching and locating training instructions for repetitive tasks that must, nevertheless, be accomplished with SharePoint. If for argument sake, we assume an organization of 1000 end users and an average cost per work hour (fully benefit loaded) of $50.00, then the cost savings in one month subsequent to the installation and launch of our training delivery system will amount to at least $45833.33 per month, or $550000 in the first year of operation.

Of course these savings will likely amount to a substantial attraction for organizations to think seriously about implementing our product for delivering training content. But we are confident that the attraction will become even more compelling when these same organizations understand that the training content, itself, in video format is optimum for quick assimilation by end users. Substantial research has shown that the recorded human voice is innately best suited as the prime method for delivering training content. We think, as well, that recordings of computer operations — at screen level — are also highly useful for communicating correct procedures (and even best practices) to end users. Therefore, the combination of the unique attractiveness of video training content with our in-context delivery system makes for a natural, highly attractive solution for bringing groups of end users successfully into a computing environment built on SharePoint 2010.

If your organization understands the imperative of providing end users with technical training for SharePoint 2010, then you ought to consider VisualSP™, along with our video training content. You can either telephone us at +1 630-786-7026 or contact us via email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Creating New Form Views to Expand on InfoPath 2010 Out of the Box Customization Capabilities for List Items

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Out of the box InfoPath 2010 only permits the production of custom edit forms for list items, regardless of whether the required activity is to view items, edit items or even create items. Nevertheless, when list items are either, edited, viewed or created, in SharePoint 2010, three different forms are served to the viewer. In fact, these same three forms can be created with InfoPath 2010 by producing separate views of the same “Edit Item” form. Our video tutorial, Creating New, Edit and View Item forms for SharePoint Lists using InfoPath.

The steps required to produce the new views, are rather simple as we point out in our training video. For example, a simple click on the “Page Design” tab on the InfoPath 2010 Designer ribbon reveals an option to build a “New View”. Once this “New View” is named (for example, “View”) a blank page template is presented which can be populated with precisely the information needed to build an independent “form” which will be served when a user wishes to “view” a list item. We demonstrate how easy it is to use widely known keyboard combinations to produce a working set of data fields for a “New View” for example:

  • ctrl a to select all of the information on a form
  • ctrl c to copy the information to the Windows Clipboard and, finally,
  • ctrl v to paste the information into the new page template

Once the information has been pasted onto the new page template, we further demonstrate how table properties commmands can be used to remove data fields (including labels) from this “New View” by simply deleting rows from the table that actually provides the InfoPath 2010 form with a location for each data field. While this video tutorial does not demonstrate how data fields can be added to these discrete views via the same simple table commands (in other words, “insert row”), we presume that this insert procedure would work just fine.

When published to SharePoint 2010, the InfoPath 2010 form that has been produced with 3 discrete views for each of the required functions, “view”, “edit” and “create” still requires further work. The problem is that the same “edit item” form is served, regardless of the operation required. In order to have the corresponding view, only, be served, as required, the InfoPath web part for the specific form must be edited. In the edit web part process the desired view can be selected, which selection will result in each of the three views servicing each of the three required tasks.

If your organization would like to expand on the scope of application for InfoPath 2010, but you understand the need to empower your team with effective training, please do not hesitate to contact us. Please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Publishing Database Connections for InfoPath 2010 to SharePoint Server 2010 Enterprise

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Any/all SQL Server database connections that are required to properly complete InfoPath 2010 forms must be published to SharePoint Server 2010 if other users are to have access to these forms. In a video titled Store database connections in an InfoPath form to a data connection library. The intended audience for this video tutorial are SharePoint Administrators. In order to work with the demonstration viewers should have access to a running SQL Server instance. Finally, access to Microsoft’s demonstration database, Adventure World, will prove to be very helpful.

As is pointed out in our video tutorial, any connections to an SQL Server database that are made to produce an InfoPath 2010 working form are actually stored locally on the computer used to produce the form. We demonstrated where the connections are stored within the “My Computer” folder of the operating disk. However, once the form is stored on SharePoint 2010 enterprise the database connections will have to be stored on the server, in a Data Connection Library, or else the form will not be usable by others within an organization.

The process of storing the SQL Server database connections to a SharePoint 2010 Enterprise server actually starts by locally revisiting the operations required to complete the form. The Infopath 2010 “Preview” feature should be used to go through each and every one of the operations included in the form. Once the flow of the form is fully assimilated, the form should be published to the SharePoint 2010 Enterprise server.

However, as we demonstrate in our video tutorial, the server will not accept the uploaded form. The problem is that the SQL Server database connections must be established for the server before the form, itself, can be uploaded. Before setting the database connections, the “Cross Domain Access” feature of the InfoPath Forms Services Settings must be turned on. As well a Data Connection Library where .udc (User Data Connection file format) files can be stored must be created. Only SharePoint Administrators will have the privileges to create the Data Connection Library and turn on the required feature.

We demonstrate how to create the Library for the target file types. The next step involves editing the completed InfoPath 2010 form to replace each of the database connections with new database connections for the server. In fact, the “Convert to Connection File” included in InfoPath 2010 is used in our video tutorial to instruct the server as to the intended URL settings for each of these connections. Once the locations have been set, the server will accomplish the rest of the task.

This tutorial presents a procedure that can deliver substantial benefits to organizations looking to widely implement forms created with InfoPath 2010. If you would like to discuss this tutorial or your objectives at greater length, then please do contact us. You can telephone us at (630) 786-7026, or contact us via email to further a discussion. Of course we are happy to speak about your overall SharePoint development plans, as well.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved

Converting Excel Forms into InfoPath 2010 Forms for Web Publishing with SharePoint 2010

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Converting business forms created with Microsoft® Excel is well within the reach of most users of InfoPath 2010. Once converted to InfoPath 2010 forms, these business tools can be uploaded to a SharePoint 2010 Intranet or Extranet for organizational-wide usage, as required. The ability to distribute IT assets, such as custom business forms, with SharePoint 2010, provides a useful method of reducing costs that would otherwise be incurred by an organization to duplicate work as additional requirements for the same type of forms arise.

We offer a video tutorial on this topic, Converting Microsoft Excel workbooks to InfoPath 2010. We retraced the steps outlined in this tutorial with our own InfoPath 2010 instance and an Excel form that we use with complete success. We need to note that a large number of fields will still need to be correctly labeled once the Excel form has been successfully converted to an InfoPath form.

Of course this type of point and click ease of conversion also makes data collection accessible to a wider group of users within an organization than would be the case with Excel forms. Further, collecting the unstructured data produced by InfoPath forms into useful business intelligence is a more realistic objective and deliverable. In sum, bringing Excel forms into InfoPath 2010 makes a lot of sense.

It is worth noting that applications like this one for InfoPath 2010 should be understood and evaluated as migrations to SharePoint 2010 enterprise are planned for organizations. We think that it is particularly valuable to understand the capabilities of tools like InfoPath 2010 as implementations are planned so the right steps are taken during the implementation phase to ensure that the maximum value represented by a tool like InfoPath 2010 to contribute substantially to a reduction in overall cost of IT systems development for an organization is realized. Naturally, training ought to play a role within the implementation plan to ensure that the skill set of current technical staff members are expanded to include the procedures required to use this tool on a daily basis. We think it makes a lot of sense to provision video tutorials within the user training component of these implementation plans. We welcome an opportunity to discuss implementation planning; therefore, if you agree with our view of the need to build a tool like InfoPath 2010 into an overall implementation plan for SharePoint 2010 Enterprise, then please do reach out to us. Please contact us by telephone at +1 (630) 786-7026. Alternatively, you can contact us by email with any questions you may have about this video, the InfoPath 2010 set, and possible applications for individual as well as organizational-level viewing and use.

As ever, use this link to place an order for an annual subscription to SharePoint-Videos instructional content

© Rehmani Consulting Inc, all rights reserved