Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

Very good book. Things are explained in very neat and clear terms.
But, need a same book for Share Point 2010

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

I was introduced to the book just as we were in the process of establishing a PMO within our IT organization. Along with that there was interest in trying to use SharePoint for several things including project management. So, the book was just what I needed just when I needed it. I was able to work through your book and build what I needed to start things out on a solid foundation. It was very advantageous to be able to construct things as I went through the book. I also found great value with the insights Mr. Sy shared with the reader regarding project management. My favorite was "The software doesn't rule the project; you do." Always a good reminder. Thanks for the help and I look forward to keeping up with more SharePoint and PM on your blog.

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

This book is definitely a great start when you are starting out but it doesn't fully address what SharePoint can't do (without using SharePoint Designer or 3rd Party tools).

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

If you have Sharepoint in your organization and want to implement a PMIS for your PM people, look no further - great book, lots of examples, and also helps you understand the basics for Sharepoint configuration - you don't have to be a SP guru to use it at the level a PM needs.

There is also a companion site available, with lots of tools and tutorial, good source of additional information. I recommend this book to anyone willing to start a PMIS.

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

In his book SharePoint for Project Management, Dux Raymond Sy provides an excellent structure for getting your PMIS started using SharePoint. What I liked most about his book was that, at its core, it was really a book about project management and good practices that help to make a project successful. These core concepts do not change, no matter what the project may be. (Come on all you project managers out there _ admit it, you create a project plan for everything you do, even if it's organizing your sock drawer!) By focusing on good project management practices, instead of just SharePoint facts and features, Dux is able to make the book resonate with project managers. As he then steps us through the relevant capabilities in SharePoint, we are able to quickly tie the "how to do it" with the "why to do it". Of course, you can always try out one of the templates already available for tracking projects, but going through the book is also just a really good SharePoint 101 for those needing an introduction to the technology.

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

In the previous company I worked (which was also my first) they had this thing called project sites: a specific site created for a specific project. On that site, all shareholders had a login ID. They could collaborate there, read/write documents, form complaints, they had a forum, calendar etc etc...

I really found this way of sharing information with the client very efficient. Everyone knew where to get their documents or post information. I used this a lot, and we did find the solution most helpful.

The concept of having a thing like SharePoint be used for organising your project (or PMIS - Project Management Information Structure to use a fancy word) is certainly not new. However, not many organisations use such tools.

Dux Raymond Sy has written a book about "SharePoint for Project Management" in order to let Project managers know about the existence of such a tool and how to use it. That's right, this book is not written for technical users nor is it a manual for end-users.

This book is really to show to Project Managers how they can use SharePoint to enhance their projects.

Conclusion

This book is really filled with great examples (and a lot of screenshots) on how to use SharePoint as the best place to track all information on your project. So if you are a Project Manager and you want to enhance the quality of your project, be sure to give SharePoint and this book a try.

Even when you are a CIO and want to create a platform to list and do follow-up on all projects, do take a look at this book.

Dux adressess foremost the time you win by using a PMIS, but he also clearly states that more is at stake:

- quality logs

- status reporting

- calendars

- contact information

- ...

To me, this is a very complete book, fun to read with a lot of great examples!

Next to the information on the book, you should also check out http://sp.spforpm.com/ . This website has a lot of additional resources: video's on how you do stuff, templates, a discussion forum and lots of other stuff!

Also make sure you take a look at Dux' blog: meetdux.com !!

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

I received the book this Monday morning. And had read it through by Tuesday evening, It is brilliant! Crisp clear instruction, a great balance between explaining background and step-by-step showing how to do it. The very personal language also makes it easy to read and fun.

What I think I like best is the down to earth "I have done this myself" approach. What I mean is, one can really relate to the reasoning and it is based on reality not on fancy theory on how things should be witch makes it very trustworthy. Anyone can start using it straight away.

I didn't work my way through each and every exercise but a lot of them and based on my experience of SharePoint the rest looks similarly easy to complete.It'll be the x-mas gift from my company to selected a number of key customers and contacts.

Mathias Karlsson, CEO netConzent Consulting AB

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

As a SharePoint consultant, a majority of my pain points involve getting the customers to understand the possibilities of SharePoint.

As a more technical person, this book allowed me to look at a Project Management site as a PM would.

This book would be very helpful in proposing, designing and implementing various Project Management sites, mostly due to the understanding of what makes a good process driven Project Management site from a PMP viewpoint.

The "How to" within this book is pretty straightforward, but the big payoff for myself was the understanding of strict adherance to process that Project Managers are fond of.

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

Before you even start on this book, do not skip the preface. Dux is not setting out to write for low level geeks or developers. In this book, you will not find insights into how to create a custom site definition for a PMO, complete with stapled features, event handlers or Visual Studio based workflows.

Instead this book is more akin to a more focused "Teach yourself SharePoint" type book, combined with a "Project Management 123″ style book.

End-user training books work best when there is a context to the lessons. So whether it is using SharePoint for project management or using SharePoint to help Americans to play the game of cricket, having that unifying theme underneath always makes for a more coherent book helping to explain the rationales for all your actions.

Read the complete review (http://www.cleverworkarounds.com/2008/11/23/book-review-sharepoint-for-project-management/) .

Comments about oreilly SharePoint for Project Management:

There is no need to purchase this book as about 95% is just repackaged content from the built in help. The "hook" is that it is targeted at project managment. In reality any collaborative effort can be addressed with the tools SharePoint provides. Maybe you can write a whole series of books - "SharePoint for ...". You'd only need to change a small percent of the book each time.

As an example, here is a passage about versioning from the book:

When the version history feature is enabled, a new version of a document will be created

when:

' A list item or file is first created or uploaded. If file check-out is required, the file

must first be checked in in order to create the first version.

' An uploaded file has the same name as an existing file and the "Add as a new version

to existing files" option is selected.

' The properties of a list item or file are changed.

' A file is checked out, changed, and then checked back in. If you or another user

discards the checked-out version, no new version is created.

Here is what the built in help says:

When versioning is enabled, versions are created in the following situations:

- When a list item or file is first created or when a file is uploaded.

Note If file check-out is required, the file must first be checked in, in order to create its first version.

- When a file is uploaded that has the same name as an existing file and the Add as a new version to existing files check box is selected.

- When the properties of a list item or file are changed.

- When a file is opened, edited, and saved. A version is created when you first click Save. This version is updated with the latest changes that you make to the file before closing it.

Note A version is not created every time that you or another user clicks Save, because this would create too many versions.

- When a file is checked out, changed, and then checked back in.

Note If you or another user discards the checked-out version, no version is created.