FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

V1 Analytical, a new defense intelligence start-up, developed relationship with genevieve Solutions because of genevieve’s deep knowledge of corporate enterprise operations in general and, the MS Sharepoint 2010 collection of technology(s) in the particular.  Together, V1 Analytical and genevieve Solutions quickly discerned that, for the price, there was no better, cost effective solution, for distributed, workforce collaboration on top company documents and initiatives.

genevieve Solutions designed, developed, tested and delivered a comprehensive Sharepoint 2010 solution for V1 Analytical in just 60 days.

The strategy for this new company’s operations web-site, devised by genevieve and V1 Analytical, was simple:

“To surgically concentrate on the major pillars of the business from an operations perspective; in order to scale and bring about growth, opportunity and collaboration.”

The development and execution of V1 Analytical’s operations web site was streamlined due to genevieve’s particular knowledge of “the-cloud” and genevieve’s rolodex of contacts in the consulting, software, data center and hosting world(s).  Furthermore, genevieve Solution’s creative use of Sharepoint 2010 “content types” allowed for significant re-use and simplification across V1 Analytical’s site collection.

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V1 Analytical, with headquarters in Washington DC, is a new company specializing in asymmetric defense intelligence and aviation services.

genevieve Solutions, with headquarters in Washington DC, is a small, boutique consulting firm specializing in enterprise people, process and technology optimization.

Back in the day, before the internet and google, programming was a pain in the $%#*!  For those readers still in their early youth, think about it … we used to have a dewey decimal system and physical bookshelves!  ”I swear,” it wasn’t that long ago!

Maybe you could find some good, relevant code.

The best thing was, since you had to “go to the Library,” maybe you would meet or bump into someone, um, special?  I might suggest to you that those rows and rows of “stacks” or bookshelves were excellent for make-out sessions?  Why, one even used to “dress” before going to the Library.  Imagine, that!

MAYBE you even could find physical references for your particular Topic or Interest, less than a year old … so you could ensure your stuff was current.  So as not to be usurped by more modern or en-vogue ideas.

I also remember the advent of Windows vice the UNIX command line.   UNIX command line guys always laughed at the Windows guys.   “Clickity, Click … yuk, yuk, yuk.”  I did both UNIX and Windows, and was quite happy.

At any rate, I have been “Clickity, Clicking” with Sharepoint and Sharepoint Designer 2010 and having a blast!  So, I thought I would add some color, and release some initial schematic, to the coolio web library (don’t quote me):

Figure 1 – Data View Webpart (One Common Scenario)

The result?  Some clean, accessible

*.aspx!

(Used to simply display marketing referral values in a Sharepoint List from a Secure Top Level site to an Anonymous Sub-Site)

OK, Coolio, so I was soliciting business at a MAJOR Washington DC institution near Union Station …  the keywords were:  Enterprise PMO, MS Sharepoint, MS Project Server.

You should have seen this building’s colossal, awe-inspiring, design! It was contemporary, to fusion with the awesome, stately Union Station building architecture.  They had like this totally glassed, serene, bamboo atrium with this little stone park-bench. I mean it was exquisite.

One particular question was posed during the business meeting…  I smiled.  And, then, sent forth, the following:

” I don’t know …  I don’t keep really detailed stuff like that, fresh,  in my head … But,  can’t we just like, google it?”

The interview panel was, I think,  flabbergast.  Intuitively, they knew I was right. ( I watched them all carefully and systematically exchange glances — searching for the proper gesture, anticipating the amenable response … this was, after all,  a government office.)

No one disagreed.  There was both affirmation and, neutrality.

Furthering the sale, I said, “The primary thing ya’ can’t google is human experience.  That is why I am here.”

This, a truly surgical, comprehensive, and mind-bending answer, with serious philosophical repercussions,  if we really think about it.

~ Um, Ya!

That’s how I roll …

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genevieve Solutions is indeed bullish on Sharepoint and Project Server 2010; and, both private and/or public clouds.  When you have toiled in management consulting and information technology for 20 years and have witnessed database, client-server and internet revolutions, in multiple industries, at the Enterprise level, certain patterns do stick in the mind.

Value Creation.

Just how does one optimize enterprise people, process and technology?  The Sharepoint and Project Server 2010 collection of technology(s) are definite game changers.  So I said it.

One of the greatest things to come from the aforementioned revolutions is collaboration and the ability to capture the right information in order that it be compounded.   Sharepoint and Project Server 2010 is the new medium.  Depending on a organization’s design and business model, maybe it is records management, strategic project management, content, workflow, or maybe it is knowledge management or some combination thereof.  Nevertheless, a concept of the enterprise, collaborative data model is paramount.  What are my organization primary keys?  How do I best “operationalize” my data?  Collaborating on enterprise data is the holy grail!  (But you have to do it right.)

Just how do we select the minimal Sharepoint features and/or configuration that will deliver the biggest bang-for-the buck?

Surely, we could bring forth modern portfolio managment methods centered around the create, select, plan and manage framework of modern portfolio management (and the new MS Project Server, if we believe in Microsoft).  It does make sense to utilize multi-variate, pair-wise matrices and rank projects via a formalized selection process tailored to specific organizational goals.

Do just four (4)things really well, rather than seventeen (14) haphazardly.  Yeah, that’s it.

Too often, I have seen projects kicked-off without a strong sense of rationalization.  Rationalization costs money.   Why not publicly share the bubble chart of projects on an x, y and z axis  (e.g., benefit, cost, risk).   If nothing else, this formalization brings about transparency, and should lessen the influence of certain subjectivity and/or corporate politics.

Still, I will maintain that Sharepoint projects “out-of-the-box” deliver the most value.  Custom projects carry risk, have long schedules, and can get expensive.  But, then, it comes down to understanding organization goals and sticky points.  Can we really justify that 1.5 m dollar custom web part development project on paper?  What is the return?

Keep it simple.  KISS.  Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJzaOs4DnNI&feature=player_embedded#!

When I say “out-of-the-box” I am not against purchasing certain webparts.  After all, there is less risk than developing them on your own.  Many third-party webparts take advantage of globalization and, hence, lower costs.  They work well and have, hopefully, been through a rigorous testing process.  You have to pick the right set.

Also, when I say “out-of-the-box” I have no qualms with using JQuery!  Entire Javascript frameworks can be referenced from Sharepoint libraries at the site collection level.  Now, that is value on the cheap!  No server side configuration necessary.   That saves you tons!

I will also say the Sharepoint List is often unintentionally maligned because their power is often not well understood.  But that is just me.  Solely from a Program/Project mangement perspective, there is nothing better than the Sharepoint and Project Server collection of technologies  (2010 in the particular) for managing project data!  However, I have seen team sites, in many organizations, that have not “taken-off.”  Is it fear?  We will get there, though, through  toil, training and facilitation, from guys like me.

Let’s get familiar with Sharepoint 2010 Physical and Logical Architecture: http://www.astaticstate.com/2010/01/sharepoint-2010-service-architecture.html

Two cents?

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Truly these are interesting times … having made way from Chicago to the Washington DC based Capital Markets Technology Group, at a well known financial institution under Federal conservatorship.

Enterprise Information Technology.  Capital Markets, mortgage related, a very troubled area?  Ya think?  I possess direct experience with the mortgage “model” that crashed America.   I might even surmise, at this particular institution, professional courtesy is a thing of the past …

They even utilize and hire, a great deal of foreign knowledge workers.  Why wouldn’t you um, like, hire American?  Explain this to me?  Our tax dollars at work?  I am not against foreign workers, however I think there is something to be said for a healthy ratio.

I lament.  Very limited governance (it was, solely, on paper) and extreme resistance to change. Many employees were VERY unhappy.  I DO surmise, presently, that management expectation, is at times, not in touch with reality, nor organizationally balanced.  You have to work through problems … or they don’t get solved.   After all, round pegs don’t fit in square holes, unless you are happy with merely banging them in.

There IS something to be said for spirit and sense-of-mission!  … vice, busy bees.

With a sole  focus on the tactical,  people were tired and, not collaborating, as they should.  I will even say, “They were doing stuff the hard way.”  MS Office 2003 in the year 2010, indeed!  Certain communications need not be trapped in e-mail or MS Communicator, but should be shared.  ”Oh, but my communications are priivy! ” (only some are) or “I don’t have time to discuss …”  You don’t, ever?  Wouldn’t you want “the team” to benefit from different conversations, amongst “the team?”  1:1 email doesn’t cut it.

Imagine Sharepoint struggling to make stronghold!  And, the perfect opportunity to do so …  so many smart people milling about.  Solving problems has never been simpler.  And, an expert at their disposal …

One comment: at the enterprise level, I still maintain, a PMO must have unique ids for projects and other stuff (e.g., code tables).  After all, Sharepoint provides us with the ultimate tracking mechanism, it’s multi-user, multi-dimensional,  and collaborative (e.g., Append Only Comments).  How does one audit and control anything without data lineage or primary key dimension?  (Maybe that is how they got into trouble in the first place ….ahem!)

The Sharepoint List.  Microsoft is betting the farm.  What a wonderful instrument!  Way beyond the spreadsheet for “operationalization” of data.

Sharepoint was being used, solely, as a file server.  It was just a whole bunch of office documents in folders!  For my learned Sharepoint compatriots, what? I am NOT kidding.  Is that stupid, or what?  I should think professional collaboration on America’s Credit Book, paramount?  That’s me.

Come on people.  Let’s um, get stuff done?  Transparently.  Create value?

I sometimes struggle to engage audience for Sharepoint and, at the same time, manage ongoing operations.  Are we going to get better or, stay the same?  Are we managing those expectations?

Hello,  "genevieve Solutions!"  Start with "KM10 :: Training and Facilitation" and we might obtain intimate discourse on getting business done with an eye on continual improvement?

Initiate, plan, manage, monitor and control, close.  Let’s do it.  In a truly collaborative fashion!  It is not a destination, but a journey.

America awaits!

www.genevievesolutions.com

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THINK about the dotcom era?  Back then (circa 2000), it was thought, the future was, hosted systems, in the CLOUD.  Imagine that!  We liked the idea, but were suspect of the connotation.

At that time, with USWeb and marchFIRST, I was an Architect/Developer.   I remember numerous techies poking fun at the sales guys who were selling the “cloud.”    We chuckled amongst ourselves.

In late 1990 and early 2000, e-commerce and supply chain orchestration was the holy grail.  We had 100s of clients and multiple data centers.  The technology was not half bad, and evolving quickly!

USWeb had a stellar relationship with Microsoft and spent considerable time working on something called “iFrame,” which was a definite pre-cursor to .net technology.

I even first experienced virtualization technology, at this time.  The coolest developer workstations ran VMWare with both Windows and Linux.  The mere cost of RAM, at this time, was a barrier.  I think it was roughly a dollar or so, per megabyte!

Figure 1. – marchFIRST Back in the Day

Back then the logic was: “Why wouldn’t corporations want to outsource strategic technologies, at a fraction of the in-house price?”  Data centers would pass along cost savings and more easily allow for corporate economy of scale.  Plus, we could move a whole lot faster than typical corporate IT.

Such was the business with USWeb and marchFIRST.

Then the bottom fell out of the market.  Capital became VERY impatient for a whole bunch of reasons!  It all crashed.

Now, Fast forward to 2010 …

Huh?  What?  Is it like so, deja vu, in a very good sort of way?  Just what have we learned?  What has changed?  Is the cloud back?

(see http://chucksblog.emc.com/chucks_blog/2010/04/the-10-big-ideas-that-are-shaping-it-infrastructure-today.html )

genevieve solutions is Bullish, quite!  (As recent encounters, with very LARGE SCALE corporates indicate. Say, GE? McDonalds? UBS?)  This time, it is not just E-Commerce. Enterprise technology has permeated, and is so much more intrinsic and pervasive to corporate operations, than in 2000.   People have gotten used to this cloud notion.

Certainly, the public versus private cloud debate rages!  Always there will be both.

Information in the right place at the right time.  The ability to expertly collaborate and act on a rich information base closer to real-time.  We almost expect that.  On multiple devices.  And, we want it now!

Most importantly, there are a slew of exciting new as well as mature companies drinking the juice and assisting with cloud development.

I would also like to re-iterate, as we knew in 2000, corporate IT assets are as paramount to business as the mill is to a steel company.  Industrial Economy vs. Service Economy.  Soft vs. Hard.  Information is the new medium.

genevieve Solutions specializes in this revelation; it appears to have been rediscovered:   enterprise optimization of people, process and technology.   The dream.  It is truly an evolving model …  particularly, and with respect to, recent economic vantage points.  It has just taken a while to establish a certain technology economic knowledge base and, in a period of unprecedented economic turmoil, this particular sense of enterprise mission.  Reborn!

The basic cloud tenets appear to be the same, but the landscape is so much more inviting …

here is an update to this blog topic for your perusal:  http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/04/29/the-end-of-microsoft-a-door-opens-to-a-new-cloud/?source=cnn_bin&hpt=Sbin

(however, at this juncture, stardate Apr 2010, I am not as Microsoft pessimistic as the salesforce.com guy!)

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Shhh.   Don’t tell anybody …

genevieve Solution’s corporate strategy is to create more time for busy Senior Executives.   So they might go fishing, or even camping, with their families.  Optimized enterprise collaboration on business matters should be top priority! Do more with less?  Work smarter, not harder?

Figure 1. – Functional Collaboration Model

Has this word, “collaboration” really take on new significance?   After all, in the 1950s, computers were first envisaged, to do all the work?

With the right amount of human “touchpoints,” collaboration can get us a whole lot closer to this ideal orchestration.  Would you necessarily mind 2 minutes of time spent on the weekend assisting your business computing operation, if a timely, human decision is required to move forward, without delay?  That two (2) minutes might save you, personally, 2 hours, M-F?  (Let’s ignore the corporate save economics, for now.)  It might just be a Sharepoint Alert, notifying you that a key performance indicator has changed!

One powerful genevieve Solution’s strategic giveaway:  You probably want to ignite/allow enterprise collaboration in just, say, two (2) or three (3) simple and absolutely meaningful ways.  I am even talking about, simple alternatives and/or options to corporate e-mail.  Even if, to foster basic knowledge management and a collaborative corporate dimension(s).  To get started …

Review intersections of existing communications and activities for clues.  How do you tap and/or discover varied skills and wider perspective within the company or, highlight focused opportunities and challenges?  Aren’t we talking about a higher form of  orchestration that creates business value?

Might it even make sense to dashboard, real-time collaboration(s), in order to better understand communication channels and patterns?  (e.g., is the sales department communicating with the back office at reasonable frequency, considering present business circumstances?)

Figure 2. – Enterprise Collaboration Dashboard (Patent Pending)

First, develop the business case.  How do we understand and optimize, at an enterprise level, people, process and technology? (hint:  genevieve Solutions) How about at the collaborative group level? What are we aiming for?  How much does it cost?  Should we just Tweet?  Or,  drink Microsoft Kool-Aid?  Shall we unify certain messaging streams?  Should there be official and non-official collaboration options?  What is your official corporate collaboration mandate?

Definitely keep-it-simple and, I am sure you already know:  It requires blessing by the Legal and IT Security Departments. (Unless you are a small, boutique professional services company surgically concentrated on strategy, relationship, idea and design?)

Mind Maps created by hand!

Just to demonstrate genevieve Solution’s software bi-partisanship, I might recommend open source software known as “FreeMind,” for certain documentation, presentation, and visualization needs.  I have recently used it on two (2) separate engagements with positive result to capture:

• in a simple map fashion, computer system inputs and outputs at a major bank;

• in a very flexible system fashion, a variety of configuration management information for a midsize Sharepoint and Project Server 2007 farm installation, with Windows 2008 R2 and Hyper-V, for a product manufacturing concern.

Here is a very simple MindMap that conveyed our initial high level environment configuration:

I do possess more elaborate mindmaps for a complete Sharepoint/Project Server farm installation, 2007,  if you are interested.  (Web->App->Data Server Configurations)

Also, quite often, a tech would prefer mindmap creation rather than just a text deliverable.  MindMaps work great for structuring stuff so you can then write about it!  You create the MindMap “as you do it.”

Moreover, it works great for project teams  looking to get on the same page! It is also good for structuring any kind of elaborate story … or concept.

There is a Microsoft mindmap route, too.  Search MS Office Visio help for “brainstorming.”  (Personally, I think the word “Mindmap” more appropriate!)

The US military is decades ahead of our nearest competitor due to weapon system development and technology superiority.  I always remember how adamant the Generals and Admirals were about milestone delineation in program schedules.  There was, absolutely, no room for ANY deviation.  To wit:

“A milestone is always depicted as the triangle shape.  When the milestone is complete, it is a solid triangle.  The milestone is of zero duration, and is a distinct point-in-time.”

That’s it.  (Avoid “conditionality” of Milestone completion, it’s done, or it’s not!)

I always influence, and stress the significance of, having a standard, common definition for milestones delineation across all programs and projects in a company.    You might be surprised at the variation of opinion on the matter.  You can even say, “So What.”  (But I wouldn’t want to work with you.)  Specific milestone definition and adherence is way IMPORTANT, particularly on large, complex projects, for a variety of reasons!

The default MS Project milestone is a diamond.  It is easy to change.  I ALWAYS promote changing it to the triangle, so as to generate cooperative thinking and a finer, more precise, sense of mission, across the organization.

Because of the Admirals and Generals …

I  always hear the story about:

“this guy with a fancy car comes in, after spending a whole bunch of time and money trying to resolve his car problem at the certified dealership however, the problem still persists …”

Now they, the car guys, have many years of independent shop experience.  So, when they resolve the aforementioned problem, say, in 20 minutes, the customer complains of the $200.00 charge! The wise professional then says, “Yes, it took twenty (20) minutes to fix the two (2) wires; but, twenty (20) years of experience to know which two (2)!”

So it is with MS Project.  You have to know 1.) duration equals work divided by resource units; and, 2.) the difference between the three (3) different task types and when to use them.

To delineate:

Still, I remember declaring to some younglings, some time ago:  “I can’t immediately place twenty (20) years of knowledge and experience in your head,  it just doesn’t work that way.”   

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