Certifiably Simple Communication

Communication is really a simple thing. First you cry, then babble, learn to point, smile, talk, converse, listen and share. We all do it, and it comes so naturally to want to communicate with others. We’re social creatures at home and at work, and communication is the conduit through which we make meaning out of our lives.

So why do some companies make it unnecessarily complex and challenging to communicate? Microsoft SharePoint is a product that epitomizes this concept. If you haven’t heard of SharePoint, it “provides a single, integrated location where employees can efficiently collaborate with team members, find organizational resources, search for experts and corporate information, manage content and workflow, and leverage business insight to make better-informed decisions.” It sounds like a great tool for business. But unlike other collaboration tools on the market (and yes, Socialcast is one of many), SharePoint isn’t simple.

Today I read a blog post about the Microsoft SharePoint Master program, which is “targeted at SharePoint professionals who actively design, build, configure, deploy, support, and troubleshoot SharePoint implementations.”  Sounds important; sounds complex. The congratulatory blog post lauded the new SharePoint Masters’ accomplishments. In the program, there are various written exams. There are 3-week rotations in Redmond, WA, that these potential Masters attend after a “very rigorous, comprehensive, and thorough application process.” This happens after candidates finish an 81-item recommended reading list, available here. Yes, that’s 81 items.

The new SharePoint Masters are obviously smart, dedicated, talented professionals who have worked hard to ensure that SharePoint deployments go well. But the whole complex, time-intensive and regimented training program seems counterintuitive to making collaboration “efficient” – the whole goal of SharePoint. Why not deploy a tool and watch it grow organically in the organization? Why not let users train themselves and learn by watching others? Why not trust the communication skills of employees? They have, after all, been communicating all their lives. Let them use communication tools that are simple, easy to use, and intuitive instead of rigid and pre-constructed. After all, if companies want employees to better manage their workflow and collaborate more effectively, they need to provide tools where each user has input on how they work and what they share. After such concrete, structured training, I get the sense that SharePoint Masters aren’t in the business of accommodating individual communication styles.

For some companies, SharePoint might be the right tool to enhance communications. But I urge companies to also consider agile, lightweight, more user-friendly tools that don’t require certified Masters to implement them. When companies trust their employees and allow them to communicate in ways that work with the existing culture and for individuals, everyone in the company will benefit. Sharing happens easily, and a collaborative environment evolves organically. This allows communication to flow naturally, which is about as simple as it gets.