1. Raising User productivity
with SharePoint &
Gamification
SharePoint User Group 26.10.2012 – Michael Vonlanthen and Jussi Mori

2. Session content
 Present the presenters and their home bases
 It’s all about productivity
 End User productivity
 Productivity best practices
 Administrators
 Developers
 Business Decision Makers
 Gamification – Scratching the surface
 Why gamification can have a positive impact on productivity?
 Gamification examples today
 Session roundup and discussion

3. Starring…
Michael Vonlanthen – “Mika Lantenen”
Chief Solutions Architect
Expert in SharePoint productivity
Contact: michael.vonlanten@advis.ch
LinkedIn: fi.linkedin.com/in/michaelvonlanthen
Jussi Mori
Co-Founder and SharePoint enthusiast
Senior SharePoint Consultant - Trainer
Contact: j.mori@peachesindustries.ch
Twitter: @JussiMori
LinkedIn: fi.linkedin.com/in/jussimori

4. Our home bases…
SharePoint from the first second:
- Portals, Collaboration, DMS
- Information and data architecture
- Support in whole application lifecycle
- A young dynamic team who love
challenges
A portal company:
- Portal design (UX & Architecture)
- Early adopters
- A bunch of MVPs
- Infrastructure, Training & Change
management

5. It’s all about productivity – End Users
What are common challenges of End Users when working with SharePoint
which have a negative influence on user acceptance and productivity?
Here some examples:
- SharePoint is difficult to use and not very
intuitive
- SharePoint is not more than another file share
system, with a WebUI
- I am used to work with local or network
folders, why should I change that?
- I cannot find my documents or information I
need, even though I use Enterprise Search! …nor explores SharePoint
- I don’t want to share my draft documents with productivity intuitively…
others!

6. It’s all about productivity – End users
But how in Earth to make End Users as productive as possible?
It seems like a walk into Mordor.
However…

7. It’s all about productivity – End users
Let’s try to bring some order into this topic by categorizing SharePoint
productivity!
Take care also of soft The right End User
factors Training
Grow and cultivate your
SharePoint and
information infrastructure

8. It’s all about productivity – End users
Category 1 “The Cognitive”: The Ability to use SharePoint the right way
Here some example to improve “The Cognitive”:
-Use case based training. Show where’s the real beef of SharePoint and let
them realize it themselves.
-Implementing SharePoint as a communication platform means Change.
Treat it as a Change project rather than IT implementation.
-Find the SharePoint Rockstars in the company and use them as your
deputies and engage them in end user training.
- Community, community, community!!!
Take end user feedback and problems serious!
- Show them how to overcome simple challenges themselves.

9. It’s all about productivity – End users
Category 2 “The Infrastructure”: The quality of the SharePoint infrastructure
Here some examples to improve “The Infrastructure”:
-Get the hard stuff right. Spend time in planning, design and performance
optimizations and spend time in doing Search right. A working Enterprise
Search leverages user acceptance significantly.
- Get the Information Management right. Find the balance of user freedom
and governance. Build your information infrastructure with having the
culture of information sharing in the focus.
-Try to reduce communication channels as much as possible!

10. It’s all about productivity – End users
Category 3 “The Attitude”: The user acceptance and motivation in the use of
SharePoint
Here some example measures to increase “The Attitude”:
-Emphasize remote work. Make it to your company culture, allowing people to
work, wherever they want. People like autonomy and autonomy results in higher
motivation!
- SharePoint empowers social networking. Let the users connect and build
communities about various business or leisure topics. Humans are social beings.
- Establish transparent and fast feedback channels. Knowing where we are and where
to go on any given time motivates us to go forward. People actually like to be
productive!
- Use Gamification to motivate and engage End Users

11. It’s all about productivity – End users
The technology acceptance model. A bit more scientific viewpoint…
“The Cognitive”
Perceived
usefulness
Actual
External Personal Intention
system
variables attitude to use
use
Simple “The Attitude”
To use
“The Infrastructure”

12. Basic productivity principles
 Effectivity
 Doing the right things
 Efficiency
 Doing the things right
 Pareto principle
 80% is done in 20% of time
 The last 20% (perfectness) need 80% of the time

13. SharePoint Developer productivity (1/2)
 Accept SharePoint as your best friend – see the potentials but also
accept the limitations.
 “Real developers” need to be guided to become a SharePoint
developer. SharePoint developers should keep in mind “real solutions”.
 Use «OOB first» as premise. Do not «hack» fundamental concepts and
architecture, but allow to use well known patterns and practices, even
if they seem to be redundant to SharePoint).
 f.e. Unity is a nice add on for client based features, even SharePoint
has its own “configurable features” (SharePoint patterns & practices).
 Think different - be innovative in choosing the right tool:
browser, designer, Power Shell, InfoPath, Report
Builder, Excel, Access, Visio.

14. SharePoint Developer productivity (2/2)
 Use TFS: user stories, tasks, change-set alerts to prove code quality.
 Visualization: Use UI mockups to talk to customers and colleagues
before start implementation (f.e. Balsamiq or PowerPoint).
 Architecture first: Even if you use only OOB elements and
functionalities, think about how to do it before starting
immediately with the implementation.
 Use CAMLEX.NET for your CAML queries.
 Short demo
 Another way to generate a SharePoint structure.

15. SharePoint IT Pro productivity
 Automate installation
 Fast setup, clean setup, reproducible
  Short demo: http://autospinstaller.codeplex.com
 Automate deployment
 Solution deployment
 Basic solution setup
 Operation
 Reuse scripted fixes
 Reuse maintenance tasks
 Generate dynamic reports (structures, data volumes, security)

16. SharePoint Project Team productivity
 Is SharePoint the right technology? If yes the team has to know the
SharePoint features. If no: “goto: next cool SharePoint project”
 Use SharePoint to plan and realize the project.
 Realize user stories – don’t migrate functions.
 Be honest - inform about limitations as soon as they show up and
show alternatives (under us: workarounds)
 Do not forget non-functional requirements. Clarify the application
lifecycle and its influence to the solution.

18. Gamification – Scratching on the surface
Will Gamification replace management?
“You’ve been awarded as this month’s
metadata hero!”
“You received the SharePoint content
rating badge!”
“Due to your valuable contribution in
making this intranet better, you get one
day off!”

19. What is Gamification anyway?
No, it does not mean that you can play Lord of the Rings Online during work hours…

20. What is Gamification anyway?
… But with Gamification we use elements from games to increase End User
motivation and make work even more fun! And we want happy End Users!
It’s also the reason why Farmville has more registered users than Twitter.
Gamification is the use of game mechanics and game design techniques in
non-game contexts. Typically Gamification applies to non-game applications
and processes, in order to encourage people to adopt them, or to influence
how they are used. – Definition by Wikipedia

21. Why Gamification anyway?
Some thoughts:
- Because people love games! They are fun and keep us entertained.
- Games can create FLOW in people which motivates us and we forget
everything around us.
- People actually do hours and hours of intensive work within games today
- Games are a part of our culture since the dawn or our time.
- Children learn the most effective way through play. Actually adults as well!
- Games connect people and we are social beings.
- People play for: Mastery, Destress, Socializing and having Fun!
Play is the highest form or research! – Albert Einstein

22. Some Gamification Principles
The SAPS rewarding principle:
S = Status: Bragging rights about a certain status. Classic examples are
Badges and Learder boards.
A = Access: Giving privileged access to players. For example fast access lane
for the airport check in if you own a bonus card and gained a certain amount
of bonus points.
P = Power: Giving “power” over other players in the environment. For
example forum moderators.
S = Stuff: Tangible objects to win. Everyone likes freebies and giveaways.
However the “Stuff” rewards are the least important rewards of all.

23. Some Gamification Principles
Transparent and hyper available feedback loops:
- A player is always aware of the current progression of the game.
- A player is always aware of the next steps ahead
- A player always knows if she or he performs well
- A player can use this information to perfectionise hers or his performance to
the next “Level”

24. Some Gamification Principles
The power of FLOW:
Achieving of FLOW –The players state between anxiety and boredom, meeting
his own motivational level in that experience. – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi a famous
psychology professor who studies happiness and creativity.

25. Gamification today – Some
examples
Jussi ousted Jussi as the Mayor of Scandic Marski! 
Every Check in counts!

26. Gamification today – Some
examples
Nike+ running App. Run to reach the next level. With every level you reach, the next
level is harder to get.

27. Gamification today – Some
examples
RedCritter Tracker
A project management tool which rewards project members with badges once a task
is done!

28. Gamification tomorrow
Some ideas:
- Gamification in learning portals. Create avatars for users who develop and earn XP by
attending courses, watching e-learning content and participate actively in the
community.
-Create monthly challenges to improve your Intranet: For example, monthly challenges
for End Users to create a list or library templates which improves collaboration.
Rewards like, getting a day off or free dinner for two.
- Make your MySite profile like a Company Hero Avatar. Everything you do in the
intranet will be rewarded by points which develop your avatar further. You raise levels
and with higher levels you can get elevated access.

29. How to implement Gamification?
There are some services already available!

30. Gamification and SharePoint
Track and reward the following user
behavior:
- Document Management (Creating and
Contributing)
- Creating, editing, or contributing to a wiki
page
- Starting or participating in a discussion thread
For SharePoint - Posting a comment on content
(docs, wikis, blogs, discussion threads)
URL: - Viewing pages
http://www.badgeville.com/prod - Rating content
ucts/connectors/badgeville-for- - Voting on content
sharepoint - Tagging content
- Employee collaboration

31. The essence of all this…
Frodo managed to get to Mordor and back!
Can you?