Leverage your Investment in Microsoft SharePoint with KnowledgeWorker.

Microsoft SharePoint is being increasingly used by companies of all sizes as a Portal and Document Repository. Microsoft has pitched SharePoint as an Enterprise Content Management (ECM) application, but in reality it is missing some key functionality: -

• Workflow / BPM
• Enterprise Search
• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Records Management
• Archiving

Another constraint within SharePoint is the scalability of its Document Management System (DMS), which is more aligned to a departmental DMS rather than a true Enterprise DMS. In part, this is down to the fact that SharePoint stores its content in the Database rather than using Virtual Storage.

The new KnowledgeWorker MS SharePoint integration module “plugs” the functionality gap in the SharePoint portfolio and allows existing and future SharePoint users to leverage their investment by providing more “out of the box” functionality.

The KnowledgeWorker integration has the following functionality: -

• SharePoint “sites” can be added into the KnowledgeWorker Library or Projects area as simply as adding a new Folder.
• The SharePoint folder can be configured in 3 different ways: -
  • 1. The folder contains “links” to SharePoint files and folders, exactly mimicking the structure of the SharePoint site. It looks as if the content is inside KnowledgeWorker, but in fact the site just has the links to the SharePoint content, and retrieves any information in real time when requested. This option would be used where the primary users and content creators are SharePoint users, but making all the content “transparently” available to all KnowledgeWorker users.
  • 2. A full or partial SharePoint site can be “uploaded” into KnowledgeWorker, with all the content replicated within KnowledgeWorker. This option will “extract” the original documents stored in the SQL database and upload them into the KnowledgeWorker vaults. This option is used where the primary users and content creators are KnowledgeWorker users, but need “transparent” access to SharePoint folders and content. This option would also be very useful for SharePoint content that needs to be archived into an Enterprise DMS.
  • 3. A full or partial SharePoint site can be “uploaded” into KnowledgeWorker with full “Synchronisation”. In this instance all the content is replicated within KnowledgeWorker and like option 2 will “extract” the original documents stored in the SQL database and upload them into the KnowledgeWorker vaults. However this option also keeps the two repositories in “sync” so that any document added into KnowledgeWorker are also added into SharePoint and vice-versa. This option would be used where the primary users and content creators are both SharePoint and KnowledgeWorker users, and where all the content for a specific site or folder structure needs to be “transparently” available to all users and kept in synchronisation.

By using any of these options, SharePoint users will be able to utilise the KnowledgeWorker powerful features such as Workflow, XML Publishing, Project Collaboration, DAM, Enterprise Search and CRM system. It will enable SharePoint users to get more “out of the box” functionality at a lower cost than bespoke customisation.