Red meat…for heroes that rent
iron and move dirt
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Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Options
• Opinions
• Results
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Options
– On demand
• Often called “hosted” or “ASP model” software
• Also called “Software as a service” or SAAS
• Web based and accessed via a login
– Client-server
• Someone installs software on your PC that talks to a
server somewhere
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Opinions
– On demand
• Little or no IT department involvement means you’re up
and running immediately with no installs
• Very inexpensive
• Security risks of remote data storage minimal
• Team members can access software anywhere/anytime
• Fixes, enhancements, etc. delivered in real time
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Opinions
– Client Server
• Led by IT department typically which slows results by
definition
• Usually overpowered for what 95% of teams need
• Require administration by high paid employees or
agents
• Require installs and updates on clients
• Costs more upfront (and probably over the long term
also)
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Results
– I’ve used on demand collaboration software for 2+
years now. Here are my results.
• Reduction in complex solution deployment times by
42%
• 66% reduction in “team e-mail spam” i.e. endless CC:’s
that have little to do with me
• Availability of information via authenticated RSS feeds
• Instant status reports
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Results
– I’ve used on demand collaboration software for 2+
years now.
• Archived “database” of project communication and
documentation
• Reduced “seek time” for project related information
• Greater visibility of successes since key players have
“always on” access to progress
• Increased accountability across the enterprise
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Results
– I’ve used on demand collaboration software for 2+
years now.
• Increasingly powerful project “templates” evolve over
time and provide replication multiplier effect
• Wiki functionality means team captures ad hoc data in a
searchable group environment vs. “on his or her hard
disk
• Built in meeting tools facilitate easy remote
participation with less travel
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.

Leveraging Collaboration Software for Project Success
• Results
– The net/net
• On-demand project collaboration software has saved
me the equivalent of 2 professional manager salaries
each year
• The bonus
– I keep finding more ways to save as my expertise with the
software evolves…and as the software evolves to match
customer demands
Red meat...for heroes that rent iron and move dirt.