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SharePoint Information Architecture Best Practices
The document outlines best practices for implementing information architecture (IA) in SharePoint, emphasizing the importance of user-centric design over organizational hierarchy. It highlights common mistakes such as over-reliance on search and the need for effective metadata management to enhance content findability. Key recommendations include focusing on user behavior, transcending physical structures in design, and controlling vocabularies with managed metadata.
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SharePoint Information Architecture Best Practices
- 1. SHAREPOINT IA BEST PRACTICES (4out of 5 Dentists Agree) SHAREPOINT SYMPOSIUM 2013 STEPHANIE LEMIEUX
- 2. STEPHANIE LEMIEUX President &Principal Consultant • Specialized in taxonomy & metadata, governance • Lots of experience implementing taxonomy & IA across different tools: CMS, DMS, Intranet, Faceted Search, DAM…and yes, SharePoint • MLIS from McGill University (i.e. I’m a librarian) • Huge data nerd
- 3. • Who we are:Boutique firm specializing in taxonomy & information architecture… We create practical and elegant solutions to make content more findable. • Based in Montreal, Canada • What we do: taxonomy, metadata development, search, information architecture, digital asset management, governance, etc.
- 4. SharePoint is easy toimplement badly
- 5. TYPICAL SHAREPOINT PROJECTS Biz Reqs Implement Implementtttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt Business Req’s Implement Business Req’s Where is the information architecture? Examples courtesy of Lulu Pachuau: http://www.slideshare.net/LuluP/information-architecture-and-sharepoint Implement
- 6. 4 out of5 dentists agree that lying through your teeth about IA does not count as flossing
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- 8. Michal Pisarek Seth Earley SharePoint IA Trainer& Consultant SharePoint MVP & IA Consultant Sue Hanley Author of Essential SharePoint 2013 Ruven Gotz Author of Practical SharePoint IA Shawn Shell Author of SharePoint Report for Real Story Group Our panel of “dentists”
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- 10. Over-reliance on search tocover for bad IA
- 11. 5 SHAREPOINT IA BESTPRACTICES 2013 game changers &
- 12. #5: DON’T FOLLOW THE ORGSTRUCTURE 4 out of 5 dentists agree…
- 14. WHY DOES THISSUCK? • Organizational changes happen all the time • Nobody really knows who owns what or does what • Most people are focused on processes & projects And… isn’t the point to encourage departments? collaboration across
- 15. THINK OUTSIDE THEORG CHART ü Functions & processes ü X-functional teams & projects ü Clients ü Products ü Content types ü Geography ü Etc.
- 16. GOOD SITE ARCHITECTURE …takes a functional/activities view of the organization … survives organizational change … allows people to see the overall context of their organization and their work … uses language everyone understands … is based on actual user behaviors & insights “Focus on the work instead of the Web site.” -- Susan Hanley, the Essential SharePoint 2013
- 17. IN 2013 Suite Bar& Sites Tab - Sticky at the top links: easy way to get back home - List of sites “followed”: develop a personal IA
- 18. #4: TRANSCEND PHYSICAL STRUCTURE 4 outof 5 dentists agree…
- 19. LET’S GET PHYSICAL SharePointis based on a physical structure that used to define… pretty much everything Web applications ierarchy, ainment h d the cont nderstan nd by it. U Sites on’ t be bou but d Site collections Sub-sites Lists & libraries
- 20. SEARCH-DRIVEN PUBLISHING Search indexingnow crosses site collections and content can be aggregated & displayed across multiple sites http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint/jj872721.aspx
- 21. “CSWP” Content Query Web Part ContentSearch Web Part Aggregate content from anywhere based on a search query and style it however you want!
- 22. USE SEARCH TOCREATE ASSOCIATIVE NAVIGATION Home http://www.slideshare.net/nform/information-architecture-for-sharepoint-11389777?from_search=12
- 23. MANAGED METADATA NAVIGATION Term storecan now manage consistent global navigation across site collections, masking physical boundaries. http://sp2013.blogspot.ca/2012/07/metadata-driven-navigation.html
- 24. Design the ideal …thenfigure out how you can make it happen with the containment hierarchy and options available
- 25. #3: A LITTLE METADATAGOES A LONG WAY 4 out of 5 dentists agree…
- 26. FOLDERS MOSTLY SUCK Folders(any physical structure, really) = LAZY And they don’t tell you much, unless you create bottomless hierarchies. • • • • What is this about? What region does it cover? What product is it about? What year is it for?
- 27. USE MOSTLY METADATA ü enhance searchability of content ü filter/sort/view lists & libraries ü control content display (via search web part) ü control navigation ü enhance search user interface ü trigger workflow, info policies
- 28. DON’T GO CRAZYWITH CONTENT TYPES When do you create a new content type or metadata field? RM Need Workflow/ Process (template) CM/Search Need http://carstenknoch.com/2012/04/sharepoint-metadata-design-principles/
- 29. Rule of thumb: If you have more content types than you do staff, you’re doing something wrong. LESS IS MORE.
- 30. STANDARDIZE WHAT YOUCAN Use content types to standardize key enterprise metadata Item Document Set Publication Contract Document ? Enterprisewide metadata Asset ? ? Image Magazine article ? Function/ contentspecific metadata
- 31. AUTOMATE WHAT YOUCAN Leverage structure & profiles to automate some metadata • Document location (document library, sets, smart folders*) • User profile Rules of Thumb 1. Keep the number of fields as small as possible 2. Majority of fields should tie back to a work process with clear user value 3. Use default values VERY carefully
- 32. DOCUMENT LIBRARIES & CONTENTTYPES Put multiple types in one library or one type per library? Impact of multiple types: • Can’t do “group by” • Having to choose a content type • Can apply multiple policies/workflows • Multiple templates • Can still have different metadata
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- 34. #2: CONTROL VOCABULARY USING MANAGED METADATA 4out of 5 dentists agree…
- 35. CONTROL KEY METADATA CENTRALLY Usethe term store to predefine & manage key vocabularies used in metadata When to make it managed metadata? • Likely to be used by multiple groups (global vs. local) • Terminology needs governance • Needs synonyms • Requires hierarchy • Would be useful as navigation/filter options
- 36. LEVERAGE SYNONYMS Synonyms arehelpful both in tagging & search (but search must be configured separately) Hanley: Essential Sharepoint 2013
- 37. METADATA-BASED NAVIGATION Keep theseultrasimple. Most people won’t use it if it looks complicated (e.g. Key Filters). Especially useful if you have multiple content types in one library. http://www.titus.com/blog/2010/11/metadata-navigation-and-sptechcon-boston-recap/
- 38. Warning: the termstore is not a taxonomy management tool or autoclassifier.
- 39. No matter howawesome your structure, people will still search sometimes. Try to make it suck less.
- 40. #1: GIVE SEARCH ALITTLE LOVE 4 out of 5 dentists agree…
- 41. GIVE SEARCH ACHANCE • Configure synonyms • Use query rules • Promote a result • Supplement a query with additional property & KW filters http://blogs.technet.com/b/mspfe/archive/2013/02/01/how-query-rules-and-result-sources-can-be-used-to-customize-searchresults.aspx
- 42. CUSTOMIZE THE REFINEMENT PANEL Choose morerelevant filter options Hide useless graphics
- 43. Spend time figuringout logical structures, then worry about Sharepoint-izing them http://www.zazzle.com/red+dirt+posters
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