I’d be interested in the views of the community as to whether they think that delivering SharePoint projects is:
- Art
- Science
- Something Else…
I’m still wrestling with my views, on the one hand a lot of aspects of SharePoint that I am personally involved in are very much evolving, I tend to see them in an art or even artisan way, however there is also a huge amount of what I would class as ‘science’ that underpins my consulting, especially around complexity theory, organisational dynamics and those kind of aspects.
What do you think?
Does it matter?
Is it a mixture?
Do these concepts affect how you approach SharePoint delivery?
I like the perspective that approaching SharePoint from both Science and Art perspectives is a sign of maturity, that makes a lot of sense.
The expectations of the environment is also key and what I call the ‘Why?’. What difference will the platform make to the business in tangible terms?
I think if that persons sole role is SharePoint, they could succeed at it. Of course in most organizations I work with, the SharePoint “role” is really only a part of the full job.
It goes more to the point of “You have to invest in SharePoint to get a return from SharePoint”. There should always be more return than investment, but there is still an investment. The more you invest, the more return you will have. If you have the artist and the scientist, you will have a more “mature” environment.
The other half is what is the expectations of the environment. That will determine who and what types are needed.
Thanks Eric,yes a very good answer, I’d agree with you.
What is interesting is whether one [SharePoint] person can do both i.e. be the artist and the scientist in a SharePoint project?
I look at the farm architecture, server configuration, networking, etc. as more science based. There are a lot of “rules” that need to be followed to be successful. On the other side, the Information Architecture, branding, solution development, etc is much more an Art since there are multiple ways to accomplish things.
So, my answer is both, it is a mixture of both.
Its Bl**dy hard work, but fun ! Its neither an art nor a science. If it was a science, then all SharePoint projects would be perfect because we would have the formulae for perfect projects. It more like running up a mountain with your feet in 1 ft of mud all the way up. Every so often you get stuck and fall flat on your face in the mud, so you get yourself up, wipe the mud off your face and get moving again.
