vSharePoint June 2013 - note the new place and time!

Hey folks,

We are changing up a few things this month to see if we can continue to build the group attendance and momentum. We certainly have a loyal core group coming out to most events but we would like to continue to share our enthusiasm for SharePoint with others.

So this month, we are trying a new time and venue. Please share these details with anyone interested in getting more out of SharePoint and/or direct them to https://www.meetup.com/vsharepoint.

A Quick Note on the Presentations

While we’ve done SharePoint 101 and Project Focused presentations in the past, I thought with this new timeslot and audience that it seemed like a good time to hit the reset button for anyone new to the platform and a refresher for the old timers.

As well, I've asked Rob to repeat his presentation from last month because it received great feedback and I expect much of this "daytime" audience to be different folks. Some of the most popular presentations are stories about the good, the bad and the ugly - the "real world" stuff that helps us all with our implementations - and Rob doesn't hold back.

I hope you come join us.

Sean

Agenda

11:30 to 12:00 – Meet & Greet. Grab a snack 12:00 to 1:00 – SharePoint 101 for the busy Project Manager, Sean Wallbridge (itgroove) 1:00 to 2:00 - BC Ferries SharePoint Implementation – Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo, Rob Morrison (BC Ferries)

Prizes

We always have nifty swag to give away. This month though we have something even better. We’ll be giving away a new, unlocked Windows Phone. That’s right… we will be playing heads or tails for a Nokia Lumia 800.

About the Presentations and Speakers

Rob Morrison, IT Manager (Maintenance, BI, SharePoint), BC Ferries

Title: BC Ferries SharePoint Implementation – Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo

Overview: BC Ferries went live with SharePoint 2010 in January 2011. Rob will share his experiences and challenges with not only getting a government organization using current technology, but also moving from a “need to know” to a collaborative culture. Some of the challenges should be fairly common so it would be good to hear from you on how you overcame them at your company as well.

Bio: Rob recently moved to Victoria and joined BC Ferries in April 2010 after spending 10 years with Teekay Shipping. While with Teekay (one of the largest crude oil, LNG, “super tanker” companies), Rob was fortunate to work out of Glasgow, Scotland for the last 5 years looking after IT Operations for the region. Rob has had brief stints with; Electronic Arts looking after IT studio support and playing video games, IBM rolling out a GSM network in Saudi Arabia while getting a suntan, and 360networks where he still has the “R” from the company sign after they went bankrupt.

Sean Wallbridge, SharePoint MVP, itgroove

Title: SharePoint 101 for the Busy Project Manager

Overview: SharePoint is a lot of things to a lot of people; Intranet, search, document management, partner extranet, records management platform … the list goes on. Simplified however, SharePoint is a place to collaborate on your “stuff” from virtually anywhere, anytime, on just about anything. For your PM “stuff”, you have a multitude of features you can utilize and approaches you can take. This session seeks to help clarify what SharePoint is, demystify the myriad of options available (on premise, online and from 3rd parties), and map SharePoint capabilities to the common Project Manager’s needs - however big or small they may be.

Bio: Sean is the President and Principal Consultant of itgroove and is a 5 Time SharePoint MVP and Evangelist. Sean likes to characterize himself as a "SharePoint Jedi" (there are no experts, just those who continue to explore the enormous ways of the SharePoint force) and there is no better way to describe Sean's enthusiasm for SharePoint!

Sean and itgroove ( http://www.itgroove.net ) specialize in bringing an informed, professional SharePoint experience to the small and mid-size companies that form the backbone of business in British Columbia and Canada. In addition to being a SharePoint MVP, Sean has a rich background in the Windows world and carries many certifications including CISSP, MCSE, MCT and MCSA. Sean has lived and worked internationally (Bermuda) and still carries on an international consulting practice from his base at itgroove in Victoria.