Chapter 4 - Develop and Utilize User-Friendly Project Websites

Abstract

This chapter addresses many obstacles to project team productivity, and project websites are at the top of the list. Project managers who utilize extranet project websites must be continually sensitive to project team member productivity. This chapter recommends the role of project websites based on lessons learned, with an emphasis on maintaining project team productivity. It begins with a brief synopsis of Microsoft SharePoint. Under this, it highlights several lessons learned and useful project website features, such as those to manage project contractual communication with the client involving project scope adjustments and changes. It states that many project managers with extensive website experience view a small number of project website features as indispensible and key to their success. It also provides an understanding of the perception of website value from the user perspective, thus influencing personal productivity. Following this, it discusses guidelines for developing website organization, illustrating an example of collaborative website structure in ER companies. Furthermore, it presents some project website templates by illustrating Project SharePoint sites, including web parts, that can be saved as a “project website template” to achieve a consistent project website organization among projects. Finally, it illustrates the Project Correspondence Log. The Project Correspondence Log is a custom list (database) that can be sorted according to user needs.