Groove, SharePoint and BizTalk

Well, my current consulting contract ends this week so once again I am on the lookout for income producing opportunities. I’ve had the good luck and/or misfortune to become quite expert with Microsoft SharePoint, BizTalk and Groove.

I designed and implemented the world’s largest SharePoint site and at the same time have managed to piss off legions of SharePoint developers all over the world who worship Microsoft like a god due to my article (linked to elsewhere on this blog) pointing out the weaknesses of SharePoint. I like SharePoint but Microsoft needs someone (like me but I can think of others) to manage and direct the product in a professional manner.

I’ve used BizTalk since the day it shipped, but it too needs new management. More importantly, Microsoft needs to figure out how to market it. The product is great but trying to explain it and show what it can do is challenging to say the least.

Please take Ray Ozzie, Lotus Notes and Microsoft Groove and put them wherever Jimmy Hoffa is currently residing. I was present at the Lotus Notes announcement in Boston during Networld which I think was in 1989. Anyway Jim Manzi showed two people on stage with one supposedly in London and the other in Boston, sharing a spreadsheet thanks to this hot new product, Lotus Notes. My thought at the time was Big Whoop. Nowadays whenever I encounter Lotus Notes in a corporate environment, it is being used not for collaboration but because it is viewed as being less likely to be vulnerable to a virus attack than Microsoft Exchange. As for Groove, the only market I have seen it used in to any extent, is law enforcement which also uses SharePoint extensively because it is mandated by the Department of Homeland Security. Microsoft has cleaned up Groove (well what will be Groove 12 which is in beta) to where it is actually somewhat usable for collaboration. It’s still as dull as Lotus Notes though and frankly doesn’t carry that much weight to collaboration except in special circumstances (like law enforcement cases).

So I’m great at building collaboration within companies as well as solving complex business problems. Basically I’m talented at making companies wealthier due to higher productivity.

Maybe I need a marketing manager to sell my skills. Anyway don’t hesitate to contact me if you have an opportunity that I can fill.