Portals KM PS

Portals, Knowledge Management and Performance Support:Achieving Significant Outcomes: 

Portals, Knowledge Management and Performance Support: Achieving Significant Outcomes Gloria Gery Gery Associates Tolland, Massachusetts ggery@attglobal.net (413) 258-4693

Portals are HOT! : 

Portals are HOT! Huge development activity occurring Quick way to organize resources Trial and error design by everyone Not always designed to specific goals Needs and organizing and goal framework to achieve highest level outcomes knowledge management performance support

Website vs. Portal?: 

Website vs. Portal? Websites: delivery environment Portal: goal and user focused eBusiness: include transactions

Portal: 

Portal Integrated, single point of access to knowledge data tools communications task support Not a software application per se, but can provide access to applications A form of performance support

Portals: Types and Focus: 

Portals: Types and Focus Organization (Company, Department, Unit) Mission, Org. Charts, Contacts, News, Programs, Products,etc. Role (e.g. Manager Resource Center, Employee, Instructional Designers Center, Sales Reps, Physician) Tools, Content, Resources, Data, News, Related Sites, Communications Functional or Content ( Learning Center, Travel, Health, Financial) Tools, Data, Content News, Related Sites, Communications

Portals: Types and Focus (continued): 

Portals: Types and Focus (continued) Task Performance (Find and Purchase Product, Find a Job, Home Maintenance) Tools, Data, Content, Deliverable Creation, Communications Data (Accounts, Transactions, Orders, Inventory

Typical Goals and Design: 

Typical Goals and Design Combined types Often nested Goals sometimes confused Need to be explicit in advance! Collection Classification Filtration Integration

Collection & Aggregation: 

Collection & Aggregation Gathering of resources and putting them "in one place" to access. Reduce search and navigation complexity Assure complete resources: users don’t have to know what to look for

Classification: 

Classification Grouping content, resources, tools, applications into meaningful categories. easier identification and retrieval create organization frameworks for users

Improved Representation: 

Improved Representation Improvements in the way content is presented to increase clarity and meaning to users language form media metaphor visualization

Filtration: 

Filtration Mapping goals, tasks, processes, content, data, tools and tasks to profiled user groups and individuals filtered resources appropriate to identified user attributes filters defined by organization, user or both role, organization, location, job grade, security, etc.

Integration Within a Site: 

Integration Within a Site Bringing resources together to minimize expertise/knowledge requirements navigation synthesis Example: mapping knowledge to process or task so users can access filtered content while doing a given task. Integration combined with increasing task or process focus is among the most powerful results to achieve.

Integration Among and Between Portals: 

Integration Among and Between Portals Integrate across portals content multi-step, cross-functional tasks design controls, navigation, language, graphics, layout, interaction methods, functionality (e.g. search, index)

Transformation… We Must Reconceptualize: 

Transformation… We Must Reconceptualize Reconceiving design approach to focus on goals, tasks and user requirements rather than creator point of view aid in achievement as well as information access

Progression: 

Progression Within a project prior to release goal iteration Over time through versioning

Goals: 

Goals Create consistent, explicit, integrated extensible portals Establish momentum Balance structure and freedom Immediate use with little/no learning required Simple navigation to related resources Reusable content, tools, code, etc. Provide process support Rapid development Simple maintenance: content, systems, operations, relationships Focus on what users need -- not gratuitous elements Meeting present and future organizational needs Meet the needs of multiple users: duality of needs Developing and maintaining a community of practice to achieve integration: achieve blending

Requirements: 

Requirements Defined, agreed upon architecture components navigation structure interface controls and interaction methods components (e.g. search, index) language/terminology around generic components graphical design: layout, color options site behavior profiling mechanisms and filtering sites/data powerful living resources documents/tools for internal & external contracting: requirements for reuse (e.g. SOW’s, technical, standards, Section 508, controls, sources, tools) and method for understanding (e.g. web developers portal); evaluation metrics, content mgt. System requirements (technical) IT architecture Printer friendly view

Requirements (continued): 

Requirements (continued) Agreed upon relationships among and between sites and what’s on them Responsibility definition Collaboration among organizations Responsibilities - Control Points Process and security requirements: profiling. registration, etc. Method: style sheets, documentation Communications mechanisms: what exists, plans, etc. Accessibility: Section 508 compliance: Branding Content Guidelines (e.g. Professionalism, Appropriateness, Writing Style

Resource Types and Standards: 

Resource Types and Standards Types of Content/knowledge: e.g. policy, procedures, program info, product) Data: individual and group e.g. Training History, Transactions Performance Support Tools (task support) e.g. Calculators, Task Completion Wizards, Transaction Mechanisms) Software applications: e.g. (PeopleSoft, Modeling tools) Collaboration mechanisms: e.g. Message Boards, Instant Messaging Engines and data bases: Etc. TBD….

Site Structure, Navigation and Relationship Maps: 

Site Structure, Navigation and Relationship Maps What’s on a given site/ organization Relationship of among and between sites access methods reuse of components e.g. Learning Center accessible from Employee Resource; Index, Search, Code for populating pull-downs; ) Profiling criteria to filter views Etc. TBD

Issues: 

Issues Gaining agreement Phased implementation approach New design Integrating with existing sites Reengineering existing sites to new standards Modeling and documenting site structure and content Defining maintenance methods and responsibility

Slide22: 

Personal Financial Portal Data (only filtered component) News Tasks Products Interesting implementation of menus within tabbed folder

Slide23: 

Personal Financial Portal Planning Context Events focus Task Focus (plan, analyze, allocate, develop strategy Integrated content resources

Slide24: 

Personal Financial Portal: Research Context News Data

Slide25: 

Data Portal: Airline Mileage Filtered data multiple views click to underlying transactions Tasks (Mining Mileage Product/Program Content

Slide26: 

Data Portal: Airline Mileage Data by airline program Click on airline name for underlying detail leading to mileage and how many miles to next award level

Slide27: 

Content Focus Content Search Personal Data Tools News Communications Events Product (pharmacy)

Slide28: 

Content Focus Content Search Personal Data Tools News Communications Events Product (pharmacy)