Business Impact Article - Posted 5/11/2007
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Document Management Solution Helps National Watchdog for Gas Safety.
“We had a big distributed file system where people would tuck documents away fifteen folders down, where nobody would ever find them again.” According to Matthew Farmer, IT Solutions Manager at CORGI, this was getting to be a serious problem. CORGI is the national watchdog for gas safety in the United Kingdom, with 350 employees, plus thousands of CORGI-certified engineers. Clearly, not being able to access the right information was a problem.
Farmer wanted to bring all the information together in a single one-stop shop where everyone could easily find it. Farmer worked with Artemis Corporation to develop a new intranet and a public Web site that both used Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007.
“The real reason for using Office SharePoint Server 2007 was that we could do both intranet and Web site with the same product,” says Farmer. Its “out of the box” functionality was much more cost-effective than that provided by other vendors or producing a completely custom solution. Artemis implemented the system very quickly, and the Web site went live in December 2006, with the intranet already two months old.
CORGI wanted an easy-to-use search feature on both the Web site and the intranet. This would help users get straight through to the right documents. It is the antidote to misfiled and hard-to-find data.
SharePoint Server’s search feature is “user friendly,” according to Farmer. It highlights the keywords in the results, which makes it easier for people to find what they are looking for. The organisation has also been able to put in “best bets” for certain search terms. Search is easy to use from the perspective of a content creator, too. It uses a familiar interface to add new files and administer the search system.
There are less tangible benefits as well. Farmer says that internal communications have improved. One manifestation of this is the chief executive’s blog (blogging is standard functionality of SharePoint Server). Another is the departmental sections on the intranets, where people collaborate. “You can see them being used,” says Farmer. This collaboration is a particular benefit for people who work away from the office—about half the organisation’s employees. It provides a central place for collaboration.
The most visible benefit of SharePoint Server’s new technology is on the public Web site. Since the new site went live, the number of page views have shot up—a fourfold increase. The site looks good and is easy to navigate, which means people stay longer. The search technology means that they can find what they need more quickly. SharePoint Server has really delivered for CORGI. It has helped more people find more information more easily, both within the company and on the Web site.
© 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY. Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
