Community Resources for Intranet Owners

Intranet owners have a wealth of resources at their disposal, catering to their needs across various aspects of intranet management. Whether you’re looking to configure your intranet, enhance your knowledge through self-guided learning, explore powerful user configurations, or seek inspiration from configuration examples, there are numerous community-driven assets available to you.

Basic Configuration

Intelligent Intranet by Microsoft

Intelligent Intranet is a Microsoft site that offers insights into their vision for intranets, providing a comprehensive understanding of what an intranet entails. It’s particularly helpful for those new to the concept and serves as a persuasive resource when advocating for intranet solutions.

Governance Questions by Sue Hanley

Sue has curated this intensive deck with governance questions that guide you in formulating an effective governance strategy tailored to your organization’s needs. These questions prompt critical thinking about how your organization intends to utilize these technologies and therefore how to build them.

SharePoint Look Book

SharePoint Look Book, introduced over five years ago, serves as an idea generator, showcasing what you can achieve with Microsoft’s technology. It shows examples of sites that you can build which can be installed directly into your own tenant (as a global admin) or dev tenant. It provides insights into how the page was built, what sections are in the page, how they are laid out, which combination of webparts are used to make a particular visual, what are the settings for the webparts, etc.

Microsoft Learning Pathways

Microsoft Learning Pathways, available within SharePoint Look Book, is a micro-learning tool that aggregates Microsoft provided training across M365. You can also use the tool to create your own training assets and surface them in context for your users. This resource simplifies training within your organization by centralizing learning materials. While you don’t need the Look Book to install it, the Look Book provides a convenient starting point, complete with web part configurations and usage instructions.

Flicon.io

Developed by Chris Kent, Flicon.io facilitates the search for icons by associating user-friendly names with them. For example, if you want a dog icon in SharePoint the name of that icon is “Fangbody”. Unless you already knew that it would be nearly impossible to find. Flicon.io provides the Microsoft name as well as customization options like color selection and export formats. You can create a library of icon files for use in web parts, simplifying your intranet’s visual design.

Self-Led Training

Microsoft 365 Community Content

Microsoft 365 Community Content comprises contributions from community members, offering insights and solutions that span different product lines. This resource is not constrained by Microsoft’s silos but is driven by individuals with real-world experience.

Tech Community: Corporate Communications

For those interested in corporate communications within the intranet model, the Tech Community provides a platform for sharing thoughts and engaging with others. It’s an excellent space for seeking advice, discussing challenges, and fostering dialogue.

Power User Configuration Examples

List Formatting Samples

The Patterns and Practices team provides a repository of list formatting samples, demonstrating how to use JSON to create custom layouts for columns, views, and list forms. These samples range from simple color changes to complex views. However, not all samples are intended for production use. We suggest testing them first as you’ll likely need to do some configuration and editing depending on your lists.

PnP Modern Search enables the creation of custom search experiences, offering various functionalities like sliding, filtering, and more. Visit our archive of Ask Sympraxis sessions as we provide in-depth information on using PnP Modern Search.

Art of the Possible

SPFx Reference Samples

Microsoft and the PnP team provide a GitHub repository of reference samples. This includes extensibility examples, including web parts, team apps, and adaptive card extensions. These samples often come with instructions and installable packages. We consider this a fantastic resource to help show your boss, or boss’s boss, what is truly possible with Microsoft 365.

The Adaptive Card Gallery in the Microsoft Store features 14 ready-to-use adaptive card extensions, which are used on Microsoft Viva Connections dashboards. You can easily access and integrate these extensions into your intranet.

Learn Live Resources

PnP Community Calls: These regular calls offer insights into various topics and provide links to event calendars and YouTube videos for reference.

Sharing is Caring: This initiative also provides Teams call, including the Maturity Model Practitioners call, that are meant to foster interactive and safe spaces to get information and ask questions. These calls are not recorded.

Community-Led Events: Explore in-person and remote events through Community Days and CollabDays sites. These platforms list all upcoming events in local areas, giving you the opportunity to engage with like-minded individuals and industry experts.

In conclusion, as an intranet owner, these community resources are invaluable for your journey. They empower you to configure your intranet effectively, develop your skills, and explore the vast potential of Microsoft 365. If you wish to join an upcoming live event, register for the Collabdays New England on Oct. 21st and clear your calendar for Feb. 2nd, 2024 for Microsoft 365 Community Day Miami. Both events are free and have many of the same speakers, content, and networking opportunities available at the larger paid events. We hope to see you there!

All Resources

Do you have any questions for us? Continue the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #AskSympraxis and mention @SympraxisC.