Intranet Management Software Blog

Managing and Maintaining user accounts is always struggle for an IT team.  They have to work closely with the HR department to ensure that new starters and leavers are granted and removed from the appropriate groups on the internal network.  This can often be a struggle even without an intranet; so introducing an Intranet to the business can cause additional complexities.  However… there are options available to ensure that this potential issue is reduced, or even eliminated entirely.

The Claromentis Intranet Software offers a variety of methods for ensuring that the Intranet user accounts are simple and easy to manage and maintain.

The options for manging user accounts within Claromentis are:

1. Manual User Creation and Deletion
2. Bulk User Import and Update using CSV
3. Auto Sync with Active Directory using LDAP

All of the options above have their pro’s adn con’s, but most importantly, the options are available, and you can in-fact use any combination of them, at any time.

Let me explain.

The IT department may not be prepared to introduce a syncronization option at the beginning of the intranet deployment process, so they may wish to begin with a bulk upload of a collection of users by using the CSV file import process.  If then at a later date, the IT department decides that they would like to switch to an automated synchronization process, the switch is simple. Claromentis can provide instructions and assistance with the switch; and I can tell you now, the process is relatively straight forward to complete. If then at a later date, the company decides that they wish to manage accounts on the intranet as a manual process; again, the switch to do this is again relatively straight forward.
The point is simple. Claromentis Intranet Software offers 3 very different ways of managing user accounts on the Intranet Software. Each of these methods is designed to sit neatly with a variety of existing network infrastructures and business models, from 5 user systems to 50,000 user systems. Whatever your implementation; Claromentis ensures that managing and maintaining access to the system is straight forward and simple.
If you are an existing Claromentis Customer, and would like to find out more about the items discussed in this post, please contact the Claromentis Support Team.

Services intranet, ldap, managing users

Claromentis as a company recently embraced 5 core values that form a foundation of all of our approaches to our projects, and to our work with partners and suppliers alike.

Choice : this expresses itself in several areas, but is certainly one of our main values.
Any Operating system, any browser, any database, any delivery mechanism , any language.

Design : all of our interfaces area a pleasure to work in. Corporate software should be attractive, welcoming, intuitive and inspirational.

Clarity : we believe that most business challenges and IT solutions can be either clearly communicated in simple language or else are a distraction for all concerned.

Risk Management Our engagement model working through a proof of concept before significant funds are committed ensures that we minimize your risks in selecting Claromentis as a partner.

Fun to work with. We deal with complex information and process management issues – these should be important to your business – solving them should be an enjoyable process of working with talented people that can together make a difference.

I was in an all day client meeting today with a range of stakeholders in a complex Portal project that involves various private and public sector companies and organizations. And my conclusion from that experience is that the most valuable of these 5 values, particularly in the early stages of any project, is Clarity.

Time and time again we are able to engage people with diverse backgrounds, understand their requirements and explain the possible solutions in a clear, concise and meaningful way.

All of the other values build on a solid foundation of a clear understanding of the business requirements. There is no point having fun working together if the business definitions are unclear – fun would soon turn to tears. So although being clear takes effort, focus, patience and communication skills I personally believe it is our foundation for all projects.

1 Corinthians 13:13 And now stays faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Nigel : Claromentis Blog : Choice, Design, Clarity, Risk Management and Fun : the greatest of these is clarity.

Partners clarity, values

The world is a challenging environment right now, but for Claromentis it is full of opportunity as our cross platform, commercial but open source extendable information management solutions continue to be adopted around the world.

This global opportunity brings with it several challenges for us:

• Making sure we provide the partner channel with everything they need to promote Claromentis in their own language and culture. This involves localisation files, user guides and web site content translation just to get on the first page.

• Making sure we are sensitive to understanding the partners abilities – when all of the communications with us is in for them a foreign language and if we are not extremely attentive this can lead to considerable misunderstandings and incorrect perceptions.

• Recognizing that in many parts of the world we as a company do not yet understand which of our solutions are the most appropriate to add value to the local customer base.

• Being very aware that we are not aware of the alternative solutions available in that country, and so need to embark on a discovery process with new partners in each new area.

• Trying to set and maintain a suitable pricing model for our customers, partners and ourselves.

But despite these challenges this is just such an enjoyable process. Working with customers and partners from other countries and cultures brings all of us a special interest. We so enjoy meeting our partners and customers from around the world – it adds to all of our lives in so many ways.

Partners global, partners

I was thrilled tonight to see the wife of one of our directors being interviewed on television – refreshingly nothing to do with information management software but actually about her wonderful business of making cakes – see here.

It reminded me once again of the importance of individual talent and enthusiasm, and how lucky we are in Claromentis with the people we have. It is simply amazing what the right team of people can achieve.

I don’t expect to be contacted by the BBC anytime soon for a TV production, but its still nice to get articles about the direction of Claromentis from online channels like CMS wire – for example this one which was published by Irina Guseva this week.

We all talk about buzz marketing, the truth is that given any opportunity at all true talent will just shine out – we don’t need to work hard at creating a buzz, we need to work hard at being great at what we do.

Services intranet software, talent

I am very pleased to say that Claromentis has received ISO9001 accreditation for Quality Management.

This includes the audit of our bespoke and core code processes, which are end to end from specifications to sign off.

It ensures that we :

• Have a set of procedures that cover all key processes in the business;
• Are monitoring processes to ensure they are effective;
• Keep adequate records;
• Are always  checking our code for defects, with appropriate and corrective action where necessary;
• Are regularly reviewing individual processes and the quality system itself for effectiveness; and
• Are facilitating continual improvement.

Thanks to everyone for your help with the work we put in over the last 6 months to gain this important certification.

Prod-Quality ISO9001, Quality

Exceeding client expectations is one of the major key parts for sustainable success, specially during times of economic downturn.

As an interface developer working for one of the best corporate intranet software providers, I need to make sure that a client is satisfied when it comes to their expectations - whereas the client needs to make sure that the software provider is delivering results on time, to specifications, correctly and efficiently.

A comprehensive intranet solution like Claromentis has so many different aspects. For a client, they receive one piece of a software suite and most, if not all, that matters to them is whether it works or not.

Although the other side of the story is complex - in essence the sales process has set expectations, and I need to deliver against them. To help me I have mentors of course, and developers - but to be honest coding intranet interfaces from approved designs is a job I can normally just get on with. So how can I make sure that I exceed customer expectations..? A lot needs to take place before I code a single line ..

• Marketing: Make sure that the product is described accurately, and is the current release not vapor ware - a potential source of miss-matched expectations, in my experience.
• Quotation: Understand the client expectations, analyze the work involved and quote correctly. Try to get technical Claromentis input here!
• Review: Review the response from the client to the quotation. If positive but we need something else, plan any future requirements for delivery of the product and allocate to a release schedule.
• Design and develop: Here I go - create the interface based on client’s requirements.
• Custom development: Develop the custom functionality if required and embed into the product. A  review process takes place here, with client staff, development and myself. We involve the account manager wherever possible.
• Configure: Set the product for review on a staging server and make sure it is working to final specifications.
• Support: Assist the client on solving complex intranet software issues.

The important part here is setting the expectations of… both sides actually. It is important to assure the client that they will get the software as promised whereas our staff should have enough material to  deliver what is required - and not something else entirely!

It is fun though - getting it right takes talent and a lot of creativity… but we do create some great designs for information management in a VI!

Services intranet development

For those of you that don’t already know, LAMP is an acronym for Linux - Apache – MySQL - PHP. It’s a collection of software that can be used to run servers and dynamic websites. It’s one of the most popular alternatives to Microsoft, and according to statistics provided by netcraft.com not only is Apache holding around 60% market share in the delivery/presentation of websites, but it’s thriving on the open source platforms and continuing to grow and compete (successfully) against Microsoft. It doesn’t take a genius to work out that any piece of software that can even compete (let alone lead) in its market against a super company like Microsoft has to have something special about it. Well, it’s no secret why the LAMP solution is so popular, it just works, it works well, it’s reliable, it’s robust, it’s resilient, and it’s free.

Without going into all of the nitty-gritty debates about why you should and shouldn’t base a corporate solution on an open source platform (there are enough of these debates on the Internet already), it’s not hard to realize why Claromentis run all of their development on the LAMP platform. The LAMP platform allows the development team to manage all aspects of their programming environment without relying on Microsoft to ensure the stability of that environment. Depending on who you talk to, avoiding Microsoft can be complete suicide, or a dream come true. Personally, I’m a believer in the statistics, and if 60% of the websites are running on Apache, my money is on that platform to deliver the best of everything. And I’ve never met a PHP developer who programs on anything else.

However, Claromentis doesn’t believe in limitations, so we let you decide which platform you wish to run the applications on. The Claromentis framework is compatible with LAMP, Windows, and ORACLE, so it works the way you do, integrating easily with your existing IT infrastructure.

For more information about Claromentis and the platforms it can run on, please contact sales@claromentis.com or call us on 01273 666 355

Resources-Technical apache, LAMP, Linux, mysql, open source, php, platform, windows

If you didn’t know already, the Claromentis Infocapture application has the ability to extend it’s framework with the aid of plug-ins.  Plug-ins are add-ons to the application, allowing you to do almost anything with data that the application collects or manages.  You can use a plug-in to import data into the e-form automatically, export the data to 3rd party application/database or file, provide extended field verification and form checking, perform advanced calculations and data manipulation amongst an almost endless variety of other system process enhancing capabilities.

But the use of plugins doesn’t just stop there…

When you think about integrating the InfoCapture Application with another (or several) of the other applications within the Claromentis Framework, plug-ins step into a whole new league .

The InfoCapture Application can already integrate easily with Claromentis Sales Manager, to embed e-forms within pages about each company (to work in conjunction with Contact and Opportunity management), but combine that with InfoCapture plug-ins, and not only are you extending in the CRM system by intergrating with Infocapture, but you have the ability to extend it even further with the use of plug-ins.

I should also not fail to mention that InfoCapture and the Claromentis Document Manager application are also close friends, with linking to documents available within e-forms as standard(while still applying the correct document permissions!).

So where else can this go…

InfoCapture has envolved over the years to become such an adaptable data collection application, it could sit comfortably with so many of the Claromentis Applications.

You could use InfoCapture with other applications such as…

• Creating Special Calendar Events (Calendar)
• Booking meeting rooms (Room Booking)
• Booking holidays (Holiday Planner)
• Managing your email (Webmail)
• Managing your un-qualified sales leads (CRM)

The list could go on….

Imagine combining the Claromentis Project Manager Application with InfoCapture, and using plug-ins to extend the capabilities of them both.

The effectiveness of easily customizable and incredibly powerful e-forms solution combined with a project management application is a sure guarantee to gaining a decent ROI.  How many other project management applications allow such flexibility and extendability with the aid of an application like Claromentis InfoCapture and plug-ins?

So I ask the question again… how powerful are InfoCapute plug-ins??

And the answer appears to be… incredibly so….

Prod-Process e-forms, extending, infocapture, plugins

When it comes to find the easiest solution to manage intranet and extranet content, Claromentis has some great nifty features for users on every level.

Today, almost all content management solutions offer you a WYSIWYG text based content editor, which means what you create on the editor section is what you will see on the actual page. Cool, but nothing special!

What makes Claromentis special is the way it interacts with your content. Let me explain you a bit further:

In Claromentis, it is possible to create templates and define editable areas. Let’s say you have a page which contains 3 sections; one for the menu, one for the main content and one for the links of websites you visit frequently. I also presume that you would like to have some images within your main content section.

With Claromentis easy-to-use content management software, you define the areas above and their field type. For consistency purposes, you wouldn’t want your intranet and/or users to change the overall look and feel of your template, so you wouldn’t want them to change the main title font size or colour. So you can define the header section of your main content area as ’string’, which means your users will only be able to change the content of the header section but not its styling.

You have your template ready and its sections defined. The next step is populating the actual content. How would you do this? Simple. Just look at the following picture and you will get the idea:

Easy to use content management solution

It is also possible to create areas within your template which are not editable by users. This could be a company slogan or a footer area which contains company address information.

Customizable Intranet Software: Works the way you do…

Prod-Content CMS

We have always been careful to acknowledge that customisable intranet solutions are an area where terminology can create confusion for the customer.

But as soon as you add e-forms – to enable paper based processes to go online – the possibility misunderstandings and the need for patient listening and careful explanations becomes much more acute.

It just seems that there is so much potential for a natural disconnect. Customers might be under the perception that :

* Forms are documents
* E-forms are just like web forms
* All paper based processes should be automated instead of those that deliver value if they are moved online.

None of these are true.

Fortunately we have the staff to listen, to be advocates, and to explain what we can deliver.

Prod-Process eforms, intranet, software