Office 365 Distilled

October13th 2023 @SouthCoastSummit https://www.southcoastsummit.com/workshop/practical-microsoft-365-baseline-governance/ 

In this final Wee Dram for August, we look at the 11 steps that form part of the Governance Workshop from the South Coast Summit on Friday, 13th of October in Farnborough UK.

This is a 10 minutes piece of fun but full of Golden Nuggets if you are looking to try and do governance in your organisation.  11 steps in 10 minutes and if they make sense but the workshop in the diary and join us for a day of Governance fun.

The boys get distracted as always as the Autumn Speaker circuit comes alive.  The conclude with Governance at the South Coast Summit (join their workshop at Practical Microsoft 365 Baseline Governance – South Coast Summit ) Recorded live at Marijn’s place, where the boys are constantly distracted by the world walking passed... 

Steve’s memory is again letting him down as he tries to remember the name of the artist he saw a week ago because the boys have been singing “Changes’ from Mr David Bowie since they suggested today’s subject.

So, the subject is change, and specifically, they discuss the implications of Outlook and MS Team having huge updates in the same timeframe.

The Podcast looks at current changes creating problems and differences in both clients to identify scope changes.  Some will be improved, but this is a new canvas for Outlook and format for MS Teams, so some features may not be available when it goes live and be added later.

The Point of this podcast is to look at how to manage this change... we know change is constantly changing when considering Enterprise Apps.

The boys develop some great nuggets on how a model might look based on some change metric...   Change Points!!!  You heard it here first...

The Change model is about packages balanced against the change needs based on the change required in the application's upgrade size.

Several criteria can create the model. so Steve and Marijn discuss the main ones that should be considered.

Steve Changed the name of XLA to ELA’s, but the basis is still the same, value is based on how users perceive and manage the change... the ultimate way to measure the success of change.

Whisky eventually hits the menu, and Steve asks one of the speakers from the NY Community event a few weeks ago to find us a bottle we have been looking to taste for some time.  Today we taste Metallica’s Blackened whiskey, a blend from Dave Pickerell, one of the last blends he created before he passed away.  One of America’s greatest Master Distillers who changed Markers Mark from 175,000 bottles per year organisation to a million bottles per Distiller.

This whiskey has been on Steves’s list for some time so here it is, and well there is a difference of opinion...  

This batch of Whisky has its own playlist that is played to the Whisky during the Maturation process and if you want to listen to the playlist...  here is the link.  https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1w6KeG09G0VWrRRkkLZet0?si=972b68b77ae9468e 

Check it out.

Getting ahead of themselves, this episode was recorded at the end of July for the August release due to holidays etc. Before looking at Our governance model defined by DRAAP, which is

define | review | adapt | approve | publish.

We are looking for replacement names, all ideas are welcome.  So the boys break down each of these stages in the model and cover the value that each section brings to the process of Governance.

https://www.southcoastsummit.com/workshop/practical-microsoft-365-baseline-governance/ 

If you want to come and discuss this as part of our governance workshop, join us at Sout Coast Summit in October.

The first important subject is Methodology or a Model, and the decision is not to create a podcast on which is most accurate...

Using some real examples, we look at current customers and which state of the DRAAP process they are at and the next stages to be completed.  The process does allow you to define at what stage each of the governance documents is at and what the following stage should include.  A way to identify the value.

Risk and value are included In the conversation, and Steve thinks this is a key attribute to define the protection required verse the effect on the end users.  Governance that drives users away from using the product is not the target.

Then the boys drink a local Whisky from Mechelen in Belgium. Het ANKER’s Molenberg distillery for their anniversary edition    

Continuing their Wee Drams on thei new Governance workshop for South Coast Summit 

October13th 2023 @SouthCoastSummit https://www.southcoastsummit.com/workshop/practical-microsoft-365-baseline-governance/ 

The Boays introduce DRAAP which will get a few modules in their course as they talk about how practically you need to get to be succesful in introducing Governance as an active subject into your organisation

The boys get distracted for the first 10 minutes covering Their speaking events, Governance at the South Coast Summit (join their workshop at www.southcoastsummit.com ) and the pricing release of the Co-Pilot and value.  They decide to read the Whiteboard and realise they have some subjects to discuss...

A list on the whiteboard of Roles is associated with managing and running M365.  Which role would you like to do and are the best at?  Steve and Marijn run through the list, select their dream role in M365, and say how it works and why it might not... Check out why they both think that CISO would be a great role...

We finish with a review of the position of the roles immediately after tasting a very unusual single cask from Deanston.  Bourbon barrel about seven years in the barrel and hand filled at nearly 62%vol.  It was a brilliant drink; pity I could only get a 20cl bottle...

October13th 2023 @SouthCoastSummit https://www.southcoastsummit.com/workshop/practical-microsoft-365-baseline-governance/ 

In this special Wee Dram which is primarily notification to join Steve and Marijn on a Governance workshop.  Marijn is in the Mic Drop mood... check out his great maximum of 6 words responses on Governance.

A quick boost of Marijn and Steve’s humour looking at Why we do Governance, How we do Governance and the problems associated with it.

In this special podcast, we have changed a few things... The Intro does not blow your ears out at the start... You can win a place at our 5th Birthday celebration with a simple HashTag and learn about Governance and Change on New Stream... EP116 is full of great information and a Free Dinner.  Finishing with a great idea generated by a 21 Year Old Whisky from our sponsor Secure-Mail-Merge by Alex Duggleby 

Steve has an idea that looks to combine your Governance plans with ADKAR and Marijn likes the picture, but we disagree with the Model and do not find agreement.  So you guys get one Model and 2 plans for implementation... you can choose the Marijn way or the Steve way... Such great Podcast Value!

The podcast finished with the knowledge that the 21-year-old Austrian Whisky from the SecureMailMan Alex Duggleby as it created an excellent review of the Governance/Change idea and rounds it off with a new idea. This is Whisky Value Stream in action.

This is a very late podcast because Steve #ScrewedUp and the great interview with Alex Duggleby needed more work than usual.  But it is finished, Alex sounds great, nearly as good as his M365 Secure Mail Merge App.  Steve and Marijn are drinking Austrian Whisky provided by Alex as a Sponsor for this episode, where we introduce what we think is a great tool to assist in communications and adoption.

Alex Duggleby joins the boys to talk about his career in development, the background in his new Mail Merge Application and his thoughts on developing inside the M365 apps and creating secure tools that do not need to take any data outside the M365 ecosystem.

Advanced mail merge for Outlook for Windows, Mac and Web. (securemailmerge.com)

Steve talks about his direct experience with the tool after using it to manage CVTV (Commsverse TV) interviews and communications for this MS Teams event in the UK.

Wow, what a week, you can tell when Steve and Marijn have had a busy week because you get this very laid-back podcast where they discuss their Trips... and start with a Whisky Chat before moving on to talk about 70% of the project failing and deciding if it is Fake News.

In this Podcast, we look at the truth behind the common assumption that 70% of projects fail and analyse if it is accurate and how you can take MS Viva and ensure that it is successful. 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/do-70-change-management-projects-really-fail-simon-lewington/

Simon does a great review and background on the statement... worth a read.

The Forgetting list... CooperKing.... Not CastleKing is the name of the new Distillery Steve visited and the boys tasted their new make spirit which is full of promise.  Matt Wade is the producer of the M365 Periodic Table.   Steve and Marijn are both simply getting old and forgetful... we did however remember Dylan’s name!!

Steve’s Golden Nugget is about Monopoly Money used to set priorities in workshops instead of dots on Post-Its. And then they discuss how impossible it is to roll out Viva in a quantifiable way

In essence, this Third Sponsored podcast from CloudALLY www.cloudally.com looks at why projects fail and how to create success.

I don’t want to ruin a great podcast with spoilers but check out the 7 reasons why projects fail and 5 Golden Nuggets to put your project on the proper foundation for success.  XLA is the secret sauce in the process... work to be completed to resolve exactly how you and your organisation will  design these.

The boys drink the last CloudALLY provided whisky a Tomatin Decades 2 that is comprised of barrels Matured across 5 decades... a genuinely awesome dram. 

The second of 3 podcasts sponsored by CloudAlly and provided 3 great whiskies to taste across the following 3 Episodes.  Today we are speaking to Murrey Moceri, the Partner Account Director from CloudAlly, a man of the world who hails from Seattle and had flown into London from Sri Lanka and then chose to speak with Marijn and Steve on Office365Distilled.

Information from www.cloudally.com    Follow up use [email protected]  

We have anecdotes, horror stories and some background on how CloudAlly have saved people’s business but mostly about the common sense around backup needs and requirements.  You get IT stories from people who have been in the industry for some time.

Murrey places backup in the context of shared responsibility between you and your cloud supplier to ensure the availability of your services.  Back-up is different, and we explain why.

Time is spent looking at the simple things in life... and the product which, within a few clicks, can get you to a specific date, a specific file or email and restoration is a click away.

Back-up not only can save your ass in your business but correcting user errors is potentially where the value is in the product.  Steve and Murray realise they are both audiophiles and have a history of sound, so they start talking about the beautiful feel of sound from tape...

Steve as always ruins everyone’s names which raises a smile and a constant reminder of the old man’s memory from the Dynamic duo of Steve and Marijn.

Finally, we touch on the interesting facts about backing up messaging in MS teams which for many reasons is a complexity that you will have never heard of.

This podcast was simply fun, we tell you about backup, business, IT over the last 20 years and laugh together over stories and then we drink whisky and coconut spirit that Murray decides to join us with.  Steve and Marijn hit a delicious 22 year old Benriach finished in Dark Run Barrels, the smoothest, darkest and Deep whisky the boys have tasted.  Murrey introduces Arrack, a spirit from Sri Lanka... another whisky the boys have added to the list...