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SAP's 12Sprints Collaboration Platform Could Challenge Google Wave
by Clint Boulton
12Sprints Activity
Users create an activity, which they will invite other users to join and fill with discussions and projects.
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions ...
Users add a decision method to an activity to let the team know the decisions they're being invited to discuss. This is where users can invite team members to join them and discuss proposals, such as moving a sales conference.
The Pro-Con Table
Users ask their team members to chip in on different options that might work in a pro-con table. Here, workers debate the benefits and risks of moving the location of the conference.
The Debate
With the decision action item and input rendered, team members can discuss the pros and cons in the comments section on the right.
SWOT Team
Users can add a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis to create a forum for additional input.
Can't Decide?
Having a hard time deciding whether or not to move the conference, the team pulls in SAP's BusinessObjects Explorer to analyze the attendee list from last year and upload a spreadsheet with the data to prioritize locations.
Visualize It
Users can post their chart of user demographics to 12Sprints for the rest of the team to review. Here, California and Texas are good options for holding the conference.
Activity Stream
12Sprints keeps track of all activities that have occurred on the decision.
Evernote Extension
Thanks to an extension cobbled from 12Sprints' REST APIs, users can grab annotations from Evernote and add them to the platform.
Decision Time
It's time to make a decision. Texas it is! Users may sign off on the decision to agree.
Feedback
Decision done, provide feedback about features you like to see in a future version of the product.
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See All Slideshows
SAP Feb. 2 launched to public beta 12Sprints, a collaboration environment geared to help knowledge workers share enterprise application data and discuss it in a virtual forum, which is provisioned by invite only. XMPP-powered chat and document sharing are available, and SAP has already created extensions for Scribd, Evernote and UserVoice, letting users post documents and Web annotations to share with colleagues and leave feedback in a comments section. This platform could serve as an alternative to Google Wave for some businesses. To see a live tour of 12Sprints, click on this YouTube video, and check out this demo.