SharePoint: Want to learn how to develop, first learn how to use it!

I have been involved with SharePoint consulting and development for quite some time now (11 years) and during these years have worked with all version since 2004 (Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server 2003).

SharePoint is often referred to as a Product or as a Platform, the big difference between these two approaches is what you want to do with it: to use the out-of-the-box functionalities, develop specific implementations or both. In either case how can you advice a client or take the right decisions?

First know the Product, this means learn how to use it, learn how to manage it, learn how to administrate it and only after this you can say you know SharePoint. Because SharePoint is like a Universe were you have several Galaxies representing the features and contexts of it, there is a lot to learn, but let me give a small example:

Challenge:

Your client needs to have knowledge management and want to use SharePoint to do it. He describes what is the format of the information to manage, and how the organization would like to manage it.

• So how do you know if you can provide this functionality out-of-the-box or needs to have specific development?
• What SharePoint Services will you need for this solution?
• What should be used as repository for the information? 
• What tools will you need to setup this solution?

The Consultant answer is it depends on what the client provided as guidelines, as well as of the experience of implementing these kind of solutions. But for you to have this capability you have to know SharePoint.

Yes, this does not mean you know how to develop for SharePoint, but it means you have the perception of how things work, and therefore you can take the right decisions and not step into the temptation of reinventing the wheel.

If Consulting is giving expertise advice to others on something, you need to master the topic to give expertise advice.

Over all these years every new SharePoint consultant wannabe I have come across I gave the same advice, learn how to use the Product first and when you start developing that knowledge will be priceless.