. "u"" 

A center of excellence in earth sciences and engineeringrM 

Geosciences and Engineering Division 

6220 Culebra Road San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A. 78238-5166 February 22, 201 1 

(210) 522-5160.Fax (210)522-5155 Contract No. NRC-02-07-006 

Account No. 20.14002.01.441 

06300001 

A7TN: Document Control Desk 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

Mr. King Stablein 

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards 

Division of High-Level Waste Repository Safety 

Mail Stop (EBB-2-B02) 

Washington, DC 20555-0001 

SUBJECT: Intermediate Milestone 14002.01.441.132-Using SharePoint to Support 

Development of a Technical Evaluation Report-Letter Report 

Dear Mr. Stablein: 

This letter transmits the subject report, which is part of the knowledge management activities for 

the high-level waste repository safety program. The title changed to Knowledge Captured From 

Using SharePoint to Support Program or Project Execution. This report assesses experience 

using SharePoint software to support the Yucca Mountain licensing program and documents 

knowledge captured from that experience. This captured knowledge is presented with the intent 

to facilitate SharePoint use in support of other US. Nuclear Regulatory Commission programs 

or projects. 

Please advise me of the result of your programmatic review. If you have any questions 

regarding this paper, please contact me at (210) 522-5582 or Mr. Pat Mackin at 

(21 0) 522-5054. 

Sincerely, 

R~tAkd& 

D%d Pickett, Ph.D. 

Senior Program Manager 

Integrated Spent Fuel Regulatory 

Program-Geologic Disposal 

DPlar 

Enclosure - NRC 

cc: D. DeMarco 

R. Jackson 

V. Whipple 

L. Kokajko 

A. Mohseni 

J. Davis 

J. Rubenstone 

shington Office c 1801 Rockville Pike, Suite 105 Rockville. Maryland 20852-1633 

CNWRA Letter Only SwRl 

Y. Kim W. Patrick Record Copy B, IQS 

8. Hill 8. Sagar 

T. McCartin GED Directors 

R. Fedors GED Managers 

P. Hall J. McMurry 

J. Sulima M. Padilla 

C. Jacobs 

F. Jacobs 
1 

REPORT OF KNOWLEDGE CAPTURE ACTIVITY 

KNOWLEDGE CAPTURED FROM USING SHAREPOINT TO SUPPORT 

PROGRAM OR PROJECT EXECUTION 

Relevance of Topic to Knowledge Capture

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff use Microsoft® SharePoint® for a variety 

of purposes. SharePoint licenses cost approximately $20 for each user (in 2010). Therefore, 

when considering the entire agency, these licenses are a substantial NRC resource 

commitment. Consequently, documenting knowledge captured from SharePoint use can 

validate the expenditure of resources; justify and facilitate the expanded use of this software, if 

appropriate; and enable future SharePoint users to benefit from lessons learned from 

SharePoint applications.

SharePoint has a wide range of features and capabilities. The full range of SharePoint 

capabilities and flexibility is not likely to be needed for any individual program or project. 

Carefully tailoring the selection and use of these features and capabilities to the needs of a 

specific program or project can promote rapid training for users, acceptance by users, ease of 

use, and task effectiveness. Therefore, capturing knowledge from tailored applications of 

SharePoint can help ensure its effective future use and support decisions as to whether 

SharePoint is an appropriate support tool for any specific program or project. 

The NRC regulatory process demands close control of access to and release of sensitive 

unclassified nonsafeguards information (SUNSI), reliable document configuration management, 

efficient work flow, careful attention to records retention requirements, and occasional 

implementation of legal privilege or legal hold orders. Additionally, the staff may use external 

consultants or subcontractors to support the regulatory process, and it may be necessary to 

integrate these external groups into staff workflow processes. The extent to which SharePoint 

either facilitates or prevents meeting these demands is important in consideration of its future 

use by NRC. 

Summary of Topic History and Activity 

The NRC Division of High-Level Waste Repository Safety (DHLWRS) management team 

decided to use SharePoint to document the Yucca Mountain (YM), Nevada, high-level waste 

repository license application review (including adoption review of the associated environmental 

impact statement). This report captures knowledge from this SharePoint application to inform 

potential future SharePoint use. 

To implement the decision to use SharePoint for the YM licensing review, NRC staff from 

DHLWRS collaborated with the staff of the Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses 

(CNWRA®) (the NRC Federally Funded Research and Development Center headquartered in 

San Antonio, Texas) to establish a SharePoint document development and management 

framework. This collaboration addressed SharePoint use with respect to (i) purchase, control, 

and coordinated use of SharePoint licenses; (ii) system and data redundancy, reliability, and 

backup; (iii) document configuration management, access control, and legal hold compliance; 

(iv) management and control of sensitive unclassified, predecisional, and privileged information; 

and (v) workflow management. Each of these five areas is analyzed subsequently in this report. 
2 

Nature and Category of Report 

This report presents knowledge capture analyses for each of the five areas discussed in the 

preceding paragraph. Each analysis begins with a background discussion that provides the 

context for the SharePoint application. The background discussion is followed by listings of 

actions taken and knowledge captured. 

Analysis

A. Purchase, Control, and Coordinated Use of SharePoint Licenses 

Background

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) prescribes an aggressive schedule for the YM licensing 

review. To conduct and document all aspects of this review, DHLWRS management employed 

joint teams of NRC and CNWRA staffs working in a communal electronic environment and 

jointly contributing to the licensing review documentation. Two requirements for a 

multiorganization communal electronic work environment are (i) a mutually accessible, secure 

data storage and work area (a shared drive) and (ii) in this instance, an effective means of 

coordinated SharePoint license and shared drive administration. 

CNWRA has a small computer support organization (four permanent staff members) that 

reports to a single manager. DHLWRS managers envisioned the need to modify the SharePoint 

document library structure and access permissions frequently and quickly (see Section E, 

“Workflow Management” for more information on this subject). They therefore decided that the 

small CNWRA computer support organization was more suited to respond quickly and flexibly to 

the evolving requirements of the YM licensing review than was the more complex and diffuse 

NRC computer support organization with its effective, but less prompt, help-desk-based 

customer support system. Therefore, DHLWRS placed responsibility to establish and 

administer the shared drive and the SharePoint licenses at CNWRA. 

Establishing and administering a multiorganization shared drive requires specific information 

technology expertise and is beyond the scope of this report, because it is not relevant to use of 

SharePoint. However, use of a shared drive for most NRC programs or projects must take into 

account requirements to protect SUNSI. These requirements, and their relation to SharePoint 

use, are relevant to this report and are addressed in Section D, “Management and Control of 

Sensitive Unclassified, Predecisional, and Privileged Information.” 

DHLWRS management examined requirements for multiorganization use of SharePoint several 

months prior to beginning the YM licensing review. This early planning was important because 

multiorganization SharePoint sites require that the software be administered from a single 

location. Two key aspects of this single site administration required early resolution: 

(i) assigning administrative control of all NRC and CNWRA SharePoint licenses to CNWRA and 

(ii) assuring the CNWRA SharePoint administrator was adequately trained. 

NRC purchased DHLWRS SharePoint licenses. CNWRA purchased SharePoint licenses with 

its internal funds to preserve the flexibility to use SharePoint to support its non-NRC clients. 

NRC and CNWRA administrative, purchasing, and legal staffs interacted with Microsoft 

Corporation to establish an agreement authorizing NRC DHLWRS staff SharePoint licenses to 

be administered from CNWRA. Such an arrangement would be required for any 

multiorganization SharePoint site where the organizations separately purchase licenses. 
3 

Several months before implementing SharePoint for the YM licensing review, CNWRA arranged 

vendor-led SharePoint training for the software administrator. At a minimum, the training must 

be sufficient to enable the administrator to establish a SharePoint library file structure, create a 

SharePoint website, assign access accounts, and control access permissions. 

Work flow processes and procedures that enabled closely controlled yet flexible and rapid 

software administration are addressed in Section E, “Workflow Management,” of this report. 

Actions Taken

1. A shared computer drive accessible to both NRC and CNWRA staffs was established at 

and administered by CNWRA. 

2. CNWRA was assigned responsibility to administer the SharePoint licenses and the 

SharePoint site, and Microsoft Corporation approved the necessary administrative 

control transfer. 

3. The SharePoint administrator attended vendor-led training of sufficient scope to 

meet the expected document development and management needs of the 

YM licensing review. 

Knowledge Captured

1. Early planning for SharePoint use enables identification and implementation of software 

license administration procedures. 

2. Multiorganization SharePoint applications require secure, shared computer data storage 

(a shared drive). 

3. Program schedules and workflow processes can dictate the design of a program- or 

project-specific computer support organization and may require establishing a support 

organization that works outside the normal help-desk structure. 

B. System and Data Redundancy, Reliability, and Backup 

Background

DHLWRS management planned that the YM licensing proceeding documentation would be 

extensive. The NWPA-specified prelicensing period lasted for decades and resulted in a large 

body of source documents. Additionally, the licensing actions for a high-level waste repository 

are unique, with the need to be prepared for litigation that could generate another substantial 

body of documentation. Therefore, NRC management had to ensure that the system used to 

document the licensing review (i) was of sufficient capacity to accommodate a very large 

amount of data, (ii) would be protected from loss and was adequately backed up, (iii) would 

exist in redundant copies, and (v) would be available quickly when needed. 

Computer system component purchases began almost 2 years prior to receipt of the YM license 

application. During program planning, NRC managers decided to limit use of graphics and 

other large files in any staff-produced documents to reduce the associated data storage 

requirements. Two terabytes of storage capacity was selected as a conservatively sized system 

to support the YM licensing review, and storage devices of this capacity are available at 
4 

reasonable cost. Although the YM licensing proceeding has not progressed to completion, this 

storage capacity estimate appears to have been adequate. In addition, managers selected data 

storage components that could have their capacities expanded, if needed. 

Requirements for protection from loss, for backup, and for redundancy were met by use of an 

integrated hardware and software suite designed specifically for these purposes. One primary 

and one secondary server, each with two terabytes of storage capacity, were purchased to 

house the licensing review documentation. The two servers were physically separated to 

minimize the risk that loss of either server due to physical damage would not place the other 

server out of service, and the servers were connected by a fiber optic line. A “mirroring” 

software (AvePoint® DocAve 4.5) automatically duplicated all data stored on the primary server 

to the secondary server. This automated duplication was configured to occur within 

approximately 1 hour after data were entered on the primary server. As a result, there would 

be a maximum of a 1-hour loss in information if the primary server were to fail. This 

primary-secondary data server redundancy functioned essentially as a real-time backup system 

and provided one means of data redundancy. 

In addition to the automated duplication of data from the primary server to the secondary server, 

the SharePoint server data were backed up to tape in accordance with CNWRA standard 

operating procedures. Incremental daily backups were performed at the end of normal working 

hours each day. In addition, once each month full backups were conducted for the entire 

primary and secondary server data inventories. The tapes generated from these backup 

procedures were retained to meet the requirements of the legal hold order that was placed on 

the YM licensing proceeding. Legal hold requirements are addressed more thoroughly in 

Section C, “Document Configuration Management, Access Control, and Legal Hold 

Compliance,” of this report. Taken together, these items provided a variety of data redundancy 

and backup measures. 

The primary SharePoint feature implemented to support data redundancy, reliability and 

backup, and availability was the configuration of the system to retain every version of each file 

generated during the YM licensing review. Each time a file was closed, SharePoint saved that 

version of the file as part of the file history and made it accessible to anyone with the 

necessary permissions. 

SharePoint includes a feature that automatically requests users to record comments each time 

a file is modified, saved, and closed. During system training, staff were directed always to add 

comments identifying the nature of the modifications made and the reasons for those 

modifications. All modifications are automatically recorded in the version history for the file. 

The user name, date and time, and version number are also automatically added. These 

features ensure accurate tracking of file development. 

A final SharePoint redundancy, reliability and backup, and availability feature used for the 

YM licensing review was the inactivation of the “delete” function for anyone other than the 

system administrator. This action ensured that the entire history of each file was maintained 

and facilitated compliance with the YM licensing legal hold order once that order was executed. 

Legal hold requirements are addressed more thoroughly in Section C, “Document Configuration 

Management, Access Control, and Legal Hold Compliance,” of this report. 
5 

Actions Taken

1. System hardware and software were purchased substantially in advance of the expected 

need date. 

2. System data storage components were selected with sufficient capacity to ensure 

adequacy for the entire task, including the ability to expand that capacity. 

3. Key system data storage components were duplicated for redundancy. 

4. Redundant data storage components were located with sufficient physical separation to 

provide confidence that only one component would be placed out of commission by a 

single catastrophic event. 

5. Data storage was automatically duplicated on a secondary server using software 

designed for that purpose and selecting a duplication timeframe short enough to ensure 

an acceptable maximum potential loss of data in event of a primary server failure. 

6. Incremental daily and full monthly system backups were conducted to external media at 

a frequency consistent with organizational policy. 

7. SharePoint was configured to preserve the entire history of each system file. 

8. User training stressed incorporating comments in the file history to help document the 

evolution of each file. 

9. The SharePoint delete function was inactivated other than for the system administrator. 

Knowledge Captured

1. Early planning using reasonably conservative assumptions can facilitate establishing a 

SharePoint application tailored to specific program or project needs. 

2. SharePoint features allow configuration to support specific requirements for redundancy, 

reliability and backup, and availability. 

3. SharePoint features include the capability to preserve document histories. 

4. User training and administrative procedures can enhance the document and 

configuration management features SharePoint provides. 

5. Deactivation of the file delete function supports preservation of document history and 

compliance with legal hold requirements. 
6 

C. Document Configuration Management, Access Control, and Legal 

Hold Compliance 

Background

Several aspects of document configuration management can be facilitated by SharePoint and 

were incorporated in the YM licensing review. These included (i) tracking the evolution of a 

document along with an ability to access previous versions, (ii) controlling access permissions 

to individual documents, (iii) enforcing a consistent format and style and correct grammar, and 

(iv) complying with a legal hold order. 

The SharePoint version history feature allowed tracking the evolution of each file and accessing 

previous versions. Inactivating the delete file feature, other than for the system administrator, 

also ensured the ability to access previous versions of files. 

NRC and CNWRA technical staff members were assigned to teams established for each of 

50 chapters of the YM Safety Evaluation Report (SER). Most of these chapters required 

contributions from multiple staff members with skills in a variety of technical disciplines, and 

most staff members were assigned to several chapter teams. Initially, staff members were 

given read and write access to each chapter for which they were team members. Two problems 

were identified with this approach: (i) staff who were not initially identified as team members for 

a specific chapter were often found to be needed as contributors and (ii) only one team member 

at a time can write to a file because of word processing software limitations. 

Flexibility in chapter team assignments was established by giving all project staff read and write 

access to all YM SER chapter files. This expansion in write access permissions had the 

potential to result in unwanted or inaccurate contributions from staff members who had 

insufficient technical knowledge to contribute to a specific chapter area. However, in practice 

this problem did not occur. In addition, once initial team member contributions were completed 

to the level that a complete draft of a chapter existed, write access was removed except for 

those staff members who most likely would need to make further contributions. 

The problem of one person at a time write access was resolved in conjunction with addressing 

the problem of enforcing a consistent format and style and correct grammar. Therefore, 

resolution of these two issues is addressed together in the following paragraphs. 

DHLWRS management recognized that a YM SER must meet the standards for an NRC 

NUREG as prescribed by NUREG–0650, Preparing NUREG Series Publications. These 

standards include an appropriate and consistently applied style and format. Therefore, an early 

action in the licensing review was to develop and approve the style and format for the 

SER chapters. 

Once the chapter format and style were approved (e.g., heading formats, section and 

subsection definitions, line spacing, font size, and margins), the SharePoint system 

administrator created Microsoft Word® chapter files directly in SharePoint. Therefore, when staff 

members entered a chapter file to make their contributions, they were automatically placed in a 

file with the proper style and format. This removed much of the format and style compliance 

burden from the technical staff members. Even with the implementation of these preapproved 

file structures, some secretarial and editorial support staff action was required to refine the 

format, style, and grammar after technical staff members completed their input. 
7 

The implementation of the preapproved SER chapter file formats provided the basis for 

resolving the limitation of one person at a time write access. The system administrator was able 

to further subdivide the files and establish separate files at the chapter subsection level. On 

some occasions, when directed by the responsible NRC manager, the files were even further 

subdivided. This further subdivision of files generally allowed contributing staff members to 

write to their portions of the chapters without waiting for other contributors to finish. Once the 

individual contributors completed their inputs and the responsible NRC manager concurred in 

the content, the system administrator reconsolidated the files to form complete chapters. 

NRC NUREGs require an editorial review prior to publishing. Early in the YM licensing review 

planning process, NRC management determined that the NRC staff lacked the editorial 

resources to support YM SER review within the constraints of the prescribed schedule. 

However, CNWRA has a professional editor on its staff specifically to ensure that its products 

meet NRC editorial standards. This individual is proficient in use of the NRC Editorial Style 

Guide (NUREG–1379) and was given responsibility for editing the YM SER. Having a single 

editor assigned to this task also helped ensure consistency of the SER. The editorial review 

was integrated into the workflow for SER chapter development. Workflow is addressed more 

thoroughly in Section E, “Workflow Management,” of this report. 

The NRC managers who were assigned responsibility for the individual SER chapters (in this 

program, the responsible managers were the DHLWRS Branch Chiefs) directed the granting 

and removal of document access permissions through the SharePoint administrator. This 

control of document access permissions was an effective means of configuration management. 

Examples of configuration management using document access permissions include restricting 

changes by contributing staff members during (i) editorial review, (ii) Office of the General 

Counsel review, and (iii) NRC senior management review. Further discussion of use of access 

permissions control is provided in Section E, “Workflow Management,” of this report. 

The Office of the General Counsel imposed a legal hold order on YM licensing review 

documentation. For documents being prepared in SharePoint, compliance with the legal hold 

was straightforward. Earlier decisions to preserve each version of all SharePoint files, to 

conduct frequent electronic backups, and to deactivate the file delete function except for the 

system administrator were adequate to ensure legal hold order compliance. 

Actions Taken

1. The document history tracking feature of SharePoint was activated. 

2. The file delete feature of SharePoint was deactivated, other than for the 

SharePoint administrator. 

3. Initially, all project staff were given SharePoint read and write access permissions to the 

entire set of program files. Access permissions were restricted as staff members 

completed their input. 

4. NRC management defined and approved a specific style and format for 

project documents. 

5. The SharePoint system administrator implemented the approved document format and 

style by creating Microsoft Word SharePoint files. 
8 

6. Chapter files were further subdivided to minimize the limitation that only one person at 

a time can write to a file. Once individual staff members completed their input to 

these subfiles, the SharePoint system administrator consolidated the files into 

complete chapters at the direction of the responsible NRC manager. 

7. Access permissions were used to control access to authors, reviewers, secretarial staff, 

and the editor to the times most appropriate to support the licensing review workflow 

processes and procedures. 

8. Legal hold order compliance was implemented through the SharePoint file history 

preservation feature, through electronic file backups, and by deactivating the file 

delete function. 

Knowledge Captured

1. SharePoint access permissions can be employed along with workflow 

management procedures to support document configuration control, review, and 

legal hold requirements. 

2. File subdivision within SharePoint can be used to mitigate the limitation that only one 

user at a time can write to a file. 

3. SharePoint and Microsoft Word features can be employed to implement and enforce 

document format and style specifications and to comply with legal hold requirements. 

4. SharePoint permissions controls, supported by procedures that specify who has 

authority to control their use, are effective tools for controlling document configuration. 

D. Management and Control of Sensitive Unclassified, Predecisional, and 

 Privileged Information 

Background

Many documents supporting NRC licensing actions contain SUNSI and must be protected from 

unauthorized release, accordingly. SharePoint is well suited to supporting management of 

SUNSI because access permissions can be easily controlled. 

For the YM licensing proceeding, the NRC project manager defined which NRC and CNWRA 

staff had a need to know for access to the licensing documentation. The SharePoint 

administrator used this information to establish access accounts for those individuals. 

Additionally, DHLWRS YM licensing procedures specified that all licensing documentation be 

prepared in the SharePoint YM licensing site. 

SharePoint allows copies of files to be stored external to the SharePoint structure or to be 

printed in hard copy. Consequently, SharePoint SUNSI management features can be 

bypassed. DHLWRS management relied on staff training, professionalism, and voluntary 

compliance with YM licensing procedures to mitigate the potential for loss of control of SUNSI 

resulting from these liabilities. 

The YM licensing program SharePoint site was established at and administered from the 

CNWRA facilities in San Antonio, Texas. For several years prior to the initiation of the 
9 

YM licensing review, NRC and CNWRA staffs had collaborated in a communal electronic work 

environment supported by an electronic communications link between NRC headquarters and 

CNWRA facilities. Recognizing the large quantity of SUNSI material CNWRA processed under 

its NRC contracts, NRC had earlier required that the CNWRA computer network be certified and 

accredited under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and that CNWRA 

obtain an Authority to Operate from the NRC Designated Approval Authorities. The security 

protections implemented on this FISMA-certified network are adequate for protecting 

NRC SUNSI. 

Actions Taken

1. The NRC YM licensing project manager limited access to the YM licensing SharePoint 

site to those persons with a need to know. The SharePoint administrator implemented 

this access through access permissions control. 

2. YM licensing review work procedures and policies specified that all licensing 

documentation be prepared and reviewed within the SharePoint site. 

3. The potential for staff to bypass SharePoint SUNSI controls was addressed by training. 

4. The computing network that was linked to NRC was certified and accredited under 

FISMA, and CNWRA had an Authority to Operate this network from NRC. 

Knowledge Captured

1. SharePoint access controls can be effectively employed to assist in SUNSI management 

and protection. 

2. SharePoint SUNSI protection and management features can be bypassed if staff 

conduct work outside the SharePoint site, copy files to local hard drives, or print hard 

copies of SharePoint documents. 

3. Staff training can be effective in mitigating SharePoint SUNSI control limitations. 

4. If external individuals or organizations will be using a SharePoint site, the security of 

external communications links must be considered: FISMA certification and 

accreditation is generally costly and may require several years to achieve.

E. Workflow Management 

Background

Given the strongly constrained schedule for the YM licensing review, DHWLRS management 

determined that the associated document control and workflow processes must be closely 

managed yet extremely flexible, with an ability to support rapid changes as the review and its 

documentation proceeded and evolved. SharePoint is a complex but powerful software, and the 

context for employing it for a specific project or program must be carefully considered to ensure 

that unneeded or complicated features do not inadvertently complicate or confuse program or 

project execution. To the contrary, the features and capabilities of SharePoint can be 

specifically selected and implemented to improve workflow management. The YM licensing 

review SharePoint application was established to support a tailored execution of the standard 
10 

NRC regulatory process. Therefore, an important early step was to relate SharePoint features 

and capabilities to this regulatory process. 

DHWLRS management identified the program end products and then defined the processes 

and procedures that would most effectively develop, control, and support those products. For 

the YM licensing review, the primary end product was to be an SER, and major aspects of the 

content and format of the SER had been previously developed in a review plan. The unique 

NWPA framework and requirements for conducting the YM licensing review included a long 

period of prelicensing interaction with the potential applicant, the U.S. Department of Energy 

(DOE). During this prelicensing period, the NRC staff were able to familiarize the DOE staff with 

the review plan structure. Accordingly, DOE agreed to submit its license application and safety 

analysis report (SAR) using a structure generally consistent with the review plan. This 

predetermined structure for both the SAR and the SER provided the basis for the SharePoint file 

folder structure and allowed this structure to be put in place before the license application was 

received. There were other YM licensing review products in addition to the SER, and the 

SharePoint support structure for them was developed using a similar approach. 

In establishing a SharePoint framework, DHLWRS explored ways to use SharePoint access 

permissions control to facilitate workflow. For example, an early decision was to grant read 

permissions to any staff member assigned to work on the project. This allowed all involved staff 

to review and benefit from the contributions of colleagues. However, as part of the effort to 

protect SUNSI information, only those staff members assigned to work on the YM licensing 

review were given this read access (SUNSI protection is addressed in more detail in Section D, 

“Management and Control of Sensitive Unclassified, Predecisional, and Privileged Information,” 

of this report.). As another example of use of SharePoint access permissions control to 

facilitate workflow, write access for staff members was restricted to only those portions of the 

SER to which they were assigned (this process is addressed in more detail in Section C, 

“Document Configuration Management, Access Control, and Legal Hold Compliance,” of this 

report). Furthermore, as the SER chapters neared completion and the staff members 

completed their contributions, write access was restricted to managers, reviewers, and 

secretarial support staff and to the times when their contributions were needed. A similar 

sequential access permission management approach was used as SER chapters were 

consolidated into SER volumes and various levels of review took place. Contributing authors 

were allowed reaccess to sections they had contributed to if resolution of review comments 

required changes to those sections. The Microsoft Word track changes feature was used to 

identify and respond to review comments. 

Another consideration in document work flow and access permissions management is the need 

to notify staff as the current version of a document is moved within the SharePoint file structure 

to support specific functions. For example, for YM SER development, once chapters were 

completed, they were consolidated into SER volume folders. Another example was the 

relocation of the chapter files to separate folders for review by the NRC Office of the General 

Counsel (OGC) staff. Staff needing access to these files required a way of knowing the location 

of the current version of the file. Without this information staff might inadvertently access and 

use an older version of the file or be unable to locate the file. To solve this problem, secretarial 

support staff inserted “fly sheets” in the previous file locations. These fly sheets used red text 

and specified the current location of the active file. 

This brief discussion is not meant to suggest a specific sequence of permissions control. 

Rather, it is intended to show that carefully considered, planned, and applied SharePoint 

permissions control can support both workflow management and document configuration 
11 

management. In summary, for any specific program or project and SharePoint supporting 

structure, a key action is to coordinate SharePoint administration with the details of any 

workflow process. 

Examining whether SharePoint can support or improve timeliness in workflow management is 

particularly important because most NRC regulatory and administrative programs are executed 

under aggressive schedules. Actions such as establishing or modifying document file structures 

and changing document access permissions must be completed quickly, efficiently, and 

accurately: the required timeframe for these actions will likely be on the order of minutes rather 

than hours. Reliance on the standard help desk or trouble call processes may be unacceptable. 

DHLWRS decisions on this aspect of SharePoint administration are presented in Section A, 

“Purchase, Control, and Coordinated User of SharePoint Licenses,” of this report. 

SharePoint procedures for actions such as creating files and managing access permissions are 

straightforward and can be conducted by persons with only a basic level of computer skills. For 

the YM licensing review SharePoint application, the SharePoint administrator trained the 

computer support staff members and the lead secretarial support staff member to carry out 

these actions. To ensure that these individuals took these actions only when properly 

authorized, formal process control procedures were promulgated (further discussion of these 

procedures follows). This discussion is not meant to suggest that only computer or secretarial 

support staff can perform these basic SharePoint administrative actions. For other programs 

and projects, we have found that project managers can effectively carry out these actions. 

Many NRC regulatory or administrative programs have specific execution details that must be 

accommodated when establishing a SharePoint structure. For example, there may be 

participation by several staff groups, contributions by consultants or subcontractors, unique 

schedule requirements or limitations, or legal hold or other record keeping requirements. Early 

consideration of these details may identify opportunities to use the administrative control 

features of SharePoint to facilitate program execution. Other sections of this report address 

these issues in more detail. 

Employing SharePoint to support program or project execution requires user training. For the 

YM licensing review, a handout was prepared that presented simple written instructions 

combined with SharePoint screen shots for the user actions. Initial training was conducted at a 

staff meeting at which copies of the written instructions were provided to all attendees. The 

training handout was also placed on a staff shared drive for continuing access. A secretarial 

support staff member who was tasked to create files and administer permissions was assigned 

as the point of contact for SharePoint user questions. This person routinely assisted staff 

members with SharePoint use. Staff training addressed topics such as login, site navigation, file 

check out, file saving, use of track changes, and the like. 

The YM licensing review was conducted using a formal project plan. This project plan included 

schedules for the development of each of the 50 chapters of the SER; the consolidation of those 

chapters into volumes; NRC review, approval, and publishing of each volume; and the 

resources required to support these actions. However, the project plan did not define workflow 

processes and procedures or assign responsibilities for specific actions: these procedures were 

developed separately. Using the workflow processes and procedures as a starting point, the 

supporting SharePoint administration and control actions and responsibilities were defined. 

From the standpoint of SharePoint structure administration, the most important result of this 

action was a clear definition of (i) which staff members had authority to direct changes to 

SharePoint structure and permissions, (ii) procedures for conveying direction from NRC 
12 

managers to CNWRA implementing staff members, and (iii) a reporting chain for documenting 

completed actions. Rigorous compliance with these SharePoint administration actions resulted 

in effective SharePoint control and supported document configuration management. 

Actions Taken

1. SharePoint capabilities and features were assessed for their capability to support the 

YM licensing review needs, including program-specific requirements. 

2. Program end products were defined; processes and procedures to develop those end 

products were developed; and the SharePoint framework was then tailored to effectively 

support the products, processes, and procedures. 

3. SharePoint access permissions control was used as a primary tool to support 

program workflow. 

4. SharePoint features and capabilities were chosen to facilitate meeting 

program schedules. 

5. Changes in file location were documented by placing “flysheets” in previous locations. 

6. Responsibilities for basic SharePoint administrative actions, such as file creation and 

permissions control, were assigned to persons in positions most suitable for carrying 

them out. 

7. Training was provided to all SharePoint users, and a specific individual was assigned 

responsibility for answering emergent questions. 

Knowledge Captured

1. SharePoint features and capabilities can be matched and tailored to facilitate 

program-specific requirements and structural components. 

2. Proper selection and tailoring of SharePoint features and capabilities can be negated by 

ineffective administration of those features and capabilities. 

3. SharePoint access permissions control administration is a powerful tool for facilitating 

and enforcing workflow management and document configuration. 

4. Most key SharePoint administration actions require only basic computer skills and can 

be effectively implemented at any level in an organization. 

5. SharePoint administration responsibilities should be clearly assigned to a small number 

of specific individuals. 

6. Effective SharePoint implementation requires support by managers to ensure 

compliance with procedures and responsibility assignments. 
13 

Potential Future Use of Captured Knowledge 

This report of knowledge captured from use of SharePoint to support program or project 

execution can be of value to any NRC manager considering SharePoint use. Following are 

some specific suggestions on how this report can be used to generate ideas for using 

SharePoint in other programs or projects. 

1. Educating Managers on SharePoint Features and Capabilities 

Most managers have received little or no education on SharePoint features and 

capabilities. Those who have received information may not have had an opportunity to 

put that knowledge to use. Therefore, it is likely that managers have little awareness of 

whether SharePoint can support a program of project under their control. 

SharePoint is widely viewed as being complex. Therefore, busy managers are unlikely 

to feel that they have time to devote to exploring its suitability to support their work. This 

report provides examples of the ways in which SharePoint can be flexibly employed and 

might stimulate managers to explore its use. 

2. Demonstrating the Value That Can be Added to Workflow Management by Tailored Use 

of SharePoint Features and Capabilities. 

Considering the lack of experience with SharePoint use in support of program and 

project management, the examples presented in this report can inform managers on 

ways in which this powerful software can support coordination of complex activities 

within their staffs. It is likely that, without prior experience in applying SharePoint in this 

manner, it would not occur to managers that these capabilities existed in SharePoint. 

3. Identifying Ways in Which SharePoint is Compatible with the NRC Regulatory Process 

Most managers may not consider SharePoint as a tool that can be specifically integrated 

with the NRC regulatory process. This report provides examples of how that integration 

can be done and can stimulate ideas for ways to expand that integration. 

4. Improving Document Configuration and Records Management Processes 

Experience documented in this report shows that SharePoint has powerful features to 

support configuration management and records management. These features can be 

particularly useful under conditions of constrained schedules or when records must be 

maintained for legal reasons. Managers without working SharePoint experience may be 

unaware that these SharePoint features can be implemented and controlled rapidly 

and reliably.