We've just released version 5.0 of our Enterprise Collaboration and Social Software Report. This latest release offers some practical answers to a nearly ubiquitous question:

"How do I add useful social capabilities to SharePoint?"

Specifically, we've updated the evaluations of SharePoint, Yammer, and Sitrion (formerly NewsGator), and added harmon.ie and Neudesic Pulse to the line-up. Here's a sneak peek, calling out a single aspect of each of these vendors.

Where SharePoint Comes up Short

A variation of Murphy's Law goes like this - "Inside every large problem is many other small problems trying to get out." That about sums up the whole SharePoint 2013 / Office 365 situation right now. Enterprises need to grapple with vexing issues like on-premise vs cloud, and how to deliver effective social networking applications. The SharePoint review chapter summarizes what you can expect to see in the SharePoint platform.

Of course, you need to read this together with the chapter on Yammer. Redmond has positioned Yammer as the enterprise social networking solution within the Office 365 family, to receive priority for future enhancements and integrations. We address what this means for your on-premise SharePoint estate.

SharePoint Add-ons

Sitrion, formerly known as NewsGator, continues to offer polished applications for SharePoint, and is also trying to expand its portfolio to include social applications around SAP.

harmon.ie is an add-on to SharePoint / Office 365. While it only addresses a subset of the functionality of the larger SharePoint platform, it takes a novel approach to usability for your current SharePoint applications. 

Neudesic Pulse is both standalone social networking software as well as a tool that can add social capabilities to SharePoint and other collaboration applications. One of the pre-packaged applications here is LinkedIn-style über profiles for use inside the enterprise. 

The full report is available for immediate download to RSG subscribers. Others can get a complimentary sample chapter.