PC Helps has partnered with CIO.com to communicate the myths and realities of an Office 2007 migration, and eight service levels needed to prove migration ROI. You cannot afford to approach an Office 2007 migration blindly. The user interface is radically different and guarantees that your employees will flounder just trying to perform basic tasks.

In this series, we separate the facts from the myths, and teach you how to get the most return on your investment.

Myth No. 1: You can make Office 2007 look and act like Office 2003.

One of the biggest gripes about Office 2007 is the interface. Features your employees have used for years are suddenly, um, somewhere else. The changes are substantial enough that even the savviest users will be lost.

“With MS Office 2007, the steering wheel is in the trunk, the brake pedal is in the glove compartment and the light switch is on the roof.”

The natural reaction is to find a way to make it look like the previous version, as evidenced by the scads of third-party add-ins that have cropped up. Message board comments like the following are especially enlightening:

“When I buy a new car, I expect the steering wheel, pedals and all other important controls to be where they used to be. In [the] case of MS Office 2007, the steering wheel is in the trunk, the brake pedal is in the glove compartment and the light switch is on the roof.”

The commenter’s frustration is almost palpable, but change is never easy. And while some add-ins are effective, they miss the point. You’ve invested in a new version, so why not get the most out of it? The new interface was designed to be intuitive, and to bring attention to features that were buried in previous versions. Holding on to the old interface will only serve to diminish your Office 2007 migration return on investment.

Takeaway Tips

• The all-important Options feature, which used to reside in the Tools menu, is now under the Office button, at the bottom right of the dropdown menu (Excel Options, Word Options, etc.).
• Can’t find the macros menu? You need to enable the Developer tab in order to see it. Go to Office Button | [application] Options. In the “Popular” section, place a check in the box next to “Show Developer tab in the Ribbon.”
• Absolute basics: “Save” and its cohorts are now located under the Office button; basic formatting is now located in the Home tab; and spelling and grammar checks are in the Review tab.

Next post: Debunking the myth that support needs will disappear shortly after migration.

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Jenny Sweeney Office 2007, Worker Productivity CIO.com, Office 2007, ROI, Training, Worker Productivity