SmartWord4TFS - Modern Word Integration with TFS

In the world of software solutions, collaborative development is essential to enhance profitable growths. SmartWord4TFS is a Word plugin that seamlessly integrates Microsoft Word with Team Foundation Server. It enables work item management for Team Foundation Server. Through it, users can bi-directionally synchronize with the information stored in Visual Studio TFS. It enables users to author requirement specifications, create status reports and save them back to TFS. Stakeholders may authorize defects and issues directly to TFS through the Word.

How it works with Business Analysts?

SmartWord4TFS should possess a requirement management tool while working with TFS.

Business analysts can perform Word-based authoring of requirements through SmartWord4TFS and save them to TFS. They can also design, export, update, edit TFS work items into templates, publish them and maintain TFS. They can readily get Work Items from TFS and import them in user formatted Word Document depending on the approach. Finally, these documents are circulated to stakeholders for review and feedback using reviewer license that is freely available. It entitles full round tripping to create standard documents from data in TFS either online or offline. On the other hand, it procures all the other capabilities from Word including SharePoint workflow - for review and approval process.

In short, Business Analysts benefit from SmartWord4TFS through the following features:

• Employ predefined templates for Agile, SCRUM and author requirements based on the work item.

• Work Items are based on items maintained by process template within the word. These items are thereby exported to TFS after publishing the document.

• Stakeholders can review, provide feedback and rate the content, all within the word.

• Word documents are made in sync with TFS so that work stays up to date throughout.

• Work Items are imported from TFS to Word based on a query and search approach.

• Automatically tags non-smart documents so that they can be published to TFS and data is kept in sync.

Assets of the Tool

• All stakeholders and analysts work on TFS based projects using a similar tool that offer similar transition among word item management and processing.

• Integration is deeper between TFS and Word.

• Work issues, items, and tasks are taken care by SmartWord4TFS due to its highly configurable, productive and qualitative bi-directional integration.

• Possess smart word template that can be distributed from project to project. These documents possess static and smart content that can be authored and kept live.

• Brings data from work items into word document according to the details selected by the user. Hence, these documents are current, always updated and track down within TFS at any time.

• Used for reporting by selecting a query or work item. Reports possess multiple sections with numerous work items in different formats. Once a report is defined, it is connected to team project to generate the document.

• Non-smart documents can be converted to smart documents by using just a few clicks.

• Can create and publish work items and can also retrieve, update changes and revisions under the same hierarchy.

• Enables both technical and non-technical users to work with the same information by synchronizing and reporting on work items.

Final Words…

Development of Software projects is a teamwork now, more than ever. Microsoft designed and introduced TFS product specifically to improve software team collaboration and enhance individual productivity to put a check to wrong software life-cycle tools. Learning TFS enhances the knowledge on Project Management, Reporting, Testing, and Metrics. Above all, it maintains a link between central objects and the automation capabilities.

Sirisha Paladhi, author of this article is presently working as a Content Writer at TekSlate. During her career, she has written many articles on technology innovations.