SharePoint is a fantastic tool for workforces to collaborate and work together, but are you making the most of the platform? Here are some hints and tips from us on how to maximise the potential of SharePoint for your organisation.
1. Team only access
One of the benefits of Microsoft SharePoint is its exclusivity. Choose who is able to access these file and project documents or for a specific SharePoint site. This way you limit only those who are relevant and add value to your project and eliminate those who won’t. This way you can get quality collaboration rather than distractions from those who are not relevant.
2. Document management policy
It is also key to encourage a document management policy for SharePoint and Microsoft Teams. With both platforms offering ease of sharing files, it can become confusing and incorrectly used if no policy is in place. These policies do not need to be extensive and complicated but it should be clear what documents are to be shared on what platform and with who. By doing this you will avoid confusion and make collaboration more effective.
3. Alerts
Rather than checking intermittently whether your document has been edited or amended, you can set up alerts to tell you if a library or specific file has been updated. This allows you to continue to work productively without having to keep an eye on your libraries. Additionally with the alerts you can also react more timely to changes, allowing you to make progress quickly.
4. Set Tasks
Projects only move forward when everyone plays their part and completes their tasks in a timely manner. But it can be difficult to keep track of everything and maintain pace with a project. With SharePoint you can set tasks for yourself and your team so that everyone knows what they are expected to complete. Additionally, you can see task dependencies so that if there are multiple tasks relying on one individual, you can provide additional support to ensure the project continues to progress.
You can also make use of SharePoint Lists, which will soon be Microsoft Lists, so you can help your workforce keep track of what is required across multiple Microsoft Products.
5. Utilise the full Microsoft suite
SharePoint is a fantastic tool but it is more powerful when you utilise wider Microsoft Products. Whether that is discussing the project over Microsoft Teams, aligning your Outlook calendars so you all know how busy your schedules are, utilising Planner so you know can track how the project is progressing or using Power Automate to schedule manual and timely tasks. Ensure you are synced with the wider Microsoft Products to utilise all they have to offer.
Hopefully you found these tips useful and can start implementing them through your organisation. If you’d like a more bespoke review into your use of SharePoint and other Microsoft products, find out what we can offer your business or contact us today with your particular project or pain point and we can advise on how we can help you maximise the potential of your Microsoft products.