In many organizations, Microsoft 365 is growing rapidly. New Teams are being created, SharePoint sites are popping up like mushrooms, and information is being shared more and more easily. As a result, proliferation soon ensues. Teams and SharePoint sites are created uncontrollably, without any fixed structure, clear agreements or grip on governance and compliance.
Often this does not get attention until it is too late. Teams and SharePoint sites are set up in different ways, responsibilities are not defined and metadata is missing. As a result, retention periods are not consistently applied and sensitive information is sometimes more widely accessible than intended. This increases risks in terms of security, violation of legislation and creates additional management burden.
But what if compliance is not something you have to fix after the fact, but is automatically secured from the moment a Team or SharePoint site is created? In this blog, we’ll show you how to set up governance and compliance upfront with Workspace Assistant 365.
When compliance is only secured after Teams and SharePoint sites are created, a complex situation quickly arises. At that point, the environment consists of dozens or even hundreds of workspaces, all with their own setup, permissions and usage. Compliance after the fact then means IT and security have to go back and check, correct and fix.
This requires a lot of manual work and carries risks. Metadata must be added, retention periods reset and access rights adjusted while information is already being used. Errors lurk and exceptions pile up quickly, especially in an environment that is constantly changing.
In addition, this approach creates a permanent management burden. IT and security are constantly adjusting and cleaning up, while it remains difficult to demonstrate that everything is set up in the same way everywhere. Making sure that you are compliant afterwards works, but takes a lot of time and in the meantime you run a great risk because your data is not protected.
A more effective approach is not to apply compliance after the fact, but to secure it beforehand. By making governance and compliance part of the creation process, you prevent differences and exceptions from arising in the first place. Each new Team, SharePoint site or workspace is then immediately set up according to fixed agreements.
This means defining in advance the types of workspaces that may be created and the rules that go with them. Think of mandatory metadata, classification of information, retention periods, access rights and ownership. These choices do not depend on individual users, but are determined centrally and applied automatically.
The result is a consistent Microsoft 365 environment with structure, security and compliance in place by default. With no extra steps for users and no recovery work afterwards for IT and security.
With Workspace Assistant 365, compliance becomes not a separate layer of control, but an integral part of how Microsoft 365 is used. Teams and SharePoint sites are no longer created ad hoc, but through a standardized request process that is pre-built for governance and compliance.
When requesting a new workspace, the right choices are immediately enforced. Consider the type of collaboration, the purpose of the workspace and the sensitivity of the information. Based on this input, Workspace Assistant 365 automatically applies the right settings, such as structure, templates, metadata, classification and access rights. In this way, every new workspace meets the agreed-upon guidelines from the first moment.
Retention periods and compliance settings are also applied instantly. Based on the type of Team or SharePoint site and the chosen classification, it is automatically determined how long information can be kept and when it should be archived or deleted. Users do not have to set anything for this themselves. The result is a Microsoft 365 environment in which every new workspace is immediately set up according to the same agreements, without extra manual work or checks by IT and security afterwards.
Compliance doesn’t stop with the creation of a Team or SharePoint site. Projects and collaborations change, while workspaces often persist. Without clear lifecycle agreements, the amount of data continues to grow and the management burden increases.
With Workspace Assistant 365, ownership remains insightful and workspaces are reviewed periodically. Inactive or completed environments are automatically flagged and, based on preset rules, archived or deleted. Retention periods are applied consistently in this process.
Correcting compliance after the fact takes time, requires a lot of manual work and remains vulnerable in a growing Microsoft 365 environment. By setting up governance and compliance in advance, you prevent proliferation and make structure and security part of the standard way of working.
With Workspace Assistant 365, compliance is automatically secured from the moment a Team, SharePoint site or workspace is created and remains secured throughout the lifecycle. This ensures less risk, lower management burden and a clear, future-proof Microsoft 365 environment.
