Document management in SharePoint is becoming increasingly popular, especially now that organizations are paying more attention to data protection, governance, and centralizing information within a single, secure Microsoft 365 environment. A positive development, if you ask us. Yet in practice, organizations regularly face the same challenges.
This is usually not SharePoint’s fault. In fact, Microsoft 365 provides a strong foundation for document management, collaboration, security, and governance. But without a clear structure, smart configuration, and well-defined guidelines, challenges still arise. In this blog, we’ll look at the four most common problems in SharePoint document management—and how organizations can tackle them more effectively.
Many problems in document management aren’t caused by technology, but by a lack of structure. When a project begins, a new Teams environment is often created, and each department then uses its own approach to set it up. Different naming conventions, custom folder structures, and documents stored in various locations quickly make the environment difficult to navigate. At first, this doesn’t seem like a problem, but as soon as a project team changes or documents need to be retrieved later, it often turns out that information is hard to find and no one is sure which version is the correct one.
The most common problems are:
The foundation, of course, starts with clear guidelines on how documents should be stored and managed. This includes consistent naming conventions, a logical structure for projects and files, and clear guidelines on where documents should be stored. In practice, however, this is often difficult to maintain when each department creates its own Teams and SharePoint sites independently.
To bring more structure and clarity to Microsoft 365, organizations are therefore increasingly opting for solutions such as Workspace Assistant 365. Teams and SharePoint sites can be automatically set up based on standard templates, metadata, and governance policies.
Not sure where to start when it comes to setting up document management in SharePoint? Then you can also opt for a off-the-shelf solution that helps you establish structure and clarity more quickly. We previously wrote about why a standard solution for document management in SharePoint often works better than a fully customized one. Read the blog via this link.
In many organizations, permissions and access to documents are regularly adjusted on the fly. A colleague needs temporary access to a project folder, an outside firm needs to be able to view documents, or an employee is granted additional permissions because it’s “just convenient.” At first, this seems harmless, but over time, it often leads to a tangled web of permissions within Teams and SharePoint. By then, no one knows exactly who has access to what information.
This becomes even more important now that organizations are increasingly using AI solutions such as Microsoft Copilot. Copilot uses the existing permissions structure within Microsoft 365. If permissions aren’t set up properly, employees may come across information that isn’t actually intended for them. In addition, unclear permissions structures make audits, governance, and compliance much more difficult.
The most common problems are:
Good governance starts with clear agreements regarding permissions and access to information. This includes defined roles, clear ownership of Teams and SharePoint sites, and periodic checks on who has access to documents and files. Especially in larger Microsoft 365 environments, it helps to configure permissions centrally and consistently as much as possible, so that access management remains organized.
Start by drafting a clear governance and compliance policy for Teams, SharePoint, and document management. This will define how environments are set up, who is responsible for permissions, and how information is securely managed within Microsoft 365. You can read more about this in this blog.
Within many organizations, a significant amount of time is wasted—often without anyone realizing it—searching for documents. Employees often know that a document is somewhere in SharePoint, but they have to try multiple search queries, open different Teams, or endlessly scroll through filters before finding the right document.
The standard search functionality in SharePoint works well for smaller environments. However, when dealing with large volumes of documents, metadata, and complex document structures, users often run into limitations in practice. Filters become confusing, important refinement options are missing, and employees have to make increasingly specific searches to find documents.
The most common problems are:
A well-structured document system and consistent metadata naturally form the foundation for improved document discoverability. However, as document environments grow larger, many organizations find that SharePoint’s standard search functionality no longer adequately supports their day-to-day operations in practice.
One solution could be to add additional search functionality, such as Advanced Search, which allows users to search more intelligently within metadata, files, and document numbers, and to filter using refiners. This includes searching within filter values, flexible date filters, and better support for large amounts of metadata. You can read more about this in this blog.
In many organizations, documents, Teams, and SharePoint sites remain in use for years, without it being clear which information is up to date or what should actually have been deleted or archived. As a result, outdated documents and multiple versions of files remain in circulation, storage within Microsoft 365 grows unnecessarily fast, and it becomes increasingly difficult to comply with retention periods, governance agreements, and compliance laws and regulations.
The most common problems are:
Proper retention and archiving start with clear agreements on how long documents should be retained and when information may be archived or deleted. Especially in larger Microsoft 365 environments, it helps to automate lifecycle management as much as possible, so that old documents, Teams, and SharePoint sites do not remain in place indefinitely.
In addition, when starting new projects, files, or Teams environments, it helps to immediately consider retention periods, ownership, and archiving. This makes information easier to manage, prevents old versions from remaining in circulation, and gives you better control over governance, compliance, and storage within Microsoft 365. Would you like to know how to approach this effectively within your organization or set it up correctly from the start? We’d be happy to help you figure that out.
More and more organizations are choosing to centralize their document management within Microsoft 365. Not only does this keep all information within a single secure environment, but it also helps teams collaborate more effectively, make better use of existing Microsoft 365 licenses, and save time in their day-to-day processes.
Effective document management involves more than just storing files. It includes a clear structure, improved document discoverability, control over access rights, and smart lifecycle processes within Teams and SharePoint. Would you like to get started with document management in Microsoft 365? Whether you’re looking to improve document discoverability with Advanced Search, add more structure with Workspace Assistant 365, or need help with governance, compliance, retention, and archiving, we’d be happy to work with you to find a solution that fits your organization’s needs.
