Chances are you use Microsoft Office in your business, whether you make use of the entire suite of Microsoft productivity tools or just a few programs. Since you’re making the investment in the software, why not make it really work for you? Are you taking full advantage of SharePoint?
With so many Microsoft tools available, it’s hard to decide what will be useful for your business. One program you may not know about or use is SharePoint, which is designed to optimize productivity. If you don’t already know about or use SharePoint, that’s perfectly okay: BrightFlow’s managed IT services are here to help you with operational efficiency.
So what kinds of features does SharePoint have, and how can you use them to help your business?
1. Collaboration
The main feature of SharePoint is collaboration. SharePoint allows you to create a team site where all members of the team can work together on projects, share information and manage tasks. This feature also allows multiple people to work on a single document simultaneously, leaving comments or making edits which are updated in real time. These features can significantly enhance a team’s productivity and minimize frustration when working on a collaborative project.
2. Document Organization
SharePoint’s document libraries provide users with a place to create, upload and store documents. The feature works for Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and files from your computer. The SharePoint library also offers version control, allowing members to track changes and ensure that documents stay up to date. This tool is especially effective for organization of work.
3. Workflow Automation
Be sure to check out a unique feature in SharePoint that allows you to create custom workflows to automate repetitive tasks. You can automate certain tasks such as document reviews and sending notifications. You can even create an automated trigger for actions under a specific set of circumstances. The option of automating tasks can save a lot of time and also help reduce errors.
4. Search and Discovery
Another top feature of SharePoint is its powerful search engine that allows you to not only search for documents but also sites, lists, profiles and more. You also are able to tag and categorize content for easier access. Using this search engine can help users find what they need quickly, so they don’t have to waste time scrolling through pages of unnecessary pages and documents.
5. Custom Lists and Forms
One of our favorite features in SharePoint allows for the creation of custom lists and forms. You’ll find this feature useful in keeping track of data such as inventory, customer information, employee requests and much more. This feature also works hand in hand with another Microsoft productivity tool: Microsoft Forms. With the ability to create custom lists and forms that tailor to your specific needs within SharePoint, you can keep all of your data organized and easily accessible.
6. Business Intelligence
Data analysis is more and more important to many businesses. SharePoint integrates with another Microsoft productivity tool called Power BI, which allows you to create custom dashboards and interactive reports based on data from SharePoint. You’ll find this integration especially useful if you work in data-driven environments.
7. Integration With Other Microsoft Productivity Tools
Though we highlighted some of our favorite features of SharePoint, this is not a complete list. SharePoint integrates with other Microsoft productivity tools, allowing for top-level organization. Team members will not only have access to the single program, but any other Microsoft tool they may need for a collaborative project.
What’s Best for Your Business?
There are an endless number of features and tools offered in Microsoft that are essential to business efficiency and productivity. Here at BrightFlow Technologies, we encourage our clients to make the very most of what Microsoft has to offer.
If you have questions about how you can use SharePoint or other Microsoft productivity tools contact us. We are here to help!