As we talked about in our last blog, there are some guidelines and best practices for when to use SharePoint vs OneDrive vs Teams, but when it comes down to it, SharePoint is the engine behind all three. So, does it really matter where you put your documents?  
Yes, it matters. More than you know.  

Across Microsoft 365, new features and functionality are being released every day. It is so easy to get caught up in the new and shiny. (We are guilty, um hello Teams!) However, why do companies make investments in new technology? They want to improve how they run their business, which means that for customers serious about business improvements, they need to mature how they are using the integrated platform, not just the newest feature.  

Great, so what does that have to do with SharePoint? 

Well, as you look across some of the best ways to optimize business processes, many if not most, are depositing more data and information back into SharePoint, which means your house (SharePoint) could get out of order very quickly.  And, as a core pillar of a modern workplace, if your SharePoint environment is running wild, instead of helping improve collaboration and productivity, it will hurt it. 

So what do you do? 

1. Draw your blueprint.
   Think about things like information architecture, governance, taxonomy and document management. Who are your key stakeholders and what are their needs? What are your goals and what objectives are you trying to achieve.
   
   
2. Build the foundation.
   Understand your Office 365 groups, build the right sites and create your content collections.  While organic growth is natural (and necessary) building the proper foundation will help in the long run.
   
   
3. Add walls and a roof to your foundation.
   Use ACM including training, communication and measurement to help your employees understand the new tools and the structures in place to govern it. Don’t forget to lead by example and use department leads and organization champions to drive organizational efficiency by sharing common resources and applications on home sites and portals.
   
   
4. Bling out your sweet new pad!
   With the first three steps done, you can now think about how you can start using other products within M365 to improve business processes. PowerApps to build workflows, automate and more. Teams to maximize productivity and Power BI to connect disparate data sets and transform your data into thoughtful models.

As you can see, SharePoint is a great go-to for secure file storage and collaboration, but its not the only option. There's also OneDrive and Teams. Interested in how they compare? Take a look at our Infographic.

Once you start to understand these tools and how to use them to keep your documents and files properly managed you are one step closer to organizational knowledge management the holy grail of business growth and maturity. Check this out and then give us a call to talk about how Microsoft 365 as a unified platform lights this up!

Need help with collaboration and file management? Send us a note at info@amtrasolutions.com.