10 Tricks to Optimize SharePoint in 2025
Last Updated: Jan 24, 2025
Key Takeaways: This blog shares 10 practical ways to optimize SharePoint by improving organization, automation, collaboration, security, and overall user experience.
SharePoint offers numerous benefits for organizations, but implementing or transitioning to it can seem daunting. Why switch to a new system when what you have works? Well, you may not realize that SharePoint can streamline operations, improve communication, and reduce manual tasks. With the help of a company like Aciron, the transition becomes even easier.
In this blog, we will go over 10 ways to optimize SharePoint, and by the end you might just feel ready to make the move to this powerful intranet.
First, let's develop a plan
Before diving into the advantages, the first step to optimize SharePoint is defining your business’s objectives for its intranet. This is a vital step since jumping in without a plan can lead to confusion, poor adoption, and inefficiencies.
Your objectives will guide you in developing a SharePoint system tailored to your organization’s unique needs. These objectives may include:
1. Document Storage
2. Project Management
3. Team Collaboration
Once you have a clear understanding of how you will use SharePoint, you can map out the site structure before starting the implementation process. Key components include:
1. Libraries
2. Lists
3. Permissions
Establishing a well-defined plan from the start will streamline implementation and set your organization up for long-term success. A clear intranet structure eliminates confusion, promotes user adoption, and ensures the development of an intuitive and scalable SharePoint environment that meets your business needs.
Automate repetitive tasks with Power Automate
Manual processes slow down productivity. SharePoint integrates with Power Automate to streamline workflows and eliminate repetitive tasks, allowing businesses to increase efficiency. With Power Automate organizations can:
1. Set up approval workflows with conditional logic for document reviews, expense approvals, or contract sign offs
2. Create automated reminders for upcoming deadlines or expirations
3. Sync data between SharePoint lists and libraries, Microsoft Teams, Outlook and other 365 tools
4. Build workflows using a drag and drop functionality – no need for advanced programming knowledge
By automating tedious tasks, teams can focus on higher value work while improving efficiency and reducing manual effort.
Leverage custom lists for better data tracking
Lists are used for organizing and streamlining data driven information like task management, inventory management, and employee directories. You can think of SharePoint lists as a more structured and collaborative alternative to Excel spreadsheets. Additionally, Power Automate can be used to trigger notifications and approvals based on list changes.
A practical use example of a SharePoint list is task tracking. You can automatically assign tasks to team members and notify them when deadlines approach, ensuring better workflow management and accountability.
Build Team-Specific Sites
Rather than one site across the entire company, organizations can create team specific sites for various departments or projects to optimize SharePoint. That means Marketing, Accounting, Management and everything in between will have their own space for their specific needs. This allows for:
1. Better organization of relevant data for departments
2. Improved focus by keeping content tailored to specific teams
3. Enhanced collaboration through seamless sharing of information between team members
With multiple sites each team, department, project, etc. could have a SharePoint communication site or team site with customized libraries, lists, and permissions to fit their unique needs.
Integrate with Microsoft 365 tools
SharePoint works seamlessly with other Microsoft 365 applications, making collaboration even more efficient. Key integrations include:
1. Teams: Access SharePoint files directly from Teams channels and collaborate in real time.
2. One Drive: Sync SharePoint libraries to OneDrive for offline access
3. Outlook: Attach SharePoint documents to emails or link SharePoint calendars for better scheduling
4. SharePoint hosted Apps (Add-Ins): These browser-based applications enhance SharePoint without requiring custom server configurations. They can optimize the intranet with features like custom dashboards and customized UI.
Encouraging teams to use these integrations ensures a unified digital ecosystem that reduces department silos and enhances productivity.
Build custom applications for SharePoint optimization
When optimizing SharePoint, custom provider-hosted applications can significantly enhance functionality. Here are some key benefits of choosing a custom application:
1. Access to External Resources: Provider-hosted applications can leverage external services and APIs that aren’t available within SharePoint, allowing for tailored solutions that meet specific business needs.
2. Scalability: These applications can scale easily with your organization’s growth, without the limitations of SharePoint Add-Ins. Developers can utilize a wider range of technologies and frameworks for a more innovative and feature-rich application.
3. Enhanced Customization: Developers can create unique user interfaces and workflows that align with your organization’s branding and processes, boosting user adoption.
Provider-hosted applications offer organizations powerful solutions to optimize SharePoint by enhancing functionality, performance, and user experience.
Use Metadata for smarter search
One of SharePoint’s most powerful features is its ability to use metadata for efficient file categorization and searchability. Rather than relying on deep folder structures, businesses can:
1. Tag documents with relevant metadata (e.g. project name, client, document type) to improve searchability and enable automation
2. Use metadata filtering to sort through files quickly
3. Trigger workflows based on metadata values
4. Create dynamic views that automatically group or sort files based on metadata
By implementing a strong metadata strategy, employees can locate the information they need in seconds, avoiding the frustration of navigating complex folder hierarchies. This approach minimizes the risk of documents getting lost in disorganized storage systems, ensuring a more efficient and structured way to manage content.
Enhance collaboration with co-authoring
Gone are the days of emailing document versions back and forth. SharePoint’s real-time co-authoring allows multiple users to work on a document simultaneously, improving efficiency and collaboration.
1. No version conflicts: changes are saved automatically, and users can see real time edits, which allows for easy recovery of past versions if needed
2. Better teamwork: teams can collaborate on proposals, reports and presentations without delays while tracking who made specific edits
3. Integration with office apps: users can co-author documents in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
By promoting co-authoring businesses can streamline content creation and reduce bottlenecks in document workflows. With the ability to work and save content simultaneously, organizations unlock new levels of efficiency.
Improve communication with newsfeed and announcements
SharePoint includes newsfeeds and announcement features to keep employees informed about company updates, events, and important notices.
1. News posts: Share updates within departments or company wide
2. Discussion boards: Facilitate team collaboration and feedback
These features help foster community in your organization and ensure that employees are engaged and well informed.
Secure your data with advanced permissions
Security is a critical concern for businesses, as safeguarding data is essential for innovation and maintaining a competitive edge in the market. Transitioning to a cloud-based system may seem daunting, but it can be much safer than traditional storage methods. For more information, see our cybersecurity blog.
1. Multifactor authentication: With SharePoint, you can implement multifactor authentication to ensure that only users with the correct permissions can access the site.
2. User permissions: Control who can view, edit, and share files within the site, ensuring that sensitive data remains in the right hands.
3. Cloud-based security: SharePoint’s cloud infrastructure encrypts your data, protecting it against cybersecurity threats while allowing easier access for authorized personnel.
By leveraging SharePoint’s security features, organizations can enhance data protection and facilitate secure access to information.
Final thoughts
If you’ve made it this far, then SharePoint is likely the solution your organization is looking for. Submit a contact form and our expert team of consultants and developers will work with you to implement a tailored SharePoint solution.
The possibilities are truly endless with this intranet, so if you are looking for ways to streamline your operations and improve efficiencies then you’ve come to the right place. You can learn more about our SharePoint services here!
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