Especially now that remote working is becoming more and more the norm, it is important that organizations adapt their IT and work environments to the most important needs of the new way of working: access to applications, documents and digital communication tools anytime, anywhere.
An intranet not only helps with this, but does even more. With a social intranet you create a platform that your employees can use to share news knowledge and collaborate more efficiently. Moreover, it is a powerful tool to clearly establish the identity of your organization through uniformed content and information about current internal developments.
Because the digital ecosystem of many organizations bears a strong Microsoft signature, it makes sense that Office 365 and SharePoint form the backbone of many intranets. That has both pros and cons. In this article we look at the pros and cons of Office 365 and SharePoint as the basis for your intranet and we show how you can effectively tackle the challenges.
The 8 advantages of Office 365 and SharePoint as an intranet
Because Microsoft is a large tech player, which combines innovative power with many financial resources, using Office 365 and SharePoint as the basis for your intranet has a number of advantages.
- Rapid implementation and low maintenance
It does not take much time and effort to install and deploy Microsoft 365 and SharePoint withSharePoint consulting. With the right package for your organization you can get started quickly and get a diverse range of functionalities and tools out of the box. So you can quickly set up and use a social intranet. Thanks to the automatic updates and security patches, you also spend little time and money on maintaining your intranet.
- Good security
Of course you also want the information you share and distribute via a social intranet to be transparent and accessible only to authorized persons. Security has been an important focus for Microsoft when developing Office 365 and SharePoint.
The platforms use multi-layered security and include security features such as BitLocker encryption, MFA and the ability to apply further encryptions to sensitive data. In addition, Microsoft’s data centers are equipped with biometric security, motion sensors, continuous video surveillance and a comprehensive backup system.
- External users are easy to manage
You also want to be able to collaborate smoothly with external partners within a social intranet. Think of video calling, online meetings and sharing documents. With Office 365 and SharePoint you also give external users and partners easy guest access to your social intranet. All external users need is a Microsoft account with a link to a business email address. With a guest link you can give authorized external users read and edit rights. You can also stop a guest’s access at any time.
- Always and automatically the latest version
Office 365 and SharePoint Online are continuously improved and updated. So you always work with the latest version and functionalities, without having to do much as a user. New functionalities are added step by step and without time-consuming installations and extra costs.
So you don’t have to install a completely new version every few years, which employees first have to find their way through. This bit of unburdening ensures that you can start using the intranet faster and that you have less work to maintain your social knowledge and collaboration environment.
- Always access to applications and documents
Working on the train on the way home? With an intranet that uses Office 365 and SharePoint Online, working independently of time and place is becoming the new normal.
- Spreading news and sharing knowledge
A social intranet gives your employees access to the latest news and enables them to quickly and efficiently share knowledge and files with each other. In this way you take internal cooperation to a higher level
- Scalability
Is your organization growing rapidly and do you need to add many new employees to the intranet quickly? Or do you still have certain licenses and applications in use that hardly anyone within the organization uses? With an intranet that uses Office 365 and SharePoint, you can scale up or down quickly based on current needs.
- Access to well-known products via your browser
You can access well-known MS programs and products such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneDrive and Skype for Business via your browser, anytime and anywhere. Many office workers are familiar and familiar with these solutions, which are now available at any location and on any device. This familiarity also means that employees are more likely to use your intranet often and intensively.