SharePoint solutions can help to drastically increase a business's productivity and improve its internal and external communications. This is why SharePoint is today’s leading collaboration technology - it harnesses the power of cloud computing, providing secure data backup and business continuity. It allows employees to easily collaborate within, between and beyond departments, improves decision-making by placing relevant information in an easily accessible and navigable location, and broadens collaboration beyond the firewall with partners and customers. Successfully implementing SharePoint services requires a comprehensive understanding of SharePoint’s capabilities and strong IT support. While some businesses try to manage their SharePoint in house, many are discovering the benefit of using a Boston IT consulting company. Rather than maintaining a large IT staff that isn’t utilized on a regular basis, external IT support is there only when needed.
Here Are Six Factors to Consider When Selecting a SharePoint Consultant:
1. Community Minded
Collaboration is the single biggest, not so secret, key to a business’s success. Tools that make communication easy and project management simple, create an environment in which ideas are shared and people work together. The best Boston IT service companies provide SharePoint services that foster community in the office and beyond.
2. Content Management
SharePoint allows businesses to keep complete records of both electronic documents and image of traditional hard copy documents in one central storage location. Rather than having different versions of files on several different workstations, SharePoint allows any user to access, edit and track changes on a given document – no matter the user’s physical location.
3. Future-Proofed Design and Architecture
Network design should meet current needs, while also considering future growth. A business’s internal and external network controls its productivity. Typically, networks are designed to handle a company’s current operations. When the company expands, so too do their current needs. As the network’s design and architecture fail to keep up, the impacts can lead to significant revenue losses.
4. User-Friendly Interface
A business’s SharePoint site should allow users to quickly search and locate relevant information. Being able to customize your interface makes it easy for you to find information as well. Quickly accessing the appropriate documents helps employees make decisions, collaborate with other employees, departments and clients, and accomplish tasks quickly.
5. Full Toolbox
Having the right tools and components to respond to a business’s changing needs allows production to continue moving forward. IT Consulting firms with exceptional SharePoint services are equipped with a full toolbox including data backup and disaster recovery, strong anti-virus protection, email encryption and SPAM filtering.
6. Insights
SharePoint allows businesses to track each employee’s workflow and the development of each project. Reviewing and evaluating where and how time is spent, allows businesses to make adjustments and increase productivity. With analytics, you can view information on how people interacted with your pages. If any of these factors sounds familiar to you, it may be time to consider outsourcing IT through a local IT company's SharePoint services. If you want to learn more about SharePoint services, schedule a free IT consultation with us at iCorps.