SharePoint DMS is a supposedly good tool for managing documents: you can create folders, save documents and work on them together. However, it does not offer the central functionalities of a DMS system. Here you can find out what these are and for whom SharePoint is suitable as a DMS.
Table of contents
1. Introduction: SharePoint as a DMS - an overview
3. SharePoint advantages - how SharePoint can score points
4. SharePoint disadvantages - why SharePoint is not convincing
5. SharePoint vs. classic DMS solutions - a comparison
6. For whom is SharePoint suitable as a DMS - and for whom not?
7. Conclusion: When SharePoint makes sense - and when it's better to rely on a real DMS
Introduction: SharePoint as a DMS - an overview
According to a representative study of the Nielsen Company use around 85 percent of companies in Germany Microsoft Office - an impressive market share! Presumably you do too? Correspondingly widespread is also Microsoft SharePoint as an integral part of the Office world.
Many companies use SharePoint for file storage and collaboration - and often confuse it with a fully-fledged document management system (DMS). At first glance, the functions appear similar. But a closer look reveals clear differences - especially when it comes to archiving, compliance, structured filing and long-term traceability.
There is also a practical problem that many people are familiar with: SharePoint can quickly become confusing. Documents are created, edited multiple times, saved in different versions (xyz_final_v2_final_new.docx) and shared with various colleagues. Naming is inconsistent, filing structures grow unplanned - and in the end, no one knows where the final version is or which one is even valid. What can perhaps still be clarified with a colleague today will become a problem in a few years' time: important, business-relevant information will be almost impossible to find. And that can be really unpleasant - especially when it comes to legal or regulatory issues.
In this blog article, we will show you how SharePoint is used as a DMS, where its limits lie and what this means for your document management in the company in concrete terms.
What is SharePoint?
SharePoint is a web-based platform from Microsoft that helps companies to share and manage content (in the form of Word, Excel, PPT, for example), knowledge and applications. This makes it possible to work together on topics and projects - a real booster for teamwork!
SharePoint is closely integrated into the Microsoft 365 environment and makes it possible to store and collaborate on documents and coordinate tasks (e.g. using comments in Word documents). SharePoint can be operated both in the cloud (SharePoint Online) and locally (on-premises) and is particularly popular due to its seamless connection to Office applications such as Word, Excel or Teams.
SharePoint advantages - how SharePoint can score points
- Team productivity and collaboration: multiple users can work on a document at the same time - changes are synchronized in real time and are immediately visible to all participants. The close integration with Microsoft Teams significantly increases the collaborative possibilities and sets SharePoint apart from traditional DMS solutions.
- Seamless integration with Microsoft 365: SharePoint is fully embedded in Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams. This enables end-to-end work processes within a familiar and regularly updated environment with some data protection and compliance features.
- High user-friendliness: The interface is intuitively designed and requires hardly any training time - especially for users who are already familiar with Microsoft products. This lowers the barrier to entry and promotes acceptance within the company. You would probably also prefer to work with a solution that you are already familiar with rather than having to completely familiarize yourself with a new system.
- Ideal entry-level solution for DMS: SharePoint is particularly suitable for companies that already use Microsoft 365 and want to take their first steps in digital document management. The platform is integrated into the familiar Office environment and enables central storage, joint processing and simple workflows. This allows document management to be tested in practice before investing in specialized DMS solutions.
SharePoint disadvantages - why SharePoint is not convincing
In addition to the strengths of SharePoint, there are some weaknesses that should not be overlooked - especially with regard to some missing functionalities that are specific to DMS solutions. Here is a list of the main disadvantages:
- Information proliferation (content sprawl): Digital content and documents are often stored multiple times and unstructured in different teams - often with different versions and confusing filing structures. This leads to huge data chaos, makes searching more difficult and jeopardizes compliance with governance requirements. It also impairs efficiency and complicates the legal obligation to provide evidence.
- Lack of archiving mechanisms: SharePoint does not offer true audit-proof archiving and does not fulfill many legal requirements. Important so-called "records management functions "* (such as legally compliant storage or organized deletion concepts) are missing, which makes it much more difficult to adhere to compliance guidelines.
- Non-transparent access rights: You often don't know exactly who has access to which document - or whether colleagues can inadvertently see more than they should. As each folder or file can have its own permissions, it quickly becomes confusing. There is no central overview, and sensitive content often leaves you feeling uneasy - especially if there are no clear rules within the team.
- Difficult version control: Anyone who works on a document with several colleagues knows the chaos: several versions with similar file names such as "contract_final_neu_v3.docx" are quickly created - and in the end it is unclear which is the valid one and where it was stored. SharePoint does offer versioning, but this must be consciously set up and used.
- Limited workflow functions: SharePoint is primarily suitable for simple automation in day-to-day business using Power Automate. For more complex business processes, additional third-party components must be integrated, which increases the implementation effort and costs. This is a shame, as even more complex issues can be well supported by technical processes in the background. Unfortunately, the automation potential is not exploited at this point.
- Limited integration options: The connection of important specialist applications (such as your company-wide ERP system) are not available as standard and must be implemented using third-party tools. This makes seamless processes more difficult and increases the integration effort. Unfortunately, this is often where savings are made, which is why you spend unnecessary time copying information from one system to another.
These are some of the reasons why SharePoint does not improve your document organization.
* Records management refers to the structured administration of business-relevant documents (records) throughout their entire life cycle - from creation and use to archiving or final deletion.
SharePoint vs. classic DMS solutions - a comparison
The table clearly shows that SharePoint is ideal for daily collaboration and flexible teamwork, but reaches its limits when it comes to structured, secure and legally compliant document management. Traditional DMS solutions offer significantly more functions and control here, especially when it comes to archiving, traceability and compliance. Those who combine the two can make the most of their respective strengths.
For whom is SharePoint suitable as a DMS - and for whom not?
As a DMS, SharePoint is particularly suitable for companies that already work in the Microsoft 365 world and are looking for a simple solution for document storage, collaborative document editing and integration with Microsoft 365. It is well suited to smaller organizations or departments with manageable document management requirements, without strict compliance or archiving obligations.
SharePoint is not suitable for companies that have high document security and compliance requirements. These include, for example, audit-proof archiving, legally compliant retention periods with automatic deletion, complex workflows or structured file management. The functions of SharePoint are not sufficient for such use cases - a specialized DMS is absolutely essential here. Especially in highly regulated industries or with sensitive data, a professional DMS solution should definitely be used - preferably in combination with SharePoint.
Whether SharePoint makes sense for you as a DMS therefore depends heavily on the use case and your requirements.
Conclusion: When SharePoint makes sense - and when it's better to rely on a real DMS
SharePoint
SharePoint is ideal for collaborative working in everyday working life - for example, for editing documents together, project communication in teams or creating "work in progress" content.
Document management system (DMS)
However, SharePoint is not a fully-fledged document management system (DMS) - and this quickly becomes apparent in day-to-day work. Anyone who regularly works with confidential or legally relevant documents needs more than just a central filing system. Functions such as audit-proof archiving, automatic retention periods or clear file structures are missing in SharePoint or can only be implemented with a great deal of effort. Especially when dealing with contracts, personnel documents or officially relevant documents, it becomes clear that a solution is needed that not only stores documents, but also manages them in a traceable, legally compliant and structured manner. In such cases, a specialized DMS is a much more reliable basis - it creates order, ensures security and relieves employees in their daily work with information.
Hybrid approach
In many companies, a hybrid approach in which SharePoint and a classic DMS system are combined in a targeted manner has proven successful. And for good reason: Microsoft 365 and its products are firmly anchored in the German corporate landscape - the platform facilitates daily collaboration, has been in use for many years and is therefore established and familiar in many teams.
SharePoint can be used for document creation, editing and cross-team collaboration. A specialized DMS system can also take on the role of a central, reliable storage location ("single point of truth") for final documents that require archiving or are particularly worthy of protection - including extended functions such as records management, structured file management and legally compliant storage.
The ability to transfer content from SharePoint directly into the DMS allows the strengths of both systems to be optimally combined. The result is a modern, flexible and compliance-compliant solution that meets the diverse requirements of digital document management.
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You can find out more on our "Manage documents easily" product page.
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Angelina Jordan
Account Manager
Business Process Automation
angelina.jordan@isr.de
+49(0)151 422 06 942
