Remote working has always been an agenda item for many organisations, but COVID-19 has accelerated it. Companies that did not pay attention to this before now cannot escape it. To achieve remote working, many organisations are opting for Microsoft 365. A suite of applications that provides for many of the remote working needs, but also hits a gap on some crucial points regarding information management.

Missing puzzle pieces of Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 fulfils many needs when it comes to remote working. However, because its many components (Teams, Outlook, Office, etc.) are often used in isolation and separately, it creates more problems than solutions.

For example, Microsoft Teams is known for its confusing file structure, making it difficult to know exactly where information is located. For example, internal one-to-one chat files and documents may be hidden in a user's mailbox, some files are accessible via OneDrive for Business, while others should be accessible via SharePoint's document library. This makes it difficult to keep a grip on all the information.

Moreover, with Office 365 and Teams, problems quickly arise because information is not connected. Resulting in unnecessary duplication and a proliferation of versions of documents in different applications. This has some major adverse consequences:

• Cooperation under pressure
• High probability of errors
• Missing opportunities

Dangerous content chaos ensues in Microsoft 365

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing organisations is information fragmentation or also known as content chaos. 

Often, information is spread across multiple repositories and applications, think of:

• Microsoft 365 applications
  • Outlook
  • Teams
  • SharePoint
  • Office applications
• ERP systems (SAP, Infor, etc.)
• CRM systems (Salesforce, Dynamics, etc.)
• Sharing applications (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.)
• External storage locations such as network drives and servers

Employees spend an unnecessary amount of time navigating from one system or application to another, desperately trying to find that one file they need. Searching for information often takes as much time as performing the intended task, which is a waste and expensive.

The power of information management

An information management platform is no longer just a recommendation, but a requirement in the digital age. Not only does it help address previously mentioned issues, but it is also a fruitful way to solve remote working challenges all at once.

Connect all applications

The most immediate benefit is that with a solution like M-Files, your organisation can connect all those different repositories and applications, creating a coherent and unified whole. From then on, your organisation has one gateway to really every piece of information in the organisation, which lets employees find information and documents efficiently. And search is kept to a minimum in the process thanks to M-Files' advanced search functionalities.

One truth for all

In doing so, there is always only one single workable version of a file or document, so no more unnecessary duplication and proliferation. This allows your organisation to create a 'single point of truth' of information, from any application and on any device. 

Prevent drastic mistakes, easily protect sensitive information, extract value from all information and documents in your organisation and give collaboration a real kick start. But above all: stop your employees searching for documents, let them find information directly.

Microsoft and M-Files are hosting a webinar on this topic

Tuesday 8 September 2020 at 10:00 a.m. M-Files, in collaboration with Microsoft, is hosting a webinar that will show you how to:

• Get more out of your Microsoft 365 investment
• A single gateway to information creates
• Letting employees work with the right information at all times
• Unprecedented collaboration facilitates
• 1 hour per day gift for useful work

Register for free for the webinar jointly organised by Microsoft and M-Files on information management.

---