Good administration facilitates company file management

For administrators within organizations using the Microsoft 365 platform, there are a lot of tips and thoughts when it comes to managing files and documents. These tips are worth reflecting on to create a more productive and secure environment to work in.

In our webinar, consultant manager Robert Veberg and Microsoft 365 consultant Gustav Hallencreutz discuss a whole battery of general settings in the platform and also recommendations for how you as an administrator can facilitate the work of employees and also increase security.

Thoughtful settings benefit everyone

When the files are moved to the cloud, there are some points that are good for you as an administrator to consider. We have listed five overarching issues that we will explore during the webinar. As you will see, much of it is about how your organization works, but there are also general tips that apply to everyone who moves in the cloud.

1. Is the network ready? With more and more people working in Teams, the network needs to be able to keep data moving up and down. This puts a strain on the network, so make sure the network is up to date. The platform has a built-in tool to ensure network performance.
2. Which devices should employees use? When working in the cloud, everyone can work from any device. You as an organization need to make a strategic decision on what data can be shared where. There are also built-in tools to open up productivity while maintaining security.
3. Employees can work productively and securely. Accessing files in SharePoint, for example, should be easy, but also secure. A good balance can be to enable two-step verification when access is requested if a user is working outside the office, while it is not needed if it is done from the office network. This keeps the work experience secure and productive.
4. Sharing strategy. Previously the file was attached in an email, but now employees should share a link instead. It's important as an IT manager to know what options are available and communicate this to users! We give examples of different ways in the webinar.
5. Synchronization strategy. Ideally, you will synchronize the libraries you work with on a daily basis and have them available in the explorer. But if you have sensitive documents and files, they may only be available online. The policy must be clear on how to work and what cannot be synchronized.

Microsoft 365 Admincenter

There is a lot of information available from the admin center and it is worth spending an hour adapting it to your needs. Otherwise, you can easily be overwhelmed by things that are interesting but irrelevant to your job role.

On the admin page, you can customize the home page according to your needs to see which starter cards should be in the main view. In the webinar, Gustav and Robert present how the administration center can be set up so that you can quickly access features related to sharing, access and security levels. You can also add general cards for shortcuts to trainings from Microsoft and choose to remove apps and shortcuts that do not apply to the area you work with.

Decide on the right approach

Starting from the Administration Center home page, Robert and Gustav then take you further into a detailed procedure. They help you find where and how to click in different settings and discuss what they suggest, from a general perspective, and what your organization needs to consider on its own.

1. Sharing settings and access management - Should files be shared internally and externally or should it only be possible to share a link? Also decide who should be able to edit the file and how long the link should be valid. Users should only have access to what is actually used. This is done by limiting the rights to access data beyond this.
2. Preservation principles, labels, classification - A collection of labels that together create a framework for how long data should be retained depending on its content. This can be seen as a technical solution to meet compliance requirements. Individual labels can be used or together create a policy. Labels are used for both preservation and sensitivity. By using labels, data is classified according to the labels that have been created. Simply put, a collection of labels creates the ability to build preservation policies and classify, depending on what you want to achieve. Preservation policy determines how long the data will live, while classification often determines the sensitivity of the data.
3. Data loss protection settings - Gaining control over personal data is a difficult but important part for an IT administrator to solve. By setting up a DLP policy, you can detect and even prevent company information from being sent incorrectly.
4. Monitoring - Can be used both proactively and retroactively for events. If it is used proactively, it is to identify opportunities for improvement, while it can be used retroactively if you want to report how, for example, a file has disappeared.
5. Reports / usage - Here you can see how many files are saved in SharePoint and OneDrive. You can see which users have accessed the cloud and how many files have been edited during a certain time interval; i.e. active files opened, shared or edited during a certain time span. Then you can determine whether the cloud is being used correctly, or at all, and whether the investment has been worthwhile.

One conclusion that can be drawn from Robert and Gustav's presentation on file and document management is that cloud services are great because you can invite collaborators and share everything, but that as an administrator you have to make a distinction between security and simplicity; you have to be able to balance.

If you review the above points once and for all, you will be well on your way to creating a safe and productive working environment for your entire organization.

As an administrator, you have the task of finding the next path. Do users feel confident in how they work, can they attach a file correctly, should it be possible for files to leave your IT environment? There are many decisions to be made and if you have worked locally before, there are many new things that appear in the cloud.

On the plus side, WeSafe is just a click away and Microsoft 365's own training offering is massive.