Effective SharePoint governance hinges greatly on how SharePoint sites are structured from the outset.
The initial design SharePoint structure serves as the foundation for processes, security, and adoption over time.
In this article, we’ll break down key learning on the relationship between SharePoint structure and governance uncovered by IT leaders.
Mastering these insights will empower you to craft a versatile architecture that sustains compliance without compromising usability.
1. Standardization Enables Oversight
Standard SharePoint site templates and content types facilitate oversight for IT teams managing hundreds of sites.
Conversely, excessive customization multiplies governance efforts. Each personalized site must be evaluated individually to gauge security and compliance.
- Standard sites streamline version tracking, security updates, and policy enforcement. Custom sites require manual scrutiny.
- Reusing templates aids visibility into storage costs, data lifecycles, and resource allocation.
- Standardization allows auditing site progress and status without internal user surveys.
2. Room for Flexibility is Crucial
However, governance outcomes degrade if policies grow too restrictive. Allowing some flexibility in site customization while upholding security standards boosts user adoption.
- Rigid rules frustrate staff and reduce SharePoint utilization. Employees then use unauthorized tools, risking data breaches.
- Permissible variations in site design, plugins, apps, and workflows accommodate diverse use cases.
- Sandbox sites with looser governance for teams testing innovations before wider deployment.
3. Automation and Policy Templates
Manually monitoring custom SharePoint sites is unrealistic beyond a few dozen portals. Automated policy templates inspect settings and alert administrators to areas falling outside governance guidelines.
| Policy Template | Usage |
| Site creation policies | Ensure new sites adhere to naming conventions, security protocols, and storage allocations. |
| Content type policies | Restrict available content types to vetted templates to maintain consistency. |
| Customization policies | Limit the use of custom scripts, widgets, and tools to approved libraries. |
“We constructed a matrix for governance risk levels—high, medium, and low. Automated policies match settings on each site to acceptable risk thresholds for that department.”
4. Index and Category Sites Meticulously
A meticulous site indexing strategy must align with governance priorities:
- Map business functions to SharePoint sites using a clear classification hierarchy.
- Category sites by department, team, project, security level, compliance standard, etc.
- Recursively index sites as new ones spawn from existing portals.
With an organizational taxonomy applied to all sites, administrators can configure and monitor governance standards based on a site’s categories. For example, project sites may have less strict oversight than human resources sites.
5. Governance is Ongoing, Not Just Initial
The launch of SharePoint ushers in a shift towards continual governance vigilance rather than intermittent project-based policies. Core governance components include:
- Oversight Committee: Stakeholders managing governance strategies.
- Feedback Channels: User surveys, focus groups for new policies.
- Audits: Regular assessment of site compliance.
- Policy Update Cadence: Yearly, quarterly or monthly policy revision cycles.
“The key lesson we learned was establishing governance as an iterative, living process that grows along with SharePoint usage and customization.”
In closing, SharePoint allows enormous flexibility, which introduces governance challenges.
Using standardized structures, embracing automation, and centering user feedback can profoundly simplify oversight without limiting customization potential.
