Should you use SharePoint as a Document Management System?

What’s wrong with SharePoint, anyway? Why shouldn’t it be used as a document management system (DMS) for a growing business?

What can SharePoint do for you?

If you have the time, money and IT resource you can configure SharePoint to do a whole bunch of things for your business. With patience and a hired consultant, you can use it to build a secure, document-sharing system that you can maintain and update over time.

The real question is why would you want to?

But if you are building your business in an agile way, you need a DMS that is as agile and responsive as you are - straight out of the box. SharePoint can require a lot of work to become the document management system of your dreams - and comes with many trip-hazards for the unwary:

Watch Rupert Baines, a semiconductor industry veteran and CEO of QPT, discuss his past experience using SharePoint for document control.

But what about your specific document management needs?

Many businesses feel that their document management needs are bespoke so they set about using SharePoint to build a unique, tailored solution.

But, the truth is, proprietary Document Management Systems are configurable to a greater or lesser extent - and most are easier to configure than SharePoint.

Some may even have been developed specifically to serve the sector you work in, so they may already include the unique solutions you require.

For those developing medical devices, imagine a DMS configured to deal with the complexities of document handling required by ISO 13485 certification, or smooth the way for compliance with FDA 21 CFR Part 11. Or, imagine one that helps you meet the Risk-Based Thinking (RBT) requirements of ISO 9001:2015.

Document Management Systems like this do exist, and they are already helping growing companies in niche sectors respond quickly to regulatory challenges with their product development, business process and QMS tools.

So, what’s wrong with SharePoint?

It’s worth thinking about how your specific use cases will impact the overall success of any proposed DMS as a business and quality management tool.

But SharePoint has specific limitations that many companies only properly register when the realities of everyday use kick in.

7 questions to ask before you choose SharePoint as your DMS?

1. Can you impose the right document controls?

SharePoint's ‘out of the box’ document management capabilities are surprisingly limited. Automatic versioning and audit trails don’t come as standard. To set up required document control functions, you may have to use lots of different plug-ins. Want to sign off your documents with e-signatures to meet FDA regulations? Then you'll likely have to use DocuSign or equivalent (and pay them a hefty monthly fee for the privilege).

2. Will you be able to find anything?

Search continues to be an issue for many SharePoint users. Problems with security settings, filtering, approvals, and indexing have plagued the platform's search capabilities for years. This blog by Adenin sums it up:

“For most of its life, SharePoint's search has been a mixed bag in terms of its UI. This has gotten to a point where Microsoft has thrown in the towel and made an all-new search for SharePoint online. This is a lot easier to use, at the expense of being almost entirely bereft of meaningful ways to refine results.”  

Discoverability is key to a successful document management system. It makes information accessible for workers and auditors at the touch of a button. It eliminates wasted time and ensures vital data is always available when it is needed most.

Fine-grained search capabilities accelerate and ensure the accuracy of returns, but SharePoint users complain about the reliability of the most basic search tools such as ‘entire phrase matching’.

Plug-ins are available to improve the quality of search in your DIY, but this will add another layer of configuration and complexity to your set up process.

3. Will it support business-critical processes?

SharePoint does not come with automatic versioning and clear controls over the movement between document ‘drafts’ and ‘issues’.

If you're signing off on multi-million dollar decisions and approving quality documentation you need to ensure that your signature is always being applied to the correct version of each document.

Where accountability and accuracy are business-critical, complete audit trails (and features like watermarking for obsolete or unapproved documents) will give you the confidence that you’re always looking at the most accurate and up-to-date version of any file.

4. Is SharePoint really a low-cost/no-cost solution?

There are licensing fees and per seat costs to factor in, and they may soon start to escalate depending on the size of your company. This is not to mention the initial outlay for a consultant to come and set it all up in the first place.

And what if you spend all that time and money configuring your solution and you need to optimise, upgrade it and add new features? You may have to pay for ongoing maintenance and support from your consultant on top of your annual licensing fee - just in the same way as you’d be paying for account management and technical support from a DMS provider.

A quick Google will show you the day rate for a SharePoint consultant can be anything from £250 to £900. Meanwhile, the total cost of implementing a document management information architecture, plus data migration, can come in at £40,000 without any aftercare factored in.

5. Are you able to validate a DIY quality management system?

If you’re using SharePoint to create a quality management system (QMS) for a regulated industry, then you need to consider if you have the in-house skills to validate the system you create.

Validating a SharePoint-based QMS for ISO 13485 and FDA standards involves several critical steps. First, system designs must be documented, followed by a thorough risk assessment to ensure compliance. Security measures, such as access controls and audit trails, are essential. A validation plan including IQ, OQ, and PQ is needed to verify performance. Robust document control and versioning processes, along with data backup protocols, must be implemented. Additionally, user training and continuous monitoring must ensure ongoing adherence to regulatory standards and system functionality.

Proprietary systems designed for use in regulated sectors will offer validation as part of the package.

6. What about third-party collaboration and data security?

SharePoint's external sharing tools are OK. But a proprietary system will be able to deliver a richer and more secure third-party collaboration than a DIY solution ever could. A good DMS will be able to offer you fine-grained control over editing and access rights that you’ll struggle to recreate in SharePoint on your own. Remember, a reputable DMS supplier will have built their system to the ISO 27001 security standard. That's a costly and complex standard for your growing business to gain in your own right.

7. Will your people be able to use it?

The guilty secret of SharePoint is that when it’s rolled out as an everyday tool in an organisation, many people struggle to use it. It may be a Microsoft product, but for non-techies, it can be a real challenge getting to grips with the way it works. Usability is the most important part of any document management system because that’s the way to ensure uptake. And unless a DMS can become the single source of truth when it comes to information and documentation, it’s going to be a waste of time and money.

Sharepoint vs typical eDMS functionality - at a glance

The difference between SharePoint’s ‘out of the box’ document management capabilities and those of a proprietary eDMS can be considerable. Before you commit to building a SharePoint solution, consider what features you could be getting as standard with the right document management software.

How do you know if a DMS is the right fit for you?

A live demo of any Document Management System you are considering purchasing will certainly help you work through these kinds of scenarios. It will help you measure any potential solution against your business needs, deciding what functionality is essential to you and what compromises you're willing to make, if necessary. It may even help you uncover problems with your specifications or introduce new items to your wish list.

Why reinvent the wheel?

To operate effectively, a growing business needs to establish a secure Document Management System as soon as possible in its life cycle. Ideally, it will sit on a stable platform and provide comprehensive task functionality, including an intuitive, configurable dashboard sitting above the database.

The platform needs to be able to scale with the business, responding to your needs as you grow.

Your DMS should bring structure and organisation to your product development process; making regulatory compliance more straightforward, ISO certification easier to achieve and their audits less challenging.

Above all, it should allow you to focus on your business goals, not distract you with an ever growing list of performance issues.

When all this can come out of the box, why push yourself to create a solution that already exists?

There may be a few compromises involved in using a proprietary DMS, in terms of navigation, look or feel. But the effort required to reconcile these compromises with your business needs may be nothing compared to the effort of building and maintaining a solution in SharePoint.

Last updated on 15/10/2024