SharePoint Records Management: Organizing and Protecting Your Data
SharePoint Records Management
SharePoint provides a centralized repository for storing, organizing and retrieving important documents. It has powerful records management capabilities to help businesses maintain compliance and secure information governance.
Why Use SharePoint for Records Management?
Centralized Storage
SharePoint provides a single, secure location for storing, accessing and managing records, reducing the risk of data silos.
Search and Discoverability
SharePoint’s search capabilities and metadata tagging make it easier to find and retrieve records quickly.
Familiarity and Adoption
Team members are already familiar with SharePoint’s interface and functionality, which facilitates adoption for records management.
Compliance and Security
SharePoint’s built-in compliance features help meet regulatory and legal requirements.
Version Control:
SharePoint maintains a complete version history of documents and ensures integrity of all records.
Customizable Workflows
Power Automate makes it possible to streamline records-related processes such as approvals, retention and archiving.
How to Set Up SharePoint for Best-in-Class Records Management
Define a Clear Records Management Policy.
Establish and document a company policy that outlines how records will be classified, retained and disposed of.
Set Up Access Controls
Configure permissions, encryption and audit logging to make sure that only authorized users have access to sensitive records.
Leverage Automation
Use SharePoint’s automation features, such as workflows and retention policies, to reduce manual effort and improve efficiency within the records’ lifecycle.
Train Team Members
Educate the team on how to properly label, store and retrieve records in SharePoint.
Review and Update Record Management Policies
Conduct regular audits to make sure retention policies are up to date with regulatory requirements.
Key SharePoint Records Management
Features and Functionality
SharePoint allows organizations to apply retention labels to documents and specify how long they should be stored before deletion or archival. These policies help ensure compliance with legal and industry regulations.
âž” Retention labels can be applied manually or automatically based on metadata
➔ Retention can be based on the document’s creation date, modification date or specific events
âž” Some policies allow records to be locked, preventing unauthorized changes.
SharePoint provides two primary options for records management — Records Center and In-Place Records Management:
âž” Records Center is a dedicated site for storing and managing official records separately from active documents. It provides centralized control over the classification, retention and disposal of records.
âž” In-Place Records Management approach allows documents to remain in their original libraries while still being managed under retention rules. It is useful for maintaining workflow efficiency while ensuring compliance.
SharePoint allows organizations to classify documents using metadata and content types, making it easier to locate, organize and apply governance policies to records.
âž” Custom metadata fields help categorize documents based on business needs.
âž” Content types allow organizations to create document templates with predefined retention rules.
âž” Automated workflows can route documents to the correct location based on metadata.
For organizations subject to legal or regulatory compliance, SharePoint’s eDiscovery feature allows users to:
âž” Find and retrieve specific records across multiple SharePoint sites.
âž” Apply legal holds to prevent records from being modified or deleted during investigations.
âž” Export records for audits or legal proceedings.
After documents have met their retention period, SharePoint automates the process of record disposal.
âž” Scheduled workflows notify administrators when records are due for review.
âž” Content types allow organizations to create document templates with predefined retention rules.
âž” Automated workflows can route documents to the correct location based on metadata.
Best Practices for SharePoint Records Management
Optimizing your Enterprise Records Management in SharePoint helps organize and protect your data while enhancing compliance and reducing manual work.Â
To make the most of your Records Management system, consider following these best practices:
Apply retention labels and policies to automate records lifecycle management. This helps enforce compliance by retaining or deleting records as needed without manual overhead.
Restrict permissions based on user roles to protect sensitive information. This reduces the risk of unauthorized access to records.
Enable version history to track changes. This allows you to audit modifications and revert to previous versions if necessary.
Use content types to standardize document structure and metadata across departments. This promotes consistency and simplifies classification of records.
Implement workflows for record approval, review and disposition to increase efficiency and make sure records are handled according to organizational policies.
Review audit logs regularly to detect unusual activity. Audit trails help identify and address policy breaches.
Prioritize use of metadata over folders for organization. Metadata offers greater flexibility in filtering and sorting records than folder structures.
Use document IDs to create unique identifiers for official records. This simplifies referencing and tracking of records.
Set up alerts and notifications for key actions, such as record expiration or required reviews. Timely reminders help manage records without missing deadlines.
Regularly review and update records management policies and retention schedules. This keeps your records program aligned with evolving legal and business needs.
Challenges and Limitations of Out-of-the-Box Records Management in SharePoint and Effective Solutions
While SharePoint has strong capabilities for records management, it is not a records management system out-of-the-box. Here are the most common challenges of using SharePoint for records management and ways to solve them using functionality-enhancing software for SharePoint like Sprocket 365
Authors gravitate to using Microsoft Word for creating policies and storing them in SharePoint, while the workforce values being able to quickly find and consult important records. In SharePoint out-of-the-box, finding and viewing important records can be challenging.
Consequences for the Business: A clash between the team’s preferences for creating and consuming policies and procedures can lead to operational inefficiencies, reduced adoption, inconsistent record-keeping and missed compliance steps.
Cost-Effective and Convenient Solution: Sprocket 365 allows the authors to continue using Microsoft Word to create and collaborate on policies and procedures. It facilitates the approval and revision process using Power Automate. Once policies and procedures are finalized, Sprocket 365 makes them easier to find and consume with the help of strategic metadata and user-friendly web parts, such as Documents web part.Â
Out-of-the-box SharePoint requires manual setup and maintenance of retention schedules.
Consequences for the Business: Inconsistent or forgotten retention policies can result in non-compliance, legal risks and accidental deletion of critical records.
Cost-Effective and Convenient Solution: Sprocket 365 allows organizations to automate retention rules and policy enforcement. This ensures consistent governance for all records.
SharePoint’s standard audit logs are limited in scope.
Consequences for the Business: Without comprehensive audit trails, organizations run the risk of unauthorized access and changes going undetected.
Cost-Effective and Convenient Solution: Sprocket 365 offers detailed audit logs with visual reports that enhance compliance and transparency.Â
With Sprocket 365, You Can Easily Organize and Manage Critical Company Records Within SharePoint and Meet All Regulatory and Legal Requirements
You can organize, maintain and share essential records, manage your compliance policies and documentation lifecycles, and make sure your team always has quick and secure access to critical company information.
How It Works
1. Install Sprocket 365 from the SharePoint App Store
- Go to Microsoft AppSource or your SharePoint admin center, search for Sprocket 365 and click Add to SharePoint.
- Follow the installation instructions and grant the necessary permissions for integration.
2. Set Up Your Records Management Hub with Sprocket365 Tools
- Use Sprocket 365's prebuilt layouts, page tools and content organization features to create a clean, centralized site for managing business records.
- Use Sprocket 365's web parts to configure intuitive navigation and help users access categorized libraries easily.
3. Configure Metadata, Taxonomy & Compliance Rules
- Use Sprocket 365's structured tagging, custom fields and reusable content types to align metadata with your compliance needs.
- Use Sprocket 365's managed term sets to enhance SharePoint’s native metadata capabilities.
Who Is Sprocket 365 For?
Sprocket 365 is right for you if you are tired of challenging navigation, inconsistent records tagging and manual compliance tracking and want a streamlined and efficient records management system with automated retention workflows, intuitive search and full visibility into your records’ lifecycle.
