SharePoint Online Best Practices for 2024

The following are some key SharePoint Online best practices for 2024: 

• New Section Backgrounds in Pages and News:
• Authors can add images or gradient color backgrounds to page sections.
• One can customize SharePoint pages and news by configuring section layouts with custom images or gradient colors.
• One can use accessibility aspects by adjusting focal points, fill mode, overlay, and opacity settings.
• Answers in Viva within Microsoft Search:
• Answers content appears in Viva Engage search and Microsoft Search results.
• If one doesn’t find the information needed, they can post the question into Answers.
• One can obtain an interactive email digest with relevant questions.
• SharePoint Security Best Practices:
• One can create and maintain security best practices as needed in SharePoint Online.
• Protect data, manage permissions, and follow security guidelines.

SharePoint Online Features that Harness the Power of AI

The following are SharePoint Online features that harness the power of AI:

1. Copilot in SharePoint: This feature combines the Large Language Models (LLMs) with data from the Microsoft Graph. Copilot in SharePoint allows one to create SharePoint sites and pages using natural language and AI.
2. Enhanced Visuals: SharePoint has many new aesthetic updates. For example one of the cooler updates is the advanced editing in the image web part.
3. Deeper Engagement: SharePoint integrates with email, Teams, and Microsoft Viva. This means one can display content to where users work, ensuring broader outreach.
4. Flexible Platform: SharePoint continues to maintain in templates, the SharePoint Framework, and Microsoft Graph.

Exciting Features That Combine SharePoint Online With the Power of AI

The following are exciting features that combine SharePoint Online with the power of AI:

• Natural Language and AI Authoring: With Copilot, one can create SharePoint pages faster and easier using natural language and AI.
• Real-Time Coauthoring: Work seamlessly on SharePoint documents, editing and collaborating in real time.
• Integrations with Email, Teams, and Microsoft Viva: SharePoint can display content where they work, ensuring content reaches the right audience.
• Templates, SharePoint Framework, and Microsoft Graph: Populate SharePoint sites with specific workflows and integrate them with custom applications.
• Content Experiences and Solutions: SharePoint can elevate employee productivity and refine business processes.
• Content Processing with AI: SharePoint allows one classify and systematically organize data.

Top 3 SharePoint Gotchas

The following are the top three gotchas of SharePoint Online:

1) Modern List Attachments:

List attachments do not have robust management controls and collaborative features such as versioning and co-authoring.

List attachments don’t have a drag and drop aspect.

2) Customization Challenges:

SharePoint has extensive customization options, but what is available via best practices is ever changing and not always documented.

Be aware of customizations that might impact performance, security, or scalability. 

3) Anchors in Modern SharePoint Pages:

Anchors allow one to link directly to specific sections within a page. However, when working with anchors in the SharePoint Framework code, this can be difficult.

5 Top SharePoint Related Help & Learning Sites

The following are the top five SharePoint related help and learning official sites:

SharePoint Help & Learning

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint

OneDrive Help & Learning

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/onedrive

MS Teams Help & Learning

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/teams

M365 Help & Learning

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365

Microsoft Stream Help & Learning

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-stream

Key Requirements and Essential Points of SharePoint Online

The following are some key requirements and essential points of SharePoint Online:

1. Licensing and Access:
• Users in the organization need to be assigned a license that includes SharePoint.
• Microsoft 365 has various plans, including Microsoft 365 Business and Microsoft 365 Enterprise, which provide access to SharePoint features.
2. Features Available Across Plans:
• SharePoint offers a range of features across different plans, including developer and IT admin based capabilities.
• Some notable features include:
• Add-in hosting: Partner-hosted and SharePoint-hosted apps.
• Business Connectivity Services (BCS): Utilized with specific plans.
• Client object models: Utilized with managed code.
• OAuth: Allows users to share resources stored on one site with another site. Note: some providers block in certain regions.
• REST service and OData queries: Allows for queries to specify which fields to return for a given list, list item, or other SharePoint object.
• SharePoint Framework (SPFx): The recommended customization and extensibility development model for SharePoint Online.
• Site designs, site scripts, and site theming: Utilize site templates and site scripts to automate the provisioning of new or existing modern SharePoint sites that use a custom configuration.
3. Hardware and Software Requirements:
• For accessing SharePoint Online, the recommended hardware specifications are:
• Processor: 1.6 GHz or faster, 2-core (2.0 GHz or greater recommended).
• RAM: At least 4 GB.
• Free disk space: 4 GB.
• Screen resolution: 1280 x 7682.
4. Security Measures:
• SharePoint Online uses the Microsoft Azure’s Key Vault service to encrypt data at rest for Exchange Online and SharePoint Online.
5. What Is SharePoint?:
• Organizations utilize Microsoft SharePoint to create websites.
• It serves as a secure collaboration tool to store, organize, share, and access information from any device using a web browser.
6. Business Requirements:
• Consider the organization’s specific needs and explore SharePoint capabilities to plan an effective rollout as needed.

SharePoint Online Best Practices and Considerations

The following are some key SharePoint Online best practices and considerations: 

1. Requirements Gathering:
• User Journeys and Use Cases: Document how the organization currently collaborates. Understand where people store files, how they share information, and existing collaboration processes. Map these tasks to SharePoint and OneDrive capabilities.
• Migration Needs: Account for content migration while keeping productivity working. Plan how to move existing files and content to Microsoft 365.
• Legal and Compliance Involvement: Engage legal and compliance groups to ensure compliance during the transition.
• Stakeholder Agreement: Secure buy-in from proper stakeholders, including business-focused leaders and IT leadership.
2. Core SharePoint and OneDrive Use Cases:
• Content Management: Utilize SharePoint to store, organize, share, and access information securely.
• Document Libraries: Create document libraries to manage files, with version control and metadata.
• Lists: Utilize lists for tracking data, such as tasks, issues, or inventory.
• Communication Sites: Build intranet portals, news sites, and team sites as needed for the intended collaboration.
• Search and Discovery: Utilize search capabilities to find information quickly.
• Security and Permissions: Account for and plan access controls and permissions for users and groups.
• Integration with Microsoft 365 Apps: Leverage integration with other Microsoft 365 services such as Teams, Outlook, and Power Platform.
3. Hardware and Software Requirements:
• SharePoint Online users,should have the recommended hardware specifications which include:
• Processor: 1.6 GHz or faster, 2-core (2.0 GHz or greater recommended).
• RAM: At least 4 GB.
• Disk Space: 4 GB free.
• Screen Resolution: 1280 x 768