Want to get more out of your Microsoft 365 setup?
Many teams deploy SharePoint and hope for the best. They dump documents into random folders, create an unmaintainable intranet jungle, and wonder why no one uses it. Sound like you?
Here’s the truth:
SharePoint doesn’t magically become configured perfectly. There needs to be a plan, proper structure, and (typically) a qualified SharePoint consultant leading the charge.
Inside this eBook you will discover what a SharePoint consultant actually does, why your team cannot afford to miss this step these days and the secrets to success that make winners stand out from the crowd.
Let’s dive in!
Table of Contents
What you’ll discover:
- What Does a SharePoint Consultant Do?
- Why Modern Teams Need A SharePoint Consultant
- 5x Success Insights From Top Performers
- Common Mistakes To Avoid
What Does a SharePoint Consultant Do?
A SharePoint consultant is someone who advises your organization on planning, building, and enhancing your SharePoint environment.
They wear many hats. They can be the architect behind your intranet. They can be the trainer coming in to help your team use your tools. Or they can be the problem solver cleaning up from your previous setup.
The best SharePoint consultant will start with your business objectives and build a SharePoint strategy around those objectives. Too many consultants do it the other way around. That’s why some SharePoint implementations are loved; while others are hated.
A good SharePoint consultant handles things like:
- Site architecture and permissions planning
- Document libraries and metadata setup
- Workflow automation using Power Automate
- Migration from old systems or file shares
- Governance, security, and compliance
- User training and adoption support
Pretty wide-ranging, huh? That’s because SharePoint is pretty big—it powers team file sharing, collaboration, and searching throughout Microsoft 365.
Why Modern Teams Need A SharePoint Consultant
Let’s talk statistics. 75% of Fortune 500 organizations have Microsoft 365 as their primary productivity platform, and SharePoint is at the core of that platform.
It’s big part of the working population using this every day.
Why does that matter? Well, when something as ubiquitous as file storage isn’t organized correctly, expenses can mount quickly. Slow searches. Duplicate files. Missing documents. Annoyed employees. These problems don’t resolve on their own.
A skilled SharePoint consultant helps you avoid that pain by:
- Setting up a clean structure from day one
- Avoiding governance issues before they happen
- Making sure your team actually adopts the platform
- Connecting SharePoint to your other Microsoft 365 tools
Especially now with AI tools like Copilot entering the ring. Microsoft 365 Copilot is being used by almost 70% of Fortune 500 companies. Not to mention Copilot leverages SharePoint content to function. Dirty SharePoint = Dirty AI data.
5x Success Insights From Top Performers
Ok, now on to the good stuff. Below are your success tips high performing teams follow to maximize SharePoint.
Start With a Plan, Not a Template
The biggest mistake teams make? Skipping the planning stage.
They download a template that someone already built. Throw a logo on it and call it a day. Then six months later, no one can find anything.
Take time upfront to map out:
- Who needs access to what
- How your team actually works
- What kinds of files you store
- Which workflows can be automated
This planning prevents months of cleanup effort later. The SharePoint consultant will facilitate these planning sessions and record the information in a roadmap for your team.
Make Adoption A Priority
Something that is commonly forgotten… A SharePoint implementation isn’t successful until it is adopted.
You can create the coolest intranet ever, but if your employees continue to email attachments back and forth, you’ve just thrown your money away. Adoption has to be part of the project from day one.
Easy ways to drive adoption:
- Train teams in small groups, not one big webinar
- Build “quick win” features people love
- Highlight early adopters publicly
- Replace old tools so people have no choice but to switch
Use Metadata, Not Folders
Folders feel familiar. They also become a nightmare at scale.
SharePoint today is all about metadata. Metadata are tags/properties you can use to easily filter, sort, and locate your files. Forget navigating through 12 folders to find that contract. Just filter by “client name” and “year.” Boom. Saved you seconds.
This is the type of enhancement where a SharePoint consultant truly proves their value. They configure the metadata once, train your staff and watch productivity soar.
Automate The Boring Stuff
If your team does the same task over and over again, automate it.
SharePoint integrates with Power Automate, which allows you to create workflows with zero coding. Approval requests, document routing, email notifications, reminders — you name it, it can go hands-free.
Time is money. And when you spend less time on manual tasks, you free up more time to do the things that really matter to your business.
Plan For Security From Day One
Security is not a luxury. Today’s teams manage sensitive data every day: client files, financial spreadsheets, HR records, contracts.
A good SharePoint consultant will set up:
- Permission groups (not user-by-user access)
- Sensitivity labels for important content
- Data loss prevention rules
- External sharing policies
Do it right from the beginning and you’ll save yourself the heartache later when you receive an audit.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
There are tools to help avoid known problems, yet teams still stumble on the same few errors again and again. These are the major ones you should know:
- Too many sites: Don’t open a new site every time you work on something. You’ll clutter your surroundings quickly. Fewer, larger hubs are better.
- All open: Providing unfettered access to everyone is simple short-term but causes huge security issues later.
- No plan for governance: Without naming conventions, sharing standards and content lifecycle rules, your SharePoint will turn into a data dump in 12 months.
- Skipping training: Teams that don’t get trained never adopt the platform properly.
Don’t make these mistakes. That’s half the solution. The rest is working with someone who knows the platform backwards and forwards.
Bringing It All Together
Done right, SharePoint will revolutionize the way your teams work together. Save hours every week and realize the full potential of your Microsoft 365 investment.
But here’s the thing… It’s also very easy to get wrong.
That’s what a skilled SharePoint consultant provides. Experience. A plan. And technical expertise to help ensure your SharePoint environment works for you, not against you.
To quickly recap the success insights:
- Plan first, build second
- Make adoption a top priority
- Use metadata over folders
- Automate the boring stuff
- Lock down security from day one
- Avoid the common mistakes
Nail these, and you will leave teams that “wing it” in the dust. Today’s teams deserve today’s technology, and hiring a top SharePoint consultant is one of the best investments you’ll ever spend.
