How to Pick the Best SharePoint Alternative for Small Enterprises?

Microsoft SharePoint is a versatile document and content collaboration tool that businesses can use to store and access information from any device, anywhere. However, this popular software solution has its fair share of drawbacks, chief among them being complexity. This makes SharePoint difficult to set up, configure, update, and use – especially for small businesses. Thankfully, there are many SharePoint alternatives on the market today that are just as functional as SharePoint for team collaboration, document management, content management, task management, project management, instant messaging, business intelligence, secure file sharing, and more. Creative Social Intranet is one such alternative.

Why explore SharePoint Alternatives?

SharePoint is a collaboration tool primarily used by large enterprises. Microsoft reports that over 85% of Fortune 500 companies use SharePoint. When it launched in 2001, SharePoint enjoyed a monopoly on office software due to the popularity of applications like Word and Excel. Many companies chose to use SharePoint because it worked well with other Microsoft products. However, the rise of cloud computing has allowed many competitors to enter the market and offer high-quality alternatives to SharePoint that are just as functional, but less complex, less bulky, and much easier to deploy, update, and use.

Despite the fact that SharePoint is a strong collaboration tool, there are a few issues with the system that may lead you to wish to look into a SharePoint substitute.

SharePoint is costly software.

As with any Microsoft software, SharePoint is not a cheap solution, particularly not the SharePoint Server edition, which may cost thousands of dollars for a perpetual device and even more to install and maintain.

SharePoint is complex.

SharePoint is a large, bulky tool with many modules. As such, it can be difficult to configure and use. Additionally, it often leads to governance problems, such as SharePoint sprawl. Sprawl occurs when users create new sites or categorize content poorly, making it difficult to find later on. This not only makes management tasks more difficult but also poses risks for e-discovery and other regulatory issues.

SharePoint requires a lot of regular maintenance.

Because of its complexity, businesses frequently need to hire a professional SharePoint specialist to configure, manage, customize, and maintain the system. This adds even another cost, rendering SharePoint simply unprofitable for many SMBs.

What to consider while selecting a SharePoint alternative?

SharePoint is a great solution for larger organizations that have the budget and technical resources to make it work. However, SharePoint is not suitable for small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) because it is too large, complex, and expensive. Luckily, there are plenty of cost-effective alternatives to SharePoint that offer similar features and don’t require IT expertise to set up or maintain.

Here are some features to consider for a robust SharePoint alternative.

An effective content management system

When considering a SharePoint alternative, it’s important to find a solution that offers content management capabilities. This includes robust document management, powerful enterprise-wide search functionality, and the ability to easily access any information with a click of a button. With Creative Social Intranet, all of these features come standard, along with document access controls, version history tracking, and seamless integrations with third-party tools.

Tools for managing projects and tasks

When considering a digital workplace solution, it’s important to choose one that comes with a powerful, easy-to-use collaboration tool. These tools should improve project and task management, internal communications, company news dissemination, and enterprise social networking. Keep in mind that SharePoint doesn’t provide social intranet features out-of-the-box – you’ll need to employ a SharePoint specialist to integrate the solution with external apps, which can create a disconnected experience for end users.

Claromentis is designed to support corporate social networking and facilitate instant communication between all staff members as a standard. Each team member has access to a “My Projects” dashboard, as well as a “My Tasks” page, which managers can use to assign work and employees to organize their time. This makes Claromentis a more efficient, cohesive solution for your digital workplace needs.

In meanwhile, shared spaces with social media-inspired features like discussion forums, “likes,” systems for recognizing employees, and @mentions technology provide a setting that simplifies communication and promotes employee involvement.

User-friendly, backed by technical staff, given training, and with no additional fees

There are a lot of extra costs that come with SharePoint, like development, user training, maintenance, and hiring consultants, designers, developers, and administrators. With Creative Social Intranet, there are no hidden costs and you won’t need to hire anyone externally. Our solution is easy to set up and configure without IT support. Everything your business needs is in one place with Creative Social Intranet and we provide round-the-clock support and user training.

Call Creative Social Intranet now to schedule a customized demo.