How To Maximise Your SharePoint Migration
SharePoint migration is more than just a technical upgrade, it is a rare strategic opportunity to rethink how your organisation stores, shares and manages information. In this article, we explore how modernising your information architecture during migration can boost productivity, improve searchability, and lay the foundation for a smarter digital workplace.
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With more organisations shifting towards cloud-first strategies and with some SharePoint platforms reaching end of support, many organisations are currently reevaluating their approach to SharePoint. In fact, according to Gartner, by 2028, most organisations will be leveraging the cloud as a business necessity.
While migration may begin as a technical necessity, it should also be viewed as a strategic opportunity to transform how your organisation stores, manages and accesses information. By taking a strategic approach, businesses can use migration as an opportunity to modernise information architecture, boost productivity and lay the foundations for a smarter digital workplace.
In recent years, migrations have become a recurring priority as Microsoft phases out support for older versions of SharePoint. SharePoint 2013 reached its extended end-of-life support in April 2023, while SharePoint 2016 and 2019 will follow in July 2026. In response, many organisations are opting to transition to SharePoint Online, drawn by its modern user experience, seamless Microsoft 365 integration, and continuous automatic updates.
Importance of Information Architecture
At the core of any SharePoint environment is its information architecture. Information architecture refers to the way content is organised, structured and labelled within your organisation’s digital environment. Within SharePoint, good information architecture empowers users to easily locate and access the information they need. Supporting better navigation, enhancing overall search results and simplifying permissions management.
Migration as a Strategic Opportunity for Change
Migrating to SharePoint Online presents a unique and valuable opportunity to reassess and optimise your organisation’s information architecture. The migration process already requires an audit of existing content, permissions, and business processes. This makes it an ideal opportunity to declutter, restructure, and align your SharePoint environment with current business needs.
Yet, many organisations fall into the trap of a ‘lift and shift’ approach, simply moving content from one system to another without critical evaluation. While this approach may seem like the quickest path forward, a simple lift and shift approach can result in missed opportunities and inefficiencies, particularly when it comes to governance, security and discoverability. Poorly structured content can also lead to time wasted. According to a 2023 survey by Adobe, 48% of respondents stated that they struggle to find documents quickly and efficiently, while 47% feel that their company’s online filing system is confusing and ineffective. Issues such as these can persist if legacy content is migrated without optimisation.
By taking advantage of the opportunity migration presents to create a modern information architecture, organisations can maximise their investment, improve productivity, and lay the foundations to adopt emerging technologies such as Microsoft Copilot and SharePoint Premium, which rely on well-structured data repositories to provide accurate insights.
How to Rethink Information Architecture During Migration
Consider the below best practices to build a modern SharePoint environment that supports productivity, discoverability and governance.
Conduct a Comprehensive Content Audit
The first step for any migration is to conduct a comprehensive audit to evaluate all existing content to identify what is still relevant, what needs to be archived, and what can be deleted in line with your organisation’s retention policies.
Engage Stakeholders Across Departments
Collaborate and consult with different teams across your organisation to gain an understanding of how they use and manage content as well as what frustrations they have with the existing system and information architecture.
Define Content Types & Classification
Develop consistent naming conventions and metadata strategies relevant to your organisation. This enhances search functionality and helps ensure compliance with internal and external regulations.
Design a Logical Site Structure
Create a clear and scalable SharePoint architecture structure by organising your SharePoint sites, libraries and navigation to reflect current business processes with access and collaboration in mind.
Establish Governance and Training
Implement guidelines for content creation, content classification, storage and lifecycle management and create policies within SharePoint to reflect these. Ensure employees receive the correct training relevant to their role to maximise the adoption and value of the new environment.
Through focusing on these key areas throughout migration, organisations can transform their SharePoint environments into intuitive, efficient and user-friendly platforms.
Taking Advantage of Modern Solutions
Creating a modern information architecture allows your organisation to unlock further value and functionality with the introduction of advanced tools such as Microsoft Copilot and SharePoint Premium.
Microsoft Copilot leverages generative AI to provide intelligent assistance within Microsoft 365 applications. Its value is amplified when operating on well-structured and well-governed data, delivering more accurate insights, recommendations and productivity gains.
SharePoint Premium offers advanced content management features, including AI-driven content classification, enhanced security, compliance, and automation capabilities. These features operate most effectively in environments with strong information architecture foundations.
These tools can empower organisations to move beyond basic document storage towards intelligent content experiences that support both compliance and innovation.
Migrating to SharePoint is more than a technical upgrade; it's a strategic initiative that, when executed thoughtfully, can significantly enhance organisational efficiency. By reimagining your information architecture during migration, your organisation can boost collaboration, governance and content discoverability while laying the groundwork for future innovations powered by SharePoint Online, Microsoft Copilot, and SharePoint Premium.
If you would like to learn more about the SharePoint migration process, get in touch to speak with one of our specialists or watch our recent webinar, From Content Chaos to Compliance: Simplify Governance with SharePoint.
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