If you work with SharePoint, you are probably familiar with the power and flexibility the platform offers for document management.
One of the most underutilized features within SharePoint is the Document Set.
In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at what Document Sets are, how they work and why you should use them for your organization.
What is a Document Set?
A Document Set in SharePoint is a special type of folder that you can use to group and manage a set of documents as a single entity.
This is especially useful when working with projects, cases or other scenarios where multiple documents are used and managed together.
Benefits of Paper Sets
Using Document Sets offers several benefits that can optimize your work processes:
- Grouping documents 👥 Bring together documents that belong together, such as contracts, bids and project plans.
- Metadata: 📝 Link metadata to the entire Document Set so that you maintain consistency in your document management.
- Versioning 🔄 Easily keep track of the different versions of your documents, not only per document, but also for the whole set.
- Access Management 🔒 Manage rights and access at the set level, allowing you to streamline the security of related documents.
- Faster navigation 🚀 Work more efficiently by quickly accessing an entire group of documents without having to click through folders.
How do you create a Document Set?
Creating a Document Set in SharePoint is easy, but requires you to follow a few steps:
- Activate the Document Set function:
- Go to Site Settings and click Site Content Types.
- Select Document Set among the available content types and activate it.
- Configure your Document Set:
- Add the desired metadata you want to associate with the Document Set.
- Set the default content to be added when a new set is created, such as document templates.
- Use your Document Set:
- Go to your document library, choose New and select your created Document Set.
Then add the documents you want to manage.
Best Practices for the Use of Document Sets
To make the best use of Document Sets, keep the following tips in mind:
- Consistency is crucial: Make sure metadata and templates are set up properly before you start using Document Sets.
- User Training: 🧑🏫 Provide clear instructions to your team on how to use Document Sets so that everyone knows how to get the most out of this feature.
- Regular Maintenance: 🛠️ Keep your Document Sets up-to-date and ensure that old or unused sets are archived or deleted.
- Integration with Workflows: 🔄 Automate processes by linking Document Sets to workflows in SharePoint, such as approval processes or notifications.
When not to use Document Sets?
While Document Sets offer many benefits, there are also situations when you might be better off without them:
- Small, simple projects: For smaller projects with few documents, regular folders or libraries may be sufficient.
- Complex permissions: If you need very complex permission settings per document, it can be difficult to manage properly within a Document Set.
- Oversized archives: Gigantic amounts of documents may require a different approach, such as using multiple libraries with structured folders.
Conclusion
Document Sets in SharePoint are a powerful tool to bring efficiency and organization to your document management.
Whether you’re working on large projects, legal cases or other document-intensive processes, Document Sets give you a way to keep everything neat and organized.
👋 Are you ready to start using Document Sets?
Get started today and discover how they can improve your work processes!
