SharePoint Online is a powerful and flexible platform, used not just for intranets but also as the foundation of emerging AI capabilities.
SharePoint, however, has no inherent ‘shape’ or structure.
Left to its own devices, it rapidly leads to overwhelming sprawl, particularly in larger and more complex organisations. Microsoft gives no clear guidance or support on how to shape the SharePoint landscape beyond technical considerations.
To address this, digital workplace teams can use this Universal model for SharePoint when designing, structuring and governing SharePoint Online.
The Universal model for SharePoint outlines four topologies that describe best-practice approaches:
- Asteroids: A loosely connected set of SharePoint sites, accessed via a single homepage. Most commonly seen in early-stage intranets, or where there is ‘light touch’ governance.
- Solar System: A single set of highly structured SharePoint sites connected to a central hub site with a consistent user experience. The most common shape for corporate intranets.
- Galaxy: A sophisticated SharePoint environment to be designed to meet both global and local needs at scale. Consists of a layered collection of hubs and sites with a central home site.
- Universe: A multifaceted SharePoint environment composed of multiple coexisting architectures — satellites, solar systems, galaxies — each shaped by the needs of its local entity.
Download this free report to explore a new way of thinking about SharePoint Online.
