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No alternatives for the age of artificial intelligence in the workplace

The Risks of Oversharing and the Relevance of AI Governance
23.07.2024
Artificial Intelligence
Digital Workplace
Microsoft 365

Microsoft Teams has redefined the way we work together in recent years. Now the next big topic is on the horizon and has the potential to significantly change the way we work. In the following, I will explain why the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) and the strategy for AI governance in Microsoft 365 are directly related.

The Evolution of Sharing

Our Microsoft 365 governance solution NAVOO like Microsoft SharePoint, has a history that began in the on-premises era. When SharePoint was still Microsoft's sole solution for collaboration in project teams and departments, the structures and authorizations of storage locations already played a central role. Unlike with Microsoft 365, however, it was easier back then to provide users with technical guidance on the structured storage of content. The options were limited.

With the introduction of Teams and the deeper integration of collaboration features into the operating system and the entire Office suite, users were given numerous new options for sharing documents quickly and easily. Sharing scenarios, which SharePoint or other DMS solutions already regulate with clear guidelines, took on a life of their own again. Different versions and duplicates of documents with different authorizations in different storage locations such as Teams Channels, OneDrive or SharePoint document libraries are due to the following problem, among others.

We share information, but we don't "un-share" it.

Oversharing

The use of social media tools such as Instagram or Facebook gave rise to the term "oversharing" some time ago. It refers to the ill-considered and excessive sharing of information. Microsoft has now also established this term in a corporate context. Employees share content with each other via different channels to the detriment of security and relevance.

The reasons for this are:

Lack of strategy and guidelines for governance with regard to sharing and storing content.
Direct sharing at file or directory level.
Use of organization-wide shares, e.g. in public teams.
No strategy or synchronization with sharing groups within SharePoint that go beyond the pure Microsoft 365 group shares.
Incorrect use of dynamic Microsoft 365 groups.
No defined lifecycle for permissions.

Why Does the Term “Oversharing” Suddenly Play Such an Important Role?

The answer is simple. The manufacturer is not interested in a structured form of collaboration, which, according to Microsoft, has always been the responsibility of the user. Rather, it is about the provision of content in the so-called "Semantic Index". It's about the game changer, about AI and Copilot for Microsoft 365.

Microsoft's AI assistant is able to understand and interpret content and highlight correlations. As companies have countless sensitive data that "should" not be available to all employees, there is a risk of information falling into the wrong hands through "oversharing".

The sensitivity of the information can no longer be determined by a single document. For a request for the sales figures of a company, the commission of sales employees or a forecast for the development of company key figures, Copilot for Microsoft 365 only requires fragments of information distributed in different locations to make a statement.

Are You Ready for Copilot for Microsoft 365?

This is the central question that Microsoft is currently asking. However, the manufacturer is not referring to the general corporate culture, the possible added value or the full wallet for the necessary licenses. Rather, the question should be:

Are your governance, collaboration and associated data exchange ready for Copilot?

The AI doesn't care where company data is stored. However, this should by no means lead to the abandonment of a clean structure of storage locations and workgroups. Even in the age of AI, users want to be able to find their documents as quickly as possible and access them easily. The key lies in the interaction between filing structures and authorizations, in AI governance, because Copilot only has access to the data that registered users have access to. Be it via the sharing of a Teams membership, a channel, a connected SharePoint site, a document library or a document directly.

The AI doesn't care where company data is stored. However, this should by no means lead to the abandonment of a clean structure of storage locations and workgroups. Even in the age of AI, users want to be able to find their documents as quickly as possible and access them easily. The key lies in the interaction between filing structures and authorizations, in AI governance, because Copilot only has access to the data that registered users have access to. Be it via the release of a Teams membership, a channel, a connected SharePoint site, a document library or a document directly.

Equipped for the AI Age With Navoo

Microsoft Teams is the control center of daily collaboration in the company. Our Microsoft 365 governance solution NAVOO controls all the systems involved in the background and focuses on efficiency and security. Starting with filing structures and authorizations in OneDrive and SharePoint, through the protection and lifecycle of identities and groups in Microsoft Entra ID, to close integration with security and compliance functions in Microsoft Purview.

NAVOO helps you to avoid oversharing. The governance solution structures repositories and teams correctly and provides users with a working basis that they understand. In addition, NAVOO automatically manages the lifecycle of content and its authorizations.

NAVOO is used by numerous national and international companies. Sensitive and regulated content for specific target groups is the order of the day. The topic of AI, which also includes Copilot for Microsoft 365 and AI governance, is one of our focus topics.

For a Future-Proof Digital Workplace With Microsoft 365

Our Microsoft 365 experts will accompany you on your journey to turn your digital workplace to get the best out of your digital workplace. In addition to the transformation and integration of your content, we support you in the areas of change management, support and managed services for a wide range of services.
 

Get ready for the Modern Work AI era with NAVOO, effective AI governance and Arvato Systems.

 

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Written by

ArvatoSystems_MA_BjörnNettingsmeier
Björn Nettingsmeier
Experte für Microsoft 365