Employee Training, Video Capabilities Rank as Top Priorities for SharePoint Users

Employee training and increased video capabilities are top priorities for businesses using Microsoft’s popular SharePoint platform.

According to a recent survey by video platform provider Oumu, 60 percent of SharePoint users utilize SharePoint capabilities to provide employee training. In fact, 88 percent saw improving business training resources and delivering training via live video within SharePoint as a strategic development opportunity.

SharePoint is used extensively for employee training, with a mere 10 percent of survey respondents saying it was not used for this purpose.

The global survey of Microsoft SharePoint users also revealed that providing live video meetings and training sessions, in addition to offering easy video upload and sharing, were key goals for 2013. In addition, the increase in the use of video content was recognized by users, with 45 percent suggesting the offering of easy video upload and sharing was a top priority.

More than half (53 percent) of users said making the SharePoint experience “more engaging and dynamic” would improve corporate culture. In addition, supporting mobile users (35 percent) through SharePoint was seen as having the same effect.

With remote working an established practice for many employees, and teams spread across multiple locations, using video technology for employee training has the potential to save costs for businesses, whilst making staff training and development more efficient, according to Steve Ferrigno, vice president of Qumu EMEA.

“Because of the increasing number of mobile workers, training is challenging yet remains crucial given that people are the most valuable asset in any company,” Ferrigno said in a statement. “Driven by the adoption of social collaboration tools and video applications for employees, today’s SharePoint managers cannot ignore the lure of video and the greater value it brings to an organization by making it more dynamic and connected.”

Microsoft recently released the cloud-based and home subscription versions of its Office 2013 platform, and industry prognosticators say the tech giant’s next big announcement will be the general release of SharePoint 2013.

To help companies that are planning to move to SharePoint 2013, or migrate from an earlier version, Dell recently released a whitepaper, “Five Ways to Prepare for SharePoint to 2013.”