CollabTalk Research Link List

A collection of research papers, ebooks, and whitepapers — all available for free download:

MANAGING SPRAWL IN MICROSOFT 365

This eBook outlines the essential skills every IT department must master to control sprawl in Microsoft 365 environments, and details the history of governance inside Microsoft 365 and will leave you with the following learnings:

• What is content sprawl?
• Why sprawl is not such a bad thing after all.
• Understanding the impacts of sprawl on you and your users.
• Tips for managing sprawl in M365.
• Creating an action plan for best practices in content governance.

Download your copy of this free eBook.

MICROSOFT 365 COMPLIANCE, SECURITY, AND PRIVACY SURVEY

Microsoft 365 is the most commonly used cloud office suite in the world. Despite this, it can be notoriously difficult to fully leverage its security, compliance, and governance features. In this survey, 59 experienced admins shared top concerns and priorities for enhancing security in the M365 suite. This research was sponsored by Egnyte.

Download your copy of this free infographic.

BUILDING A MORE DIVERSE WORKFORCE IN THE PARTNER CHANNEL

A research-based practice development playbook and resource set to help partners recruit and retain a more diverse workforce. Authored by Barb Levisay, with research conducted by CollabTalk LLC and the BYU Marriott School of Management commissioned by Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, Tech Data, and Microsoft.

Download your copy of this free report.

THE OFFICE 365 OPERATIONAL SUCCESS PLAYBOOK

Looking at the Office 365 platform, with the core workloads of Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Skype, they include decades of on-premises history with robust and mature security, compliance and governance capabilities as standalone offerings. Customers around the world have come to rely on the on-premises versions of these tools, but they are quickly moving to the cloud, which requires a review – and possibly a re-thinking – of operational practices to ensure our environments remain secure, compliant, and well-governed.

While the Office 365 platform inherits the robust security, compliance, and governance capabilities of its on-premises predecessors, the goal of this whitepaper is to help customers review their security, governance and compliance requirements as they migrate to Office 365 to ensure that these requirements are being met — and any gaps are being managed. This paper, sponsored by Spanning, is based on two previous CollabTalk research studies: Organizational Security & Compliance Practices in Office 365, and Improving Governance in Office 365.

Download your copy of this free playbook.

IMPROVING GOVERNANCE IN OFFICE 365

Based on research conducted by CollabTalk and the BYU Marriott School of Management, and sponsored by Microsoft, Spanning, Rencore, and tyGraph, this report sheds light on governance practices within organizations at a time when moving from on-premises to the cloud is increasingly common. In this report, you will learn:

• What are the common collaboration patterns, and solutions used?
• Are there differences in the lifecycle of sites/environments on-prem versus cloud? (Are cloud environments more temporary? Are on-prem environments more closely managed? Are there differences in the lifecycle of data?)
• What is the length of engagement with an on-prem SharePoint site compared to a Microsoft Teams team or channel?
• Are there different governance trends by region, or by industry?
• Does governance ownership change when moving to the cloud? If so, what are the impacts?
• What are the financial impacts of poor governance planning and oversight?

Download your copy of this free report

ORGANIZATIONAL SECURITY & COMPLIANCE PRACTICES IN OFFICE 365

Collaboration Managers and IT Teams express confidence in their Office 365 security and compliance practices, but when pressed on specifics about the gaps between out-of-the-box capabilities and insufficient processes and tools, most respondents were unaware of the potential risks. In this research paper, you will learn:

• How organizations are running security and compliance today, looking specifically at the evolving patterns of end user and team collaboration, and the cost/impact of these changes.
• The real-world issues facing most organizations, and the over-reliance on out-of-the-box capabilities.
• The “confidence gap” in core aspects of organizational security and compliance readiness.

Download your copy of this free research paper.

UNDERSTANDING MICROSOFT CLOUD SERVICES AND SECURITY

Based on research conducted by CollabTalk and the BYU Marriott School of Management, and sponsored by Microsoft, Rencore, and other leading partners, this report on on the state of Microsoft cloud services and security was written by Liam Cleary, Microsoft MVP, security expert, and Product Owner – Security at Rencore. In this report, you will learn:

• What are the latest cloud security trends, challenges and threats?
• How is Digital Transformation affecting the ongoing security discussion?
• Are there gaps between perceived and real security cloud concerns?
• How will customizations affect the security of my cloud environment?
• How will the core Microsoft cloud security features help me in optimizing security?
• What steps I should take to develop an action plan?

Download your copy of this free report

SHAREPOINT TRANSFORMED: A GAME PLAN FOR DIGITAL WORKPLACE HEROES

Collaboration may power the digital workplace, but achieving your collaboration goals takes more than technology – it requires close attention to how the technology aligns with your business processes and collaboration culture. In this eBook, you will learn:

• How to improve speed of delivery, employee adoption and governance, while controlling transformation costs.
• When to weigh alternative technologies for transforming your business into a high-functioning digital workplace.
• The true impact of digital transformation, and how it requires acceptance from across the organization, from executives to end-users.
• How to develop a successful strategy for employee collaboration.
• The importance of monitoring progress, tracking compliance, and managing change through clear, two-way communication.

Download your copy of this free eBook

DEFENDING YOUR OFFICE 365 DATA: FIVE THREATS THAT MICROSOFT CAN’T DEFEND AGAINST, BUT YOU CAN

Office 365 is the fastest growing platform Microsoft has ever released with a powerful set of collaboration features for individuals and teams. While there are many benefits, there are also risks associated with any SaaS product. This eBook explains the top 5 threats that Microsoft can’t defend against, but you can. In this eBook, you will learn how to defend against data threats, including:

• When a user makes an error
• There’s a security breach
• An error occurs during a migration
• You have a rogue employee
• You experience a service error

Download your copy of this free report

CREATING THE MODERN INTRANET WITH MICROSOFT TEAMS

What is the future of the modern intranet, and how does Microsoft Teams fit into this model? The role of the intranet has been evolving, with many other tools and systems inserting themselves into your corporate collaboration and communication culture. In this eBook, you will learn:

• The changing role of SharePoint from “Swiss-Army-knife” solution for every problem to the leading Intranet and Extranet platform.
• Impacts a UX focus can have on employee adoption and engagement.
• That Microsoft Teams reinforces the value of SharePoint, and improves collaboration and communication.
• How KanBo provides context to every day work, extending the capabilities of both Teams and SharePoint.

Download your copy of this free eBook

THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO OFFICE 365 SECURITY

Office 365 security requires a constant effort to monitor, maintain, report and verify. The eBook presents a single, comprehensive overview of the data security measures available within the Office 365 platform. And gives you a baseline from which to build your information management strategy. In this eBook from Backupify, you will learn about key security topics, including:

• How Office 365 provides security to your data
• What data loss prevention is
• How continuous compliance works and its benefits
• International compliance standards and certifications
• Multi-factor authentication and why it matters

Download your copy of this free eBook

BRIDGING IT & BUSINESS EXPECTATIONS IN THE DIGITAL WORKPLACE

One of the leading reasons for the failure of knowledge and collaboration systems is a misalignment between business and IT activities. In this eBook, learn key insights for bridging the gap between IT and Business from the leading experts in the SharePoint / Office 365 community. In this eBook, you’ll discover:

• Why implementations fail.
• The roles of People, Process and Technology in a successful environment.
• How to bridge the gaps between IT and Business using analytics.

Download your copy of this free eBook

UNDERSTANDING THE STATE OF THE HYBRID SHAREPOINT ECOSYSTEM

Independent research conducted on behalf of the SharePoint community, providing data and insights to help customers and partners plan for the future of their SharePoint environments:

• What is the size of hybrid SharePoint usage in terms of licenses (seats), users, and revenues?
• What is the composition of hybrid SharePoint usage in terms of company size, locations, versions, and features used?
• What are the potential opportunities?
• What are the risks?
• What are the benefits of hybrid SharePoint strategies?
• How are people using hybrid SharePoint environments?
• What different strategies will companies use around hybrid moving forward?
• What are the growth trends of Microsoft SharePoint in terms of environment type?

Read the press release, or download your copy of this free report today!

TAP INTO SOCIAL CAPITAL TO BUILD YOUR BRAND

Learn how to be more authentic, build trust, and grow your business by leveraging your social capital. Whether for your company or your own personal brand, this is practical guidance that you can use. You will learn:

• How influence works within social networking
• Why you should focus on the influencers within your network
• How to find value by creating value for others

Download a free copy of this ebook

EXPLORING THE IMPACTS AND IMPORTANCE OF PRODUCTIVITY-CENTERED USER EXPERIENCES

Change is inevitable and how teams collaborate and connect are changing as well. Tools that overtly manage content are becoming more seamless and integrated, and the lines between the tools we use at work and at home are blurring. In this whitepaper written by Microsoft MVP Christian Buckley, you will learn:

• How the nature of collaboration tools and systems we use are rapidly maturing
• Where knowledge and information management practices are often falling behind
• How to prepare your organization for these changes, and better leverage vNext

Download your copy of this free report today!

THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO SHAREPOINT MIGRATION PLANNING

Migrations are inherently complex, and getting them right is essential to a host of business goals, from business continuity and user productivity to security and compliance. With proper planning and the right tools, you can realize your SharePoint vision.

Quest has made available this report so companies can develop a comprehensive strategy and set up a migration that works for you – no matter how complex your collaboration environment is.

Download your copy of this free ebook