If you’ve ever searched through old folders trying to find the ‘right’ template, or worse, opened a document only to realise you were editing the master version, you’re not alone. 

Many businesses still manage document templates the old-fashioned way: editable Word documents, PowerPoints and spreadsheets buried in shared drives or poorly organised folder structures. It’s inefficient, unstructured and prone to error. 

But there’s a better way. Microsoft 365’ SharePoint Organisation Asset Library, when set up correctly, offers a simple, structured way to store and control templates. 

But first, let’s take a closer look at how most businesses manage templates today and why it’s creating more problems than solutions. 

Managing templates the wrong way

For many businesses, managing document templates is a ‘set and forget‘ administrative task that can quietly become a productivity issue over time. Common issues include: 

• Templates saved in random folders on a network drive 
• Editable templates saved in shared folders 
• No access control – anyone can edit, delete or move files (including master files) 
• Staff opening templates directly, making changes, and saving over them 
• Teams duplicating documents just to preserve formatting 
• Multiple ‘final’ versions floating around (‘V2_Updated_FINALFINAL.docx’) 
• Time wasted chasing down the ‘right’ version or checking brand compliance 
• New staff not knowing where templates live or which ones to use 
• Rebrands or compliance updates are missed because no one knows where to update them 

You might have templates for proposals, quotes, reports, spreadsheets and contracts but if everyone is using their own version, what’s the point? This unstructured approach leads to inconsistency, wasted admin time, and brand risk. And it’s holding your team back more than you realise. 

This is where SharePoint’s template library can standardise and control this process better. 

The benefits of SharePoint Organisation Asset Libraries

Microsoft 365 includes a powerful feature called SharePoint Organisation Asset Library – a dedicated location for business-critical templates. When set up correctly, this feature integrates directly into Office apps like Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint. 

So instead of digging through folders to find a proposal format, users simply go to New > [Your Company Name] inside their Office app and choose the right template – pre-formatted, always up to date, and impossible to accidentally overwrite. 

Here’s what this unlocks for your business across a wide range of common use cases:  

• Standardisation: Everyone uses the same approved version, whether it’s a PowerPoint deck, Word letterhead or finance spreadsheet. 
• Time savings: Templates are surfaced directly inside Office apps (no more folder-hunting). 
• Fewer errors: Read-only permissions stop accidental edits or template overwrites. 
• Cleaner file management: No duplicates, no outdated copies, and no accidental changes to template structure. 
• Governance and control: Rebrands, legal updates and formatting changes are made once and distributed automatically (with no risk of using the old version). 

It’s a smarter, more structured, and far more secure approach to managing your files.  

How Axiom helps: Our Office Template Library setup

At Axiom, we’ve made deploying and configuring SharePoint-based Office Template Libraries a standard part of our service – what we call the Office Template Library. Here’s how we do it:  

1. We create a secure SharePoint asset library configured specifically for document templates. 
2. We manage permissions so only 2-3 people in your organisation can update the templates. 
3. Everyone else gets read-only access meaning no one can accidentally break or modify the originals. 
4. We integrate the library with Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint so your templates show up in the apps your team uses every day. 
5. Updating templates is easy update it once, and the new version is instantly available to everyone. 

It’s a structured, governed and modern way to manage business-critical documents. 

The smarter, simpler way to work 

No more hunting through folders for the right proposal template. No more accidentally saving over the master letterhead. No more discovering three different versions of the same contract template floating around the office. 

Setting up an Office Template Library puts an end to these daily annoyances. Your team gets the right template every time, directly inside the apps they’re already using. 

At Axiom IT, we actively look for opportunities to boost productivity and simplify how your business operates. Document templates might seem basic, but they’re exactly the kind of thing that can quietly drain time and create frustration. 

If your business is still managing templates the old way, we can help you fix that. 

Get in touch today to set it up properly. So your team can spend less time searching and formatting, and more time on the work that actually moves your business forward.