In today's fast-paced business world, being able to manage data efficiently and work together seamlessly is crucial. As businesses deal with more and more digital information and the need for remote work grows, finding smart ways to organize tasks and improve teamwork has become essential. This is where SharePoint Lists come in – a fantastic tool that helps businesses organize, share, and handle information better than ever before.
Traditional methods of using separate spreadsheets or static databases to manage information are no longer effective. SharePoint Lists provide a flexible, cloud-based solution that turns data into useful insights and makes teamwork easy, no matter where your team members are located. In this article, we'll explore what SharePoint Lists offer, the advantages they bring, and how they're making a real difference in how businesses manage data and collaborate.
What is a SharePoint List?
A SharePoint list is a collection of data that is stored in a table format. It is a versatile tool that can be used to store a variety of information, such as product inventory, customer contact information, or project tasks.
SharePoint lists can be customized to meet the specific needs of the user. For example, you can add or remove columns, change the order of the columns, and create views that display the data in different ways.
SharePoint list is used to store a wide variety of data, including:
Contact information
To-do lists
Inventory records
Project plans
Meeting minutes
Customer feedback
Survey results
And much more
The SharePoint list is created and managed by anyone with access to the SharePoint site where they are stored. They can be shared with others, and users can collaborate on them to add, edit, and delete items.
There are many different types of SharePoint lists, each designed for a specific purpose. Some common types of lists include:
Contact lists: These lists store contact information for people, such as names, email addresses, and phone numbers.
Task lists: These lists track tasks that need to be completed, such as due dates, assigned users, and status.
Issue tracking lists: These lists track issues that need to be resolved, such as the issue description, the assigned user, and the status.
Announcement lists: These lists are used to share news and announcements with users.
Survey lists: These lists are used to collect feedback from users.
Steps to create a SharePoint list
Follow the below steps to create your first list in SharePoint:
STEP 1: Go to the site where you want to create the list.
STEP 2: Click on the "+ New" button and select "List".
STEP 3: Enter a name for the list and a description (optional).
STEP 4: Select the type of list you want to create. For example, I have created a blank list.
You can also import the list from Microsoft Excel or you can select the list from any existing list.
STEP 5: Now, you need to add columns to the list. For example, I have added the following columns:
Employee Name
Contact
Address
Date of Joining
To add a column, you just simply need to click on "+ Add column".
STEP 6: Now, add the items to the list. For that, click on "+ New" and enter the details. Click Save.
See the below image. I have entered the items into the list.
Additional settings
Some of the additional settings you can do for your SharePoint list are:
Edit the list settings, such as name, description, versioning, validation, audience targeting, rating, and form customization. You can access the list settings by clicking Settings and then selecting List Settings.
Customize the permissions for your list, such as granting or revoking access to specific users or groups. You can change the permissions by breaking the inheritance from the parent site and then assigning unique permissions. You can access the permissions page by clicking Settings and then selecting Permissions for this list.
Create, change, or delete a view of your list, such as sorting, filtering, grouping, or showing/hiding columns. You can create a view by selecting View options and then choosing Save view as. You can also modify or delete an existing view by selecting View options and then choosing Edit current view or Manage views.
SharePoint List Integration
SharePoint list integration is the process of connecting your SharePoint list data with other applications or services, such as Power Apps, Power Automate, Power BI, or SSIS. By integrating your SharePoint list, you can create custom apps, workflows, reports, and dashboards that enhance your productivity and collaboration.
There are different ways to integrate your SharePoint list depending on your needs and preferences. Here are some of the options you can explore:
Create a Power App for a list: You can use Power Apps to create a custom app for your SharePoint list that allows you to view, edit, and add data from any device. You can also customize the app’s appearance and functionality using the Power Apps Studio.
Customize a SharePoint list form by using Power Apps: You can use Power Apps to modify the default form that appears when you create or edit an item in your SharePoint list. You can change the layout, add or remove fields, apply logic, and more.
Create a report on a SharePoint List in Power BI Desktop: You can use Power BI Desktop to connect to your SharePoint list and create a report that visualizes your data. You can also publish your report to the Power BI service and share it with others.
Quickly create reports from SharePoint lists: You can use the Power BI integration within SharePoint lists to easily generate a report from your list data with just a few clicks. You can also edit and customize the report using the Power BI service.
Connecting to SharePoint Lists with SSIS: You can use SSIS to extract data from your SharePoint list and load it into another destination, such as a SQL Server database or a flat file. You can use the OData source component in SSIS to connect to your SharePoint list using the OData protocol.
Conclusion
SharePoint Lists are like handy tools for keeping track of information and working together with others. We've talked about what they are, the different kinds there are, and how you can set them up to work even better.