HCL Connections vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server comparison

Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals)

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Helped 890,088 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

HCL Connections

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) (5th), Enterprise Social Software (15th)

Microsoft Office SharePoint...

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

4.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Content Collaboration Platforms (5th)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Messaging and Collaboration solutions, they serve different purposes. HCL Connections is designed for Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) and holds a mindshare of 5.5%, up 3.1% compared to last year.
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server, on the other hand, focuses on Content Collaboration Platforms, holds 3.4% mindshare, down 8.3% since last year.

Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
HCL Connections	5.5%
SharePoint	21.9%
Drupal	17.0%
Other	55.6%

Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals)

Content Collaboration Platforms Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server	3.4%
Office 365	9.0%
Google Workspace	8.3%
Other	79.3%

Content Collaboration Platforms

Featured Reviews

Hasnain Zahid

Talent acquisition & development specialist at Software Productivity Strategists, Inc. (SPS)

A stable tool useful to manage marketing-related activities

Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten. Sometimes, the portal hangs because I find that if I am on a web page, I have to log out, and then I have to log in to the portal again. Since I see that the portal hangs at times, I have to move from one side of the portal to the next, making me feel that some things are scattered in the product. I attended a meeting with IBM recently, and they are improving a few of the things, in my opinion. The concerns that I have related to the product are being improved since I think many other users have reported issues similar to the ones I faced.

Read full review

Daniel Giacomelli

Security and Compliance at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Has transformed how I manage documents through metadata and automation while enabling structured collaboration

Microsoft should restore some functionalities from older versions of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2003 and 2010. Specifically, bringing back something similar to SharePoint Designer would be beneficial. SharePoint Designer was both advantageous and challenging - developers found it limiting and preferred Visual Studio, while non-developers struggled to use it effectively. A new tool for configuring webpage design and development for content pages would be valuable. The current system is too basic. While integration of filtered lists and libraries is possible, it requires knowledge of Python or jQuery. A WYSIWYG editor would be preferable to requiring programming knowledge or Visual Studio.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"Connections has assisted our business area with our Knowledge Management initiative, providing us with a tool that the staff can use to quickly find the information needed to process their day-to-day tasks and assist our customers, and it has also been valuable as a collaboration tool within our area that encourages our reps to participate within the community to ask questions and share their expertise."

"IBM Connections Pink means a new way of collaboration, like you have never seen before."

"The ability to search the content, make every content searchable and the ability to share with the external parties are the most important features."

"The ease of use has definitely improved the way my organization functions."

"Our productivity has increased by using IBM Connections."

"IBM Connections is a good product with many functions."

"Having all features and tools together in one environment is great and gives the users a lot of possibilities to work in the way that they want to."

"The ability to upload files into the cloud, the sharing options, and, even better, the commenting options and the @ mentions on the file just eases the workflow dramatically compared to using email and sending attachments back and forth."

More HCL Connections pros

"If you choose the cloud, the most valuable aspect of the solution is the fact that it doesn't require coding."

"Ability to collaborate with others in one location."

"The collaboration, the ability for multiple users to work on a single document."

"The solution is scalable, and you can do both horizontal and vertical scaling."

"Enhanced user access management features fully integrated with Active Directory allowed us to gain the trust of the users and they use SharePoint to store and share all company digital content created by them."

"Essentially, it is the full suite of Office 365 with the advantage of using the SharePoint database as your list."

"The solution is scalable. You can do both horizontal and vertical scaling."

"The solution's most valuable features is its document management. It allows sharing with external users and integrates well with Office apps and Microsoft Flow."

More Microsoft Office SharePoint Server pros

Cons

"From the sharing perspective, it is very clunky. It's very hard to share files and very hard to share content."

"While connection supports @named.user messaging and #tag.labels, the collaborative interaction UXP could be updated to a more streamlined approach for posts, file-share and threaded conversations such as that which is provided by newer teamwork offerings (e.g., Slack)."

"We've had some load time and performance issues with concurrent users. The page was just not coming up."

"Technical support is hit-and-miss. In general, the support staff is willing, but there is a large range of capabilities among them, from mediocre to excellent."

"The platform is too dispersive and rigid. It should improve in usability and user interface customization by the user (personalized menu, communities to keep close at hand, always available files, and so on)."

"The file plugin for Mac need some improvement."

"The UI and UX portions definitely need to be improved."

"Our users would like to see more document management capabilities in the base IBM Connections package (without having to install extended components). Users also prefer using a traditional folder structure for organizing content and are not used to tags (might be a learning curve or resistance to change)."

More HCL Connections cons

"The workflow is very rudimentary."

"The only complaint we have is about the lack of OCR capability."

"I would like to see more Agile techniques and seamless integration with other applications."

"I would rate my experience with Microsoft technical support as sometimes frustrating because of the time it takes for the Microsoft team to react to their particular case."

"The search functionality on the on-premises version is not very good."

"The solution requires a lot of hardware capacity for high availability and performance."

"Workflows could be simplified."

"The GUI is outdated."

More Microsoft Office SharePoint Server cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"It can be expensive for on-premises deployments, especially when you have to support SQL Server as your backend database. That's where the cost comes into play. SQL Server has its own licensing, which Microsoft keeps on changing. Therefore, it can become costly. In the earlier versions of SharePoint, version 2007 or 2010, they had an express version where the SQL Server licensing was free. It wasn't like a full-blown SharePoint. It was only a slimmed-down version. It used to be whatever your hardware costs. You would install the free software and work with it, but you were very limited in what you could do in SharePoint. If you wanted the SharePoint Enterprise Server with all the bells and whistles, then you had to pay more to get the SQL Server license based on the number of users or servers. The subscription model is different for cloud deployments. Licensing is per user and per month. The cost also depends on the storage required. If you have a lot of sites or documents, then you need to expand it based on your needs."

"Pricing plans may be flexible depending on volume usage and your corporate relationship with Microsoft."

"One of the reasons why we don't recommend the cloud version of SharePoint is the cost. With the on premise version, you pay for the license once. For the cloud version, there is a recurring fee. It is very expensive. They expect everyone to pay $20 or $30 per user per month."

"There are some aggressive discounts offered by Microsoft for organizations that are not for profit, which we are, and it makes it quite attractive to consider."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Performing Arts

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Construction Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Marketing Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	22
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	26

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	13
Midsize Enterprise	13
Large Enterprise	17

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with HCL Connections?

The support is an area where the product can improve. My company faces some support-related issues because whenever we create or generate a ticket, it takes two days for the product's support team ...

What is your primary use case for HCL Connections?

I use HCL Connections for marketing purposes. The IBM product in our company already provides us with direct links to the marketing and HR sides.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server?

I am not aware of the pricing, so I cannot say if the solution is expensive or quite affordable.

What needs improvement with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server?

My expectation when I start using a Microsoft product is that it would be easy to incorporate diagrams and such from other Microsoft Office products. Incorporating a diagram I've embedded in a slid...

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server?

I produce content about the work I'm doing inside the company, making information about IT architecture, work processes within IT architecture, and security reviews of applications or infrastructur...

Drupal vs HCL Connections

Comparisons

Compared 26% of the time

Microsoft Teams vs HCL Connections

Compared 16% of the time

SharePoint vs HCL Connections

Compared 13% of the time

Atlassian Confluence vs HCL Connections

Compared 13% of the time

Liferay Digital Experience Platform vs HCL Connections

Compared 11% of the time

More HCL Connections Competitors

Amazon WorkDocs vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Compared 14% of the time

Hitachi Content Platform Anywhere vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Compared 11% of the time

Oracle Beehive vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Compared 8% of the time

LucidLink vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Compared 8% of the time

Adobe Experience Manager vs Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Compared 6% of the time

More Microsoft Office SharePoint Server Competitors

Product Reports

HCL Connections

Download HCL Connections product report

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Download Microsoft Office SharePoint Server product report

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server report

Also Known As

IBM Connections, Lotus Connections

Office SharePoint Server, MS Office SharePoint Server

Overview

HCL Connections offers a powerful collaboration platform designed for modern businesses, facilitating seamless communication and productivity enhancements.

HCL Connections helps organizations streamline internal communications with an array of tools that promote engagement and collaboration. Its ease of use enables teams to effectively manage projects, share knowledge, and foster innovation. This platform serves as a bridge for integrating social interactions with business processes, ensuring smooth workflows and increased productivity.

What are the critical features of HCL Connections?

Communities: Create and manage groups to collaborate on specific projects or topics.
Files: Share and manage documents securely, ensuring quick access for all team members.
Wikis: Collaboratively write and edit content for team reference and knowledge sharing.
Blogs: Allow individuals to express ideas, insights, and updates within the organization.
Activities: Organize tasks and discussions, enhancing project tracking and completion.

What benefits can HCL Connections bring?

Improved Collaboration: Enhances teamwork through centralized communication and resource sharing.
Increased Productivity: Streamlines workflows by aligning tools and processes.
Knowledge Sharing: Facilitates easy dissemination and accessibility of information.
Enhanced Engagement: Boosts employee involvement with interactive and accessible features.

In industries such as healthcare, finance, and education, HCL Connections is implemented to improve internal and external collaboration, drive competitive advantage, and meet compliance requirements. Its adaptable framework makes it suitable for different sectors, supporting better decision-making and strategic planning.

HCLSoftware

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server enhances collaboration, document management, and version control while integrating seamlessly with Office apps, Teams, and OneDrive for efficient communication and content sharing.

Offering automation, workflow management, and effective metadata usage, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server improves operational efficiency. It's user-friendly with low-code and no-code capabilities, ensuring accessibility for organizations. Robust security measures and access control with Active Directory integration provide secure data handling, while real-time editing allows multiple users to collaborate productively. Its search functionality streamlines information retrieval, although enhancing this feature could further improve usability. Addressing the need for a more intuitive interface, distinct integration between Team and SharePoint sites, workflow simplification, as well as improved performance with large data handling, would add to its practicality. Better third-party application integration, enhanced document sharing, and increased licensing flexibility are areas for potential development.

What are the key features?

Collaboration: Enables seamless team collaboration with integrated Office apps and Teams.
Document Management: Advanced version control and document sharing capabilities.
Automation: Streamlines processes with workflow management and metadata usage.
Security: Robust access control with Active Directory integration.
Real-Time Editing: Allows multiple users to edit documents simultaneously.
Search Functionality: Assists in swift information retrieval.

What benefits or ROI should users consider?

Improved Productivity: Real-time editing and seamless integration enhance work efficiency.
Security Assurance: Strong access control supports safe data management.
User Accessibility: Low-code and no-code features increase ease of use.
Operational Efficiency: Automates workflows and optimizes document handling.

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server is utilized in industries such as healthcare, finance, and manufacturing for document sharing, collaboration, and internal communications. It supports project management, custom application development, and acts as an enterprise content management system. Organizations leverage its integration with Microsoft Teams for coordination and use it as a corporate portal. It facilitates data management, serves as a document library, and supports workflows with advanced capabilities like integration with Power Apps and Power BI for enhanced data visualization and interaction.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Yamato Financial Co. Ltd., University of Zurich, Gwinnett County Public Schools, Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., Telus, Rabobank, Christian Brothers Services, Grupo Financiero Banorte, The Loft Group, Dow Water & Process Solutions, JGC Corporation, College of Medicine, Swansea University, solvito GmbH, Loft Group, Hamm-Reno Group GmbH, Geno SA

Del Monte Foods, Unicredit Leasing, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Nokia Czech Republic, Perkins Eastman, JLL, ICA, óxito Software, Dorset Software, PKP Cargo, Arcapita Bank B.S.C., AVE CZ, Chesapeake Energy

Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals)