Case Study: National Beverage Leader Modernizes Document Management With SharePoint

Learn how a national beverage leader overcame legacy system challenges with a scalable, automated SharePoint solution.

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Withum helped a major California-based beverage manufacturer replace its outdated system by implementing document management with SharePoint, migrating 10,000 documents to a fully customized solution. The new document management platform featured automation, improved workflows and a user-friendly design. Impressed by the results, the client immediately launched Phase Two to expand functionality and further enhance the user experience.

The client had been using their legacy document management system, MasterControl, for many years. While they appreciated certain features, the platform lacked several critical capabilities. Notably, the system did not support true nested folders; what appeared to be folders were views that made file organization unclear. The system was also not user-friendly, with limited search functionality and an unintuitive interface. Additional limitations included the inability to open documents in a browser, no support for co-authoring and a rigid approval workflow. The approval process required 100% consent from an entire user group, with no flexibility if a member was unavailable, which created significant bottlenecks. The only workaround for obtaining approval was to have an admin user log in and force approval, which was problematic for content validation and privacy reasons.

With the legacy system’s contract nearing expiration, the client expressed interest in transitioning to Microsoft SharePoint. Withum was engaged to complete the SharePoint migration within a 24-week timeframe, ensuring delivery before the contract expiration. The project began in January and involved migrating approximately 10,000 documents along with their associated metadata. Initially, the scope included 6,000 documents. However, as the project progressed, the client submitted a change request to include all documents, increasing the total to 10,000.

Withum had a longstanding relationship with the client, having successfully completed several projects over the years, which provided Withum with deep insight into the client’s leadership, collaboration style and core priorities. The engagement began with a thorough review and discovery phase focused on the legacy system, alongside research into custom SharePoint user interface/user experience (UI/UX) design. A key objective was to ensure the new solution would be easy for the client to maintain independently over the long term.

While the build included custom code, it also leveraged the client’s existing Azure infrastructure. Additionally, Power Platform’s low-code/nocode robotic process automation capabilities were used to automate the download, transfer and upload of documents and metadata into SharePoint.

The discovery process was highly collaborative, incorporating valuable client feedback throughout. One significant pivot came in response to client input: Withum shifted from a templated approach to a custom-coded solution for document stamping to better accommodate the many edge cases and outliers that emerged.

By the end of the project, Withum successfully migrated all 10,000 documents and their associated metadata to SharePoint by the deadline. The successful SharePoint migration enabled the client to retire their legacy system and adopt a scalable, automated platform tailored to their needs. The platform’s UX/UI was fully customized and launched, delivering a complete and user-friendly solution for end users.

Key features of the final product included:

Withum also provided training to key client team members, enabling them to lead internal training sessions independently.

Following the launch of the new document management with SharePoint system, the client recognized the value of the document stamping functionality and expressed interest in expanding its use beyond Microsoft Word. As a result, Phase Two of the project is now underway. This phase includes extending document stamping to additional file types, implementing new flows for document libraries that initially did not require approval processes and refining the UI/UX based on user feedback to further enhance usability.