At Com-X, we’re always looking to spotlight the people and platforms driving meaningful change in how businesses collaborate securely. In this edition of Com-X Connects, Nick Cross, Director of Sales and Marketing, sat down with Stefan Pieters, Manager Presales EMEA/APJ at Progress ShareFile, to explore how the platform is evolving to meet the demands of modern data management, compliance, and AI-driven productivity.
From the outset, Stefan made it clear: Progress ShareFile isn’t just about storing or sharing files – it’s about enabling secure, seamless collaboration across industries and teams.
“It’s our mission to make it easier, faster, and more secure for our customers to do business with their customers,” Stefan shared. That ethos has shaped ShareFile’s evolution from a file-sharing tool into a solution-focused platform tailored to verticals like legal, finance, healthcare, and real estate.
AI Innovation with a Security-First Mindset
AI is top of mind for every customer Stefan speaks to, but with innovation comes responsibility.
“We’re very careful in how we implement AI in our product because we have a reputation to protect,” he said. ShareFile’s approach to AI includes features like document summarisation, secure share recommendations, and document request list generator – all designed to boost productivity without compromising data integrity.
Stefan highlighted how different industries are embracing these tools: legal and real estate teams love document summarisation, while finance and healthcare sectors are leaning into request lists and generative AI features.
In regulated industries, compliance isn’t optional – it’s foundational. ShareFile delivers deep visibility into data sharing behaviours, audit trails, and reporting across both its own storage and external repositories. “We provide insight into what is happening with the data in the organisation,” Stefan explained. That centralised visibility is critical for meeting strict regulatory requirements.
For organisations already invested in Microsoft technologies, ShareFile offers seamless integration with tools like Outlook, Windows Explorer, and Microsoft 365. “We aggregate both on-premises and cloud storage, and provide secure sharing, e-signatures, and approval workflows,” Stefan said. This flexibility ensures users can work securely from any device, including BYOD environments.
One standout example Stefan shared was ANZUP, an Australian healthcare organisation that turned to ShareFile after facing firewall issues with SharePoint. “They needed to adhere to strict regulations and collaborate with physicians in the Netherlands,” Stefan said. ShareFile helped them overcome technical barriers while supporting compliance and efficiency.
The ShareFile Roadmap
While Stefan couldn’t reveal specific dates, he offered a glimpse into what’s next. Progress is doubling down on verticalisation and expanding its focus to international markets. Weekly feature updates are part of the hybrid cloud model, ensuring customers always have access to the latest innovations.
Advancing the AI-Powered Product Suite
One exciting development is the addition of Progress Agentic RAG in Progress’ product portfolio, an AI-powered platform that makes it easy to turn your data into clear, reliable answers. This acquisition signals a future where customers can apply secure, agentive AI across any data repository, not just Microsoft platforms.
Why ShareFile?
In a crowded market of collaboration tools, Stefan believes ShareFile stands out by focusing on what users actually want to achieve. “We’re able to replace five, 10, even 20 different apps by aggregating all that functionality into one platform,” he said.
Watch the full interview below or listen to the podcast and discover how Com-X and Progress ShareFile are simplifying workflows, enhancing security, and delivering real business outcomes.
