Never tired, never late: meet Copilot for Microsoft 365 [6/6]

On our list of topics:

• What Copilot for Microsoft 365 means for the digital workplace

• Why tedious work is becoming a thing of the past

• How to *get* Copilot for Microsoft 365 , but …

• … why it’s not just a matter of ‘plug and play’ 😊

• Some lessons from our own Copilot onboarding

• Some things to consider when trying to calculate ROI

• Why we offer readiness assessments and what you get out of it.

Let's roll!

Gentlemen: Copilot for Microsoft 365 was launched on November 1st. As experts in digital workplace, what does this news mean for you? 

Bart: It's important to realize that this isn't just any other Microsoft 365 update. It's an incredible leap forward because your familiar Office applications are, in a sense, totally infused with Artificial Intelligence. To give you an analogy: it's as if every program now comes with a tireless personal assistant that takes on a significant portion of the work, especially the tedious tasks.

Luc: We're already noticing high curiosity about Copilot in the market. For us, this launch is a perfect opportunity to show our strong expertise in digital workplaces. Yes, we have a substantial client base, and 15.000 workplaces in the Flemish government, a huge project. But honestly, we're still very modest. And we shouldn’t be, as we’re one of the few who can deliver digital workplace projects end-to-end, from hardware to mental wellbeing. 

“It's as if every Microsoft Office program now comes with a tireless personal assistant that takes on a significant portion of the (tedious) work” 

Bart, you said ‘tedious work’, what do you mean exactly?

Bart: Just like ChatGPT or most other Generative AI tools that are around now, Copilot can generate content based on the input you provide. But it goes far beyond that. Copilot can turn text into a PowerPoint presentation, a quote, a report, an email. It can summarize meetings and extract action points, just for you. You can ask Copilot to find information buried deep within all your resources, mails, folders, SharePoint documents. It can analyze Excel sheets, just by simple commands.

Luc: What's interesting is that you can converse with Copilot as if you were talking to a colleague. You can simply ask Copilot questions like, "Summarize the last 5 emails about customer X”. Admittedly, the quality of the output improves as you learn how to prompt it effectively, as you mentioned in one of your previous blogs. Specific prompts yield better results than vague ones, and that's something you pick up as you use the tool.

“For us, the Copilot for Microsoft 365 launch is a perfect opportunity to show our strong expertise in digital workplaces” 

Alright, let's say I'm a business owner, and I want Copilot. Can I just buy it?

Bart: Well, yes, but then again it's not as simple as buying the license and starting to use it. There are technical requirements, such as having the proper licenses and agreements, a minimum of 300 users*, and so on. You also need to configure your Office environment, including enabling transcription in Teams, sorting out your permission structure and data classification to ensure people don't have access to data they shouldn't when they enter a prompt. That’s why a readiness assessment is so crucial.

*this limitation has been lifted in January 2024

Luc: True, there are several technical aspects to consider. That is why it’s ideal for customers that have a Data Protection Officer or DPO, which is typically the case for most enterprise companies. Plus, there’s the onboarding process, often forgotten but oh so important. The tool is very intuitive, but still it means a whole new way of going about your daily job. It’s a change project, and it should be treated as one.

What have we learned from our own onboarding experience at Cegeka?

Bart: We've learned that it's a change journey like any other, ideally rolled out in waves, starting with those geeky people who are always eager to experiment and eager to share. You also need a well-thought-out communication plan and internal communities for support. Copilot is about experimenting, learning, sharing experiences. We have communities on Teams where people can ask for or share tips, post good prompts, provide updates, troubleshoot, and more.

Which tool is the most popular?

Bart: For now, it's Teams, Outlook, and Word, in that order. M365 Chat is also used intensively; this is accessible through Teams (where it’s an app you download) or Bing Chat Enterprise (the paid version of Bing, similar to the paid ChatGPT). M365 Chat allows you to ask questions about your entire work environment, be they emails, meetings, files, data on SharePoint resources you have access to and so on. It’s amazing what it can find and do for you.

“You often hear that people only use about 10% of a tool's capabilities. With Copilot, I think that percentage will significantly increase” 

Luc: You often hear that people only use about 10% of a tool's capabilities. With Copilot for Microsoft 365, I think that percentage will significantly increase. Simply because you can communicate with the tool in plain natural language. Excel is the most obvious example, as you can just type your request in plain language instead of having to look up formulas. The complexity of the apps fades into the background; you just need to ask the right questions.

What happens during the readiness assessment workshop you just mentioned?

Luc: The preparation for rolling out Copilot for Microsoft 365 consists of 3 phases. The first phase is a readiness assessment, where we assess how prepared a company is - technically and functionally  - to introduce Copilot for Microsoft 365 . Based on technical prerequisites and functional requirements, we determine what needs to be done to implement the tool efficiently. These sessions typically last around 2 hours, and by the end, you'll have a clear understanding of your readiness and any potential obstacles.

For those who wish to proceed with the next phase, we then explore what's possible and desirable in the organization. Who will use the tool, and how can it be effective for them, in their job? When do we consider the project a success? We dive into practical use cases based on roles because someone in sales works differently than someone in finance. Phase 3 is an implementation plan, including personas, scenarios and a roadmap outlining all the steps needed to get where we need to be.

Generative AI has raised questions about data privacy. How private is Copilot?

Bart: As private as can be. Copilot for Microsoft 365 stays within the boundaries of your company. Your company's data isn't used to train the model, as is the case with many other *free* Gen AI tools, including the free version of ChatGPT. However, it's crucial to have your permission structure in order within your organization. This ensures that nobody in your organization gains access to data from files they shouldn't see by asking Copilot a question.

“Copilot for Microsoft 365 stays within the boundaries of your company. Your company's data isn't used to train the model” 

Copilot comes at a cost. What about ROI?

Luc: Copilot for Microsoft 365 has a licensing cost of $30. That might seem like a lot, but when you translate it into the time savings you gain almost immediately, it's insignificant. $30 equates to roughly one and a half minutes of time saved per day. That's a minimal investment because even attending one meeting will result in a bigger time saving. Copilot not only makes the minutes of the meeting, it extracts key points and links them to the right person. Studies indicate time savings ranging from 30% to 80%. Even at the lowest figure, it's still phenomenal.

“You should look beyond just time savings. Speed is one aspect, but you also have energy and quality” 

Bart: Yes, but you should also look beyond just time savings. Speed is one aspect, but you also have energy and quality. When a tool helps you start a draft, it consumes less of your energy to complete it. Next to speed and energy, there’s also quality. You can often produce better work in less time. All meetings now come with minutes and action lists being generated and shared, which in itself leads to a more mature way of going about the day-to-day job. 

To top it off, are there any Copilot extensions in development?

Bart: Absolutely, we're working on that. Like many companies, we have a time tracking system. It's technically possible to create an extension that connects Copilot to that time tracking system. Copilot has access to your calendar, email, and activities, allowing it to estimate what you've been working on and for how long. So you don’t have to do that really tedious time tracking input anymore on Friday afternoon (laughs).