Since Microsoft first announced Copilot in early 2023, business conversations have buzzed with its possibilities. Now more than ever, organisations can increase productivity while reducing workloads.
This year, the conversation has only increased. Upon its first release in November 2023, only organisations with 300 seats or more could use Copilot. In January this year, Microsoft removed that restriction and now businesses of all sizes can adopt and experiment with this platform.
Why consider adopting it in your own organisation? A Microsoft report showed that 70% of early users experienced increased productivity, and 68% saw improved work quality. These stats are not the only reason to implement Copilot; here is more information about Microsoft Copilot’s productivity features.
How early users benefitted from Microsoft Copilot
Integration with Microsoft 365 applications
Microsoft Copilot improves productivity by using business data, large language models (LLMs), and Microsoft 365 apps. It integrates with Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams.
- Outlook: Copilot summarises email threads, identifies key action points, and provides a condensed overview of unread emails, helping users stay organised and responsive.
- Teams: Copilot enhances meeting productivity within Teams by providing real-time summaries and action points.
- Excel: Copilot in Excel helps uncover insights, identify trends, and create professional-looking data visualisations. It automates complex tasks such as generating formulas and analysing data.
- Word: Microsoft Copilot writes, edits, summarises, and generates content in real-time. Users can draft documents by providing suggestions and developing content based on the context, enhancing productivity and ensuring high-quality outputs.
- PowerPoint: Copilot converts ideas into fully designed presentations through natural language prompts. It creates initial presentation drafts, complete with speaker notes and citations, and can also summarise lengthy presentations to make them more concise.
Integration with the Microsoft 365 suite ensures users do not have to switch between different tools, reducing the cognitive load of managing multiple applications.
Summarise and manage emails in Outlook
Email management is one of those tedious but necessary tasks that permeates every workday. Microsoft Copilot minimises the struggle by summarising long email threads to highlight key points and make information more accessible. This productivity feature reduces the time spent sifting through a high volume of emails to catch up or find specific information.
Microsoft Copilot in Outlook also prioritises emails based on importance and relevance, helping people manage their inboxes more effectively. This level of email management can improve team communication, reduce response times, and ultimately lead to better customer service and business outcomes.
Process and visualise data in Excel
Data collection and visualisation can become arduous when completed manually. Copilot in Excel speeds up data analysis and visualisation. It uses AI algorithms to analyse complex datasets, generate formulas, and create charts and graphs that simplify data interpretation. Automating data analysis and visualisation makes it much easier to make data-driven decisions and respond quickly to market changes or operational challenges.
In addition to its analytical capabilities, Copilot can assist in forecasting and scenario planning. Copilot can help businesses anticipate future outcomes and make proactive decisions using historical data and identifying trends. Integrating AI-driven insights and visualisation tools into daily operations can significantly improve efficiency, accuracy, and strategic planning.
Automate meeting notes in Teams
The Microsoft 2023 Work Trend Index found that of all the Microsoft 365 apps, people use Teams the most, spending 23% of their time on it. With so much time spent on this application, organisations need as much help as possible to keep communications ordered.
For meetings, Microsoft Copilot provides real-time transcription and summarisation features. Copilot transcribes meetings, identifies speakers, and summarises key discussion points to provide employees with concise meeting notes. This feature helps participants stay aligned on action items and follow-up tasks, fostering better collaboration and reducing the likelihood of miscommunication. It also allows people who are unable to attend the meeting to catch up.
Generate content in Word and PowerPoint
The blank page is often the most daunting part of starting a project. Many of us have experimented with generative AI capabilities to alleviate the struggle, with ChatGPT reaching 100 million users two months after its release. Microsoft Copilot also includes generative capabilities. Whether drafting emails, creating documents, or designing presentations, Copilot can help people produce initial drafts.
Generative AI gets rid of that daunting blank page, but it can also help users achieve consistency and quality. Automated content generation allows employees to focus on refining and perfecting content rather than starting from scratch, which can be particularly valuable in fast-paced environments.
Furthermore, unlike many generative AI tools, where the AI generates content in a web application that people have to copy into a document, Microsoft Copilot generates content directly into documents such as Word and PowerPoint. It can help create marketing materials, technical documentation, reports, and more, all (securely) using the data within your business.
Conclusion
Microsoft Copilot’s productivity features give your business an edge by enhancing collaboration and enabling smarter decision-making. By integrating these advanced features into your business processes, you can empower your employees to achieve more, drive innovation, and maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace.
Productiv can help your organisation adopt Microsoft Copilot
Are you planning to adopt Microsoft Copilot in your organisation? Productiv can help you get the most from its features. On Wednesday, June 19th, we will host a webinar on the top 10 Microsoft Copilot productivity tools. Markus Waddington, our Service Delivery Manager, will guide you on using Copilot to streamline tasks, enhance efficiency, and improve workflow.
Learn to use Copilot’s capabilities to generate ideas, create presentations, draft emails, and more while ensuring data security and compliance. Gain insights on integrating these tools into your business processes for immediate productivity improvements and strategic advantage. Visit our registration page for more details.
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