What Have We Learned About AI in M365

gary.blunden

Be Intentional with AI Implementation

Use Copilot where it's most useful, for you. Each company is using Copilot differently. Find out what works for you.

I think the most important thing with Copilot is experimentation. Breaking habits is hard. I use Copilot in M365 because I found, through testing and experimenting, that it provides a more efficient way to generate or update content. It is this enhancement that makes me and my teams more productive.

Build an AI Habit

Before I start any project, task or document, I ask myself; how can I do this with AI.

For decades I’ve spent much time building new processes, authoring documentation, emailing stakeholders. Previously, for many years, I did this all manually. All the content I would have (nearly) built myself, from scratch. That has changed for me now. I no longer seek or want to create new content. I want to enhance, rebuild or curate today, through AI.

If you want to benefit from Copilot, you need to let go and prepare yourself for change to break any longstanding habits that may prevent you from unlocking the power of Copilot.

Choose a new way to operate. Then look at adopting tools that make that new process possible.

This is Innovation

AI is new, to us all.

Innovation happens in many ways and it comes to us at different speeds. AI is different from other technological advancements. It feels faster, more impactful and accepted.

An example here is that for an age, we have been taking notes manually in meetings. Action plans, summaries – all done by hand. That has now changed forever. Copilot in Teams has simply liberated us from having to do this. This happened quickly, suddenly and now we no longer ‘take’ minutes. We expect meeting minutes now like we expect our emails to arrive.

Innovation in notetaking is one thing, but AI has ambition to transform all aspects of how we interact and work. I’m excited to see what it continues to do. When it is no longer new, constant innovation and change may happen more seamlessly.

AI can be your saviour. Ask yourself, what is it saving you, how much is it saving you.

Time. For me, it’s time and I consider my time precious to me.

Time waits for no one. I am obsessed with finding methods on saving time. The investment required to identify, review, design and implement changes to our day-to-day can be more costly than the reward itself. This is where the beauty of AI exists, it not only provides insight, support and research on any subject, it can itself be the very thing we are looking for, to save time.

Having AI review my inbox, prioritise my day, draft my emails and presentations, handle my expenses etc…is all saving me the one thing I care so much about. It is giving back my time.

Take a moment to list any areas of your day that takes considerable time and break it down as if you’re explaining it to a small child. For each area shared, challenge whether AI can improve or enhance this process. Don’t worry about the detail or scale, focus on the actions and steps, can you leverage tools like Copilot?

In short, I have learned that through experimentation, something many of us struggle to find the time to do, it has been the core mechanism that has resulted in, ironically, saving me the most time as it allowed me to discover the power of Copilot, and where I can use it to help me do things faster without sacrificing quality or increasing risk.

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Gary Blunden

Microsoft Solutions Expert

Welcome to my blog! I'm Gary, a Microsoft solutions expert specialising in Microsoft business applications, data and artificial intelligence - working with Microsoft tech for over 15 years. Here, I share tutorials, case studies, best practices and industry trends to help the community harness the power of these technologies. Join me in exploring the transformative potential of Microsoft products and services.