Month: October 2024

Exploring the Future of Work with Microsoft Copilot

Exploring the Future of Work with Microsoft Copilot: A TechCon365 Recap

Attending the Microsoft TechCon365 Conference in Seattle was an enlightening experience, particularly with the spotlight on Microsoft Copilot. Here’s a recap of my top six standout sessions.

Next Level Productivity with Microsoft Copilot
The journey began with Andy Huneycutt’s all-day workshop which showcased Copilot’s vast capabilities. Key takeaways from the workshop included the detailed overview of Copilot plus the ROI Calculation to measure Copilot’s cost-effectiveness (ROI= Time per iteration × Number of iterations × Hourly rate); a deep dive on Microsoft Graph integration, and an overview of the many Prompt Engineering techniques available.
Process Mining and AI Integration

The Process Mining session showcased the innovative integration of process mining with AI capabilities and how Copilot can analyze data to identify inefficiencies and trends, and then make actionable recommendations. The use of Power BI for creating monitoring dashboards and the anticipation of Copilot for PowerAutomate going live were also significant points of discussion. This integration represents a leap forward in process optimization, offering a glimpse into the future of automated workflow management and data-driven decision-making.

Enhancing Collaboration with Teams Premium
The session on Teams Premium highlighted its advanced features designed to enhance collaboration and meeting experiences. The session covered the add-on license, improved meeting experiences, advanced protection, richer engagement, and the creation of custom meeting templates. Intelligent Teams meetings and recaps were introduced, including automatic generation of meeting notes and tasks from transcriptions, personalized timeline markers, and mentions. The recap tab, available post-meeting, and intelligent speaker recognition were also discussed, emphasizing the need for transcription activation. The meeting underscored Teams Premium’s potential to revolutionize meeting dynamics with its innovative capabilities.
Overcoming Barriers to Copilot Adoption

Stephen Rose’s “Garbage In Garbage Out” session shared the top 10 blockers for Copilot adoption, including data overload and the need for enhanced security opportunities, providing insights for organizations aiming to streamline their technological infrastructure. His recommendations included suggestions around storage that caught the attention of digital hoarders:

  • Outdated information in archives, necessitating the purging of emails older than 12-18 months.
  • Obsolete documents in OneDrive over 3 years old and unused in the last 90 days should be moved to Azure cold storage.
  • Integration of data across platforms, ensuring all data is in the M365 Cloud.
  • Removal of non-integrated third-party apps like Box, Slack, Zoom, and Blue Jeans.
Adaptive Cards: Bringing Tools to Users
Later in the week, Derek Cash-Peterson covered Adaptive Cards, highlighting their integration with Viva Connections and the new Adaptive Card Extensions (ACE). These cards are designed to bring tools directly to users within their work context, serving as a hub for news and resources across Microsoft 365. They offer extensibility for custom functionality, presenting a collection of features accessible through an app bar, the Connections app, and a dashboard in SharePoint. The updated Teams app and mobile-friendly design ensure that Adaptive Cards cater to a wide range of users, including those on the go. With various development options, including no-code, low-code, and pro-code, Adaptive Cards empower many vendors to create web plugins, making them accessible to HR and Marketing professionals who may not be familiar with JSON. The cards are theme-aware, offer different layouts, and provide quick view options, enhancing user experience with efficient navigation and personalized content.
Copilot in OneDrive: Streamline Workflows

My last session of the conference was with Ben Truelove on the new (coming soon) Copilot in OneDrive. His moto: Spend less time doing the work to get your work done. He broke features down into 6 categories.

  • Discover allows users to quickly find information within their files.
  • Catch Up to provide summaries of file updates.
  • Organize to automate content organization,
  • Create to transform existing files into more meaningful content.
  • Banish Busywork to reduce preliminary tasks.

He shared ways to conduct Q&A on files without opening them, compare images for insights, and convert Copilot responses into documents. This final session really emphasized the continuous evolution of Copilot across the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.

Conclusion

TechCon365 offered a glimpse into the future where Microsoft Copilot and its suite of tools will play a pivotal role in the way we work, collaborate, and create. The conference was a testament to Microsoft’s commitment to innovation and productivity, providing a wealth of knowledge and a vision of a more empowered workforce.

Author: Carolyn Humpherys, Learning and Change Management Consultant, Traveling Coaches

Ready to take the next step in AI adoption? Contact us today to learn how Traveling Coaches can help you fully unlock the potential of Microsoft 365 Copilot in your firm.

It’s All in How You Say It

When was the last time you were excited about going to a webinar? I have signed up for more webinars than I can count and about 5 minutes before each of them I find I am wrapped up in other things that I decide are more pressing. But what if it was not a webinar you were invited to, but a showcase?

A few times a year, the Traveling Coaches team rolls out enhancements to our learning portal. We send a few emails and then hold a webinar to show what we will be releasing. But this time I was not excited about holding yet another webinar. I decided we needed to change it up. We would hold a showcase instead. While it would feature essentially the same content, I wanted it to feel fresh and new.

How is a showcase different? I asked each member of the client support team to present their favorite enhancement. This meant that it was not just me talking for the entire time, it also gave the team a chance to flex their presentation skills and demonstrate their expertise.

The new format also allowed the team to inject their personal style. The team member who always enjoys showcasing new virtual backgrounds found us a fun red curtain spotlight image, so we were all coordinated with the showcase theme. I also had each person introduce themselves with the information they planned to share.

So, did this simple wording change work? Yes! We had the largest registration ever. We also had requests for the recording, even from those who attended.

Sometimes it’s as simple as how you word things from the beginning. Do you want to hold a training session or a DMS showcase? Feel free to get a little creative! It’s amazing how a few simple word changes can grab someone’s attention.

 Author: Molly Wolfe, Director of Learning Development and Client Support

Success Story: How LegalMind+ Empowered a Summer Associate to Shine

Challenge:
Omar Frometa Jr. a summer associate at forward-thinking law firm Preti Flaherty was tasked with presenting on the statutory and financial hurdles in developing workforce housing, a critical issue, especially in urban areas where affordable housing is scarce. This required in-depth legal and financial analysis.
Solution:

The associate utilized LegalMind+, an AI-powered practice and feedback tool by Traveling Coaches, which provided:

  1. Real-Time Feedback: Instant feedback on mock presentations, highlighting areas for improvement and suggesting further resources.
  2. Confidence Building: Simulated real-world scenarios to enhance preparedness and self-assurance.
Additional Context:
Workforce housing, as defined by sections 58-61 of New Hampshire RSA 674, is housing affordable for a renting family of three making 60% of the Area Median Income or owner families of four making 100% of Area Median Income. It excludes age-restricted housing and developments with more than 50% of units having fewer than two bedrooms. The law, passed in 2008 and enacted in 2010, mandates municipalities to provide reasonable opportunities for workforce housing development, but lacks an enforcement mechanism, making it challenging to implement effectively.
Outcome:
The associate delivered an outstanding presentation, expertly navigating the statutory landscape and financial analysis, earning accolades and media attention. The firm credited LegalMind+, in part, for the associate’s success, emphasizing its role in providing essential knowledge, actionable feedback, and confidence. Frometa stated that he appreciated the voice/tone analysis feature for it’s feedback on formality and confidence, noting it’s responsiveness to content changes and intentional mistakes. He further noted that the feedback on content tied to the objective was beneficial and the intuitive UX/UI was so user friendly that even less tech savvy learner could use it easily.
Conclusion:

LegalMind+ demonstrated its effectiveness, enabling the associate to excel and bringing positive recognition to the firm. This success story highlights the potential of technology in ongoing training, education, and development of new and existing legal talent.

Learn More About LegalMind+