At its core, Business Central still does what a good accounting system should do: manage finances, control data and provide reliable reporting. But it no longer stops there. Built as a cloud‑based platform, it supports much more than accounting alone – spanning supply chain management, purchasing, inventory, warehousing and operational processes – and gives businesses better visibility over how work flows through the organisation.

One of the key differentiators of Business Central is its twice yearly release cycle, complemented by regular monthly updates. Rather than disruptive upgrade projects every few years, organisations receive continuous improvements – new functionality, performance enhancements, and security updates – as part of their ongoing service. This means businesses are always working with a modern solution. More recently, AI capabilities such as Microsoft Copilot have been embedded directly within Business Central, offering contextual summaries and assistance that support everyday decision‑making.

50,000+ organisations worldwide now run Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, supporting millions of users across finance and operational teams globally. One of its defining strengths is how closely it integrates with Microsoft tools such as Outlook and Teams for day-to-day communication, Excel for analysis, and Power BI for real-time reporting.

Automation plays a key role, particularly when combined with specialist add‑on applications available through Microsoft AppSource, which offers 5,000+ certified extensions for Business Central (Shopify, Paypal, Continia…). Tools such as Continia, which is built entirely inside Business Central, help automate areas like invoice processing, approvals and expense management. It can reduce your manual processes by 90%, fewer errors and more time spent on work that genuinely adds value – a welcome change for anyone who has ever chased an approval on a Friday afternoon.

No two organisations operate in the same way. Jersey businesses span a wide range of sectors – from financial services, charity sector, legal firms to retailers – each with their own pressures and priorities. A modern ERP system needs to adapt to those differences, rather than force every organisation into the same mould.

At Prosperity 24/7, our focus is on understanding how each business works in practice. Not simply on deploying software but on how decisions are made, and where better visibility and control can add real business value. Configuration, automation and extensions are tailored accordingly, ensuring the system supports day-to-day operations while remaining flexible for future growth.

In a world where businesses are expected to move faster, comply with increasing regulation and gain insight from ever growing volumes of data, having a modern ERP platform at the centre is no longer optional. At Prosperity 24/7, a diverse Business Solutions team with varied backgrounds continues to upskill and collaborate, ensuring technology is applied in a way that genuinely supports evolving Jersey business needs.

This article was first published in the Jersey Evening Post

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This milestone marks the end of security updates and patches for one of the most widely adopted operating systems ever and staying on unsupported software can expose you to security vulnerabilities and compliance risks.

Migration planning takes time, so it’s crucial to start as soon as possible. Prosperity 24/7’s team of specialists work closely with Microsoft technologies, and can assist you with deployment, to ensure the move to Windows 11 is seamless and effective.

What happens when Windows 10 support ends?

When Microsoft ends support for Windows 10, it will no longer receive security updates, patches, new features or bug fixes. This creates significant risks:

• Increased cybersecurity threats: Without regular security patches, unsupported systems are prime targets for cyberattacks, including malware and ransomware.
• Compliance issues: Many regulatory frameworks require organisations to use supported software. Running Windows 10 beyond its end-of-life may result in non-compliance, with potential fines and legal repercussions.
• Operational downtime: Attempting to maintain outdated operating systems, can be costly and complicated. Security breaches or system failures could lead to costly business disruptions.

What you need to do

To maintain security and compliance, businesses must transition to a supported solution before the deadline.

Here are the key options available:

Upgrade to Windows 11: Upgrading to Windows 11 provides enhanced security, performance, user experience and AI-driven functionality. Windows 11 supports hybrid working, is optimised for modern hardware, and integrates more closely with Microsoft 365 and other cloud-based tools. However, hardware requirements may mean some devices need to be replaced. Devices over 3 years old may not meet the minimum requirements. Use Microsoft’s compatibility tools and plan ahead to replace or upgrade devices where needed.

Extended Security Updates (ESU): If an immediate transition isn’t feasible, Microsoft offers Extended Security Updates (ESU) to provide temporary security coverage. However, ESU is a temporary solution, not a long-term fix. Costs will double each year, making migration to Windows 11 or Windows 365 a more cost-effective choice.

Move to a Cloud-Based solution with Windows 365 or Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD): For organisations looking for a flexible, scalable, and secure alternative, Windows 365 Cloud PC or Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) offer compelling benefits:

• No Additional ESU Costs: Unlike on-premises solutions, ESU (Extended Security Updates) is included at no extra cost.
• Secure & Always Up-to-Date: Centralised cloud management ensures continuous updates and security patches.
• Reduced Hardware Dependency: Enables employees to work securely from any device, reducing the need for hardware upgrades.

How we can help

14 October 2025 will be here before you know it. The Cloud team at Prosperity 24/7 will:

• Assess your current desktop environment
• Check your business readiness for Windows 11
• Provide a tailored and seamless migration plan
• Minimise disruption and downtime
• Ensure a smooth transition for your organisation

Discover more by speaking to the Prosperity24/7 cloud team cloud@prosperity247.com

The post The countdown is on…Microsoft is pulling the plug!…on Windows 10 appeared first on Prosperity 247.

The Microsoft Power Women Awards are part of Microsoft’s continued mission to celebrate, elevate, and empower women in technology across its partner organisations in the EMEA region. This initiative is one of the ways Microsoft champions greater diversity and inclusion within their partner ecosystem, and beyond.

Geraldine was selected from 368 nominations from Microsoft Partners across 20 countries and regions, with more than 50 nominations in the UK alone. All nominations celebrated the incredible depth of female leadership, innovation, and impact in the tech industry across the EMEA region.

Geraldine was selected for her commitment to lifelong learning, championing female talent in technology and embracing new technology, such as artificial intelligence for Prosperity 24/7 and their clients.

Each of the 20 EMEA winners will be invited to join the 3rd edition of the Microsoft Women’s Leadership Program, developed by Professor Jennifer Petriglieri at one of the world’s leading business schools, INSEAD Business School in Fontainebleau, France.

Geraldine said, “Receiving this award and having the opportunity to attend the Leadership Program at INSEAD means a lot to me. My career to date has been predominantly in the Microsoft ecosystem and to be recognised now by Microsoft is a dream come true. This award will help me to continue to uplift others, not only in Prosperity but he wider community, which is something I am very passionate about. It demonstrates that there are opportunities for all women to thrive, learn, and be acknowledged for their contributions.”

Highly regarded as a leader in learning and development within Jersey’s technology sector, Geraldine has also been nominated in this year’s Jersey TechAwards in the leadership category and recently qualified as a Chartered Director from the Institute of Directors. She has been instrumental in introducing the first gender pay gap report for the sector, encouraging transparency and fairness for an industry where roles tend to be predominantly male. She has also been a driving force behind Prosperity 24/7’s ISO27001 certification which is the global information security management system (ISMS) standard for providing a structured approach to safeguarding data and managing information security effectively.

Chris Clark, Prosperity 24/7’s CEO and Co-Founder said, “We are all incredibly proud of Geraldine at Prosperity 24/7. Her positive impact within Prosperity 24/7 and across the economy has been phenomenal, upskilling diverse sectors of Industry, championing women who wish to pursue a career in technology and giving everyone the opportunity to prosper.”

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Fast-forward 18 months, and the story is much clearer, Copilot has cemented itself as our productivity assistant. A digital colleague helping us cut through repetitive tasks, draft emails, surface data, summarise meetings, and write Excel formulas without needing an ‘Excel for Dummies’ crash course.

Copilot usage across Microsoft 265 is now in the millions, with Microsoft reporting that organisations using Copilot have seen a productivity boost of us to 29% in day-to-day tasks and a 70% improvement in time saved on email composition. Adoption has moved beyond pilot programmes as many companies now consider Copilot to be critical infrastructure for knowledge workers.

More importantly, we’ve moved past the early mysticism of AI. It hasn’t (yet) taken our jobs. Instead, it’s making our jobs better and helping us get things done faster, with higher quality and less friction. And for most users, that’s exactly what they needed to help alleviate the admin burden.

But this is only the beginning.

The next wave – Agentic AI

The next wave of AI in the workplace is already here in the form of agentic AI. Microsoft has been quietly laying the foundations for this evolution, and it’s now coming to the forefront.

If Copilot is the assistant sitting beside you, Agentic AI is the team working in the background. Agents are not here to help you write a better paragraph or summarise a call. It’s less about helping you finish a task and more about taking ownership of business processes, automating and streamlining them from start to finish.

Until now, AI has largely supported individual productivity. But Agentic AI is designed to support business operations at scale, demonstrating a powerful shift in thinking, helping drive real business value through professional reinvention and reengineering.

Copilot vs agents – what’s the difference?

Think of Copilot as your personal assistant. Now imagine dozens of agents operating across your business, handling invoices, HR onboarding, customer support tickets, compliance checks, and more. These agents will live inside the Microsoft 265 ecosystem and operate via the same Copilot interface.

1. Copilot = personal productivity

• Every employee gets a Copilot.
• One-to-one relationship.
• Supports in-context work: drafting, summarising, replying, reformatting and more.
• Enhances how you work.

2. Agents = process intelligence

• Every organisation has multiple agents.
• One-to-many relationship.
• Works across apps and systems to automate entire workflows.
• Operates on behalf of teams or departments.

Why it matters

Organisations run on processes. Some are well-defined, others are sprawling and inconsistent. All of them take time, require coordination, and depend on people moving data between systems. Until now, digital transformation has meant integrating systems and automating bits and pieces. Agentic AI offers the chance to rethink the whole thing. It isn’t just about efficiency. It’s about unlocking new value.

Imagine an agent that:

• Onboards a new starter by automatically generating accounts, scheduling training, and assigning permissions.
• Monitors a project timeline and nudges stakeholders when risks are detected.
• Reviews customer emails, identifies intent, and triggers fulfilment or escalations.
• Validates documents against policy rules and flags anomalies.

You can immediately see the value in addressing these types of processes with agents.

Organisations are already testing these capabilities with partners through tools like Microsoft Copilot Studio, where businesses can build custom agents that connect to their Microsoft 265 data and even pull in information from external systems using prebuilt connectors.

Agents can be governed, monitored and deployed just like any enterprise solution because they’re integrated with Microsoft’s Copilot Control System. This is a critical step to enable AI to scale in business with appropriate checks and balances in place.

A quiet revolution

Whilst it’s still early days, the signs are clear that Agentic AI is going to be the next major shift in workplace productivity. Just as we’ve grown comfortable with AI writing our emails and summarising meetings, we’re moving quickly towards AI running parts of the business.

But where do we begin?

1. Embed Copilot in your organisation

• Deploy Copilot with a clear, structured adoption plan.
• Upskill and empower your people to understand and leverage it’s potentioal.
• Align usage with organisational goals and focus on removing productivity blockers.

2. Identify manual, repetitive and rules-based processes

• Think onboarding, approvals, scheduling, finance ops and other day-to-day workflows.
• If it’s a repeatable, step-by-step process, there’s a strong case for an agent.

3. Start small

• Look for quick wins to build familiarity and early success.
• Focus on where agents can make a tangible difference in your organisation demonstrating ROI.
• Build low-risk agents to experiment, learn and redefine.

4. Involve IT and Compliance early

• Agents require the same governance as any core system.
• Establish clear policies, controls and monitoring from the outset.

5. Don’t chase perfection

• AI adoption is iterative and evolves over time.
• Start small, learn quickly and build confidence as you grow.

The Copilot journey has shown us that AI doesn’t have to be scary. When it’s embedded in familiar tools focused on helping, not replacing, people, adoption follows naturally.

Agentic AI will follow the same path, but with even greater potential to transform how organisations function. We’ll soon see businesses with dozens of agents supporting everything from employee engagement to supply chain efficiency.

So, if Copilot is helping you get through your inbox faster, then get ready to redesign what work looks like for your business.

We’re already helping organisations understand, design and deploy AI agents that drive real impact. Get in touch to see how we can help you take the next step.

This article first appeared in the June 2025 issue of Connect

The post The rise of agentic AI: Redefining productivity beyond Copilot appeared first on Prosperity 247.

Understanding how your employees work and identifying which processes need improvement are crucial steps in implementing new technology effectively. Our people-first approach ensures that technology is not only adopted, but successfully embedded into your business. If you’re unsure of how to proceed, or are interested in how AI can support your growth, our team of experts are here to help.

Our Microsoft Copilot readiness service offering provide a strategic assessment of how Copilot can be integrated into your business to enhance productivity. This includes evaluating technical readiness, strategy and change management. According to the Jersey Business productivity survey, adopting new technology and AI is the top priority among respondents for improving productivity over the next 12 months. Embracing automation and technology is frequently cited as the ‘top tip’ for boosting productivity.

Check if you are eligible for a BBG here: Jersey Business Grant

• Businesses and charities must be registered in Jersey.
• Businesses must have been trading for a minimum of 6 months.
• Businesses must employ 1 person.
• Businesses must be up to date with tax contributions or on a repayment plan.

If you’re ready to boost your productivity and accelerate your business growth, Prosperity 24/7 is here to help you. With our support, you could make the most of your grant. Talk to us when you’re ready to apply and we’ll guide you on how to best invest your grant for your business.

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Why? Because this strategic approach continues to align harmoniously with our purpose, namely “if we look after our colleagues, clients and community, we will prosper“.

From our first days as early cloud adopters, to the transformative rise of AI,  we have been supporting our colleagues and clients, since the launch of Microsoft’s Bot Framework and deep investment in conversational AI, way back in 2016. Our persistent evolution, as well as Microsoft’s, has played a defining role in shaping modern business tools and digital workflows that we embrace, understand and deploy, to help our clients simply be ‘better businesses’.

As we reflect on our own journey, it’s worth highlighting some of the key innovations from Microsoft in just the last 14 years which have helped us — and so many others — to stay ahead in business while the geopolitical situation may have led us all to be reticent to embrace change. This is a worthwhile consideration when many are fearful to embrace technology at times when the World goes through unprecedented ‘dynamics,’ which seem to pivot with a level of agility that makes business planning a challenge.

A timeline of Microsoft’s most impactful innovations (2011–2025) and what was happening in the World at that time:

• 2011: As the political uprisings of the Arab Spring swept across the Middle East and North Africa – we launched Prosperity 24/7 at the same time as Microsoft Office 365 goes live — The shift to cloud-based productivity tools begins in earnest and we are at the forefront of innovation and liberation from traditional on premise legacy technology.
• 2012: Obama was re-elected in the US providing political continuity amidst global uncertainty, at the same time Windows 8 and Surface are launched — Microsoft begins its first-party hardware journey providing me with a mobile device that I have never gone back from – I love my Surface!
• 2013/2014: Edward Snowden leaks NSA files: Mass surveillance programs are exposed, sparking global debate on privacy and the extreme scrutiny on security of technology that is pervasive today. At Microsoft, Satya Nadella becomes CEO — A cultural and strategic transformation begins, with a focus on cloud, openness, and innovation. Three strategic strands which I personally feel are akin to a technology version of the ‘Norns’ in Norse mythology, – three goddesses who shape human destinies – only these do that while leveraging Microsoft’s platforms!
• 2015: Paris Climate Agreement signed: Nearly 200 countries commit to combat climate change. At the same time there are two terrorist attacks in Paris – heightening the Global focus on counterterrorism and indeed, Microsoft play a strategic role by responding to lawful requests following the November 2015 terrorist attack in Paris and the Paris attack on Charlie Hebdo.
• 2016: Brexit vote: The UK votes to leave the European Union and across the pond, Donald Trump is elected US President, marking a significant political shift globally. Despite the potential challenges both initiatives could introduce, Microsoft acquire LinkedIn — Integrating professional data into Microsoft’s ecosystem.
• 2017: North Korea missile tests: Nuclear tensions rise on the Korean Peninsula, meanwhile the #MeToo movement occurs: Positively shifting gender and workplace dynamics worldwide. In the world of diversity and inclusion –Microsoft Teams launches — Transforming communication and accessibility within and external to companies, changing the way we will all work, forever with a central hub for modern collaboration.
• 2018: US-China trade war begins: Tariffs and tensions disrupt global markets and some may say, fuelled by Brexit and the US elections in 2017. Populism and nationalism is ‘given oxygen’ and on the rise in Europe : Italy, Hungary, and others to challenge EU norms. With a fluid geopolitical backdrop, Microsoft acquires GitHub — A strong signal of its support for developers and open source community.
• 2019: Climate activism surges: Greta Thunberg and global climate strikes gain momentum. Azure Arc is launched — Extending Azure’s reach into hybrid cloud, simplifying governance and management by delivering a consistent multi-cloud and on-premises management platform. We love it!
• 2020: COVID-19 pandemic: Global lockdowns, economic disruption, and health system strain. Teams becomes essential — Remote work accelerates global adoption and in parallel our colleagues work with the Government of Jersey leveraging Microsoft Dynamics to deliver the Island’s Track & Trace platform, saving lives and unlocking our Island’s visitor economy in July 2020.  In America, Joe Biden defeats Donald Trump amid a highly polarised election.
• 2021: Global vaccine rollout: COVID-19 remains central to geopolitics. Israel–Palestine conflict escalates again: Clashes in Gaza and Jerusalem. During the turmoil, Windows 11 is announced — Focused on hybrid work, design, and productivity laying the foundational platform for future productivity.
• 2022: Russia invades Ukraine: Full-scale war triggers energy crises and global food insecurity. Inflation surges globally: Triggered by post-COVID recovery and war-related disruptions. Microsoft share their threat intelligence report Defending Ukraine: Early Lessons from the Cyber War  — Enabling Industry to gain insights into the very real nexus of geopolitics and technology.
• 2023: Climate disasters: Extreme weather highlights the urgency of climate policy. Copilot for Microsoft 365 launches — Bringing generative AI directly into everyday tools like Word, Excel, and Outlook. Prosperity 24/7 move into our new purpose built offices at Castle Quay hosting the Channel Islands’ launch of Microsoft Copilot with Microsoft Executives.
• 2024: Major elections worldwide: US, India, Indonesia, and more head to the polls — a pivotal year for global leadership. AI regulation and tech sovereignty debates: Nations scramble to define their stances on AI and data governance whilst at the same time Industry embrace AI everywhere — Copilot becomes ubiquitous — From developer tools to security, Microsoft fully embraces AI integration across platforms and Prosperity deliver our ‘Great Minds’ series of events to help Industry to upskill their workforce to drive up productivity for all.
• 2025: US Presidential inauguration: Donald Trump takes the presidency once more, setting the tone for the next four years in global diplomacy, tech policy, and trade. Microsoft, on its 50th anniversary, unveiled significant enhancements to Copilot, transforming it into a more proactive and personalised AI assistant. This evolution aims to keep pace with AI leaders by integrating more “agentic” functionality into Microsoft’s products further extending productivity opportunities.

Why am I reflecting in such detail…?

This timeline isn’t just a retrospective — it highlights how Microsoft’s strategic shifts over the last 14 years, let alone the last 50, have directly influenced how businesses operate, collaborate, and innovate while all around geopolitical challenges persist.

As a company that has grown alongside these developments, we’ve felt the impact of each major enhancement and have balanced the opportunities with the external headwinds that are sadly far too constant but as we would like to think, have not proven to be insurmountable not only for our business but for yours too.

Ultimately, Prosperity in partnership with Microsoft help you to stay agile in a fast-moving world.

With AI, data, and hybrid work continuing to evolve, Microsoft’s innovation curve is far from over. We’re excited to see — and build on — what comes next as we stand side by side with our clients to help them to achieve more and continue to prosper.

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The Microsoft Azure Virtual Desktop specialisation demonstrates Prosperity24/7’s deep knowledge, extensive experience, and proven success in planning and deploying Microsoft Azure Virtual Desktop for their clients. This specialisation distinguishes Prosperity24/7 from its competitors and, as a recognised Microsoft specialist, enables Prosperity24/7 to access go-to-market solutions on behalf of clients undertaking Azure migrations, providing them with expertise and financial assistance. This allows organisations to use the full breadth of Microsoft AVD to build transformative, secure virtual desktop solutions at scale, enabling them to be more efficient and productive.

For Microsoft Partners to achieve the specialisation, they need to go through a rigorous process including training team members to a high standard achieving certain Microsoft qualifications, compiling extensive evidence of expertise and examples of complex technical deployments as well as undergoing a comprehensive audit by Microsoft.

David Keiller, Microsoft Azure Business Manager from Prosperity’s distribution partner TD Synnex said, “Achieving a specialism in Azure Virtual Desktop is a fantastic achievement for Prosperity 24/7, it demonstrates a deep understanding of the solution and  excellence in design, implementation, delivery and training to facilitate successful projects for AVD. It also puts Prosperity 24/7 in a select group of specialised partners who can unlock the full suite of additional benefits from Microsoft which really does make all the difference, It’s been a pleasure working with the team to support them with their journey to specialisation.”

Jake Foster, Chief Technology Officer at Prosperity 24/7, was delighted by the result. “Prosperity is one of only a handful of cloud  service providers to achieve this specialisation across the UK and Europe and the first in the Channel Islands. This accomplishment reflects the tremendous amount of hard work, attention to detail, dedication and expertise demonstrated by the team.  The auditor was impressed by the team’s exceptional work and their commitment to the process.”

Jake expressed his gratitude to the cloud team for consistently delivering solutions to clients at an exceptional standard. He highlighted their hard work and collaboration with Microsoft during the audit process.

“This qualification makes us leaders in providing critical infrastructure for any organisation that is serious about modernising their working environment to enable growth and productivity. Prosperity continues to develop technology solutions that work the way that people work, solving everyday business challenges, so we can all prosper.”

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One day the AIs are going to look back on us the same way we look at fossil skeletons on the plains of Africa. An upright ape, living in dust, with crude language and tools, all set for extinction.

Ex Machina, Alex Garland

…The seminal line from Ex Machina was top of mind when attending Microsoft Ignite in Chicago last week. An event designed to educate, empower and inspire the Microsoft partner ecosystem to in turn, help our clients across the planet to deliver positive, impactful, purposeful outcomes for society (health/sustainability), for colleagues (work/life balance) and for business (greater profitability through productivity).

Some difficult bed fellows to all please in concert, for ease going forward, I will simply define these dimensions as “Leadership’s sustainability trilemma”.

If you want your business to be relevant and indeed, to exist, in ten years’ time, you have to be acutely aware of everything that is coming downstream, to ensure you are effectively planning to maximise the opportunity AI presents, whilst reminding ourselves that we employ humans and must be empathetic when adopting innovation at such phenomenal pace as the evolution (revolution) when considering how far we have come in just twelve months since Copilot was generally available.

Before I move on to the impactful technology that was demonstrated as ‘being available, today’, I admit I am also re-reading “Humans, A brief history of how we F*cked it all up” – charting humanities spiral into self-created oblivion, a phenomenal book by Tim Phillips which helps to contextualise the World’s challenges and how we humans are often our own worst enemy, acting as the catalyst for negative, rather than positive impact. Obviously, that shizzle won’t happen with AI…

As you can imagine, I walked into Microsoft’s event with my ever-positive outlook and growth mindset. Clinging to the hope that humanity will prevail and in many ways my hopes were achieved, with most fears alleviated (if with a pervasive niggle of the potential socio-economic impact innovation could create an even more polarised society of “have’s and have not’s”).

When it comes to those who can afford a personalised AI Agent to undertake their tasks (think of the human’s in Wall-E – my immediate thought) versus those who still have to manually craft their Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and even have the previously ‘exclusive knowledge’ to build their own v-lookups and power BI analytics – you know who you are, you crazy, ‘old school’ kids – those days are over my friends, knowledge as well as process augmentation have been democratised and automated, access to innovation, for all is available now – just ask Copilot!

For those who can access AI and in particular, Microsoft Copilot, the options for productivity gains are beyond comprehension, just read on for some of the highlights. With Microsoft regularly citing themselves as “Customer zero” and “drinking their own champagne” with a workforce of 60,000, sharing stats on gains in performance / outcomes, with a considerable reduction in workforce / headcount saving $500m in their services arm alone.

The Review:

The Microsoft Ignite 2024 event, November 18-22, 2024, in Chicago, showcased significant advancements in AI, accessibility, productivity tools, security, collaboration and advances in both remote working as well as cloud computing.

The event demonstrated accessible innovation, encouraging early technology adoption to have a chance to keep up with the phenomenal pace of change in the industry.

If you want to positively impact Leadership’s sustainability trilemma the key opportunities and business impacts you might want to consider are:

1. Building an ‘Agentic World’ – AI ‘Agents’ for Autonomous Task Management

Microsoft unveiled Agentic AI; AI “agents” designed to perform tasks autonomously across various business functions. These agents can handle processes such as customer returns and invoice management, aiming to enhance operational efficiency and reduce manual workloads. Whilst this sounds innocent and ‘low key’ the pervasive and impactful nature of Agents was a continuous theme across the Microsoft presentation – ‘Personalised Agents for every worker’ was a recurring theme to prepare us all for what is to come… Automation.

Sources: Associated Press  or Microsoft Ignite 2024 Book of News

2. The Universal Interface – Accessibility for all

During the Keynote Satya Nadella discussed AI’s capability as a Universal interface: Allowing AI to accept and process various types of input, including speech, images, and videos. Enabling more natural and intuitive interactions between humans and AI systems. Courtesy of the speed of processing (which was also touched upon in Scaling Laws) he showed first-hand how you could query data live, leveraging AI, stepping through reasoning and planning, as well as memory and context, to summarize key trends from the source information being discussed and presented. The input combined visual and audio inputs thus generating human accessible outputs – visualisations with trend data. This was, indeed, impressive!

3. Copilot Actions to Automate Repetitive Tasks – Driving productivity

The introduction of Copilot Actions enables Microsoft 365 Copilot users to automate routine tasks, including summarising meeting actions and generating reports from simple prompt engineering (and is indeed a phenomenal productivity boost by minimising manual intervention in repetitive processes).

I am sure, if you use Copilot today, you will have loved the summing up from meetings or documents for example. This takes simple features to the next level, helping you to aggregate data and operational insights from team members effectively (for you). It also lays the foundations for the agentic experience mentioned above e.g. where my agent asks your agent for an update, so we both stay ‘on task’ but can share insights on productivity regarding goals / projects etc. automatically.

4. Data Governance leveraging Purview – Reduce ‘over sharing’ accelerate trust

On the pre-day I chose the most relevant session for our company, Prosperity 24/7, given our focus on Financial Services, Legal and Public Sector Industries.  Enhanced AI data governance to enable the journey from pilot to rapid deployment at scale to operate, leveraging Microsoft Purview to mitigate ‘over sharing / data leakage (to AI apps) and non-compliant usage’ whilst subsequently facilitating continuous improvement of data security practices. So incredibly useful if you, like us, are ISO 27001 compliant!

I would recommend checking out AI Hub and the Purview Audit tools (in preview) to discover and secure all AI activity in Copilot and other generative AI apps in your enterprise.

5. Copilot Pages – Collaborate at speed

Copilot Pages are a dynamic persistent canvas (think ‘workspace / whiteboard’ designed for multiparty / colleague and AI collaboration.

Pages takes AI-generated content and makes it durable/persistent, so you can edit it, add to it, and share it with others. If this sounds ‘light weight’ that is me doing it a disservice. If you have 90 seconds to spare, I recommend you watch this to understand how transformative it is – think ‘pitch documents’ if it helps to contextualise in a business scenario: Copilot Pages demo.

6. Windows 365 Link – A Cloud-Based Mini-PC and ‘Azure local’ the next generation of Datacentre hardware

Whilst it has been a long time since I was excited by a small form factor terminal, Satya Nadella introduced the Windows 365 Link, a compact, cloud-based mini-PC tailored for business use.

If you have to return to work, you may as well do it in style and at phenomenal performance levels!

This small device facilitates seamless yet secure access to Windows 365 services, supporting dual 4K monitors and offering enhanced security features. It is designed to support flexible work environments, enabling employees to connect to their workspaces from various locations.

This ‘linked’ very much to announcements regarding the development of the proprietary Data Centre Infrastructure Chip set.

To enhance AI processing capabilities and data security, Microsoft launched two proprietary data centre infrastructure chips. These chips aim to optimise data processing speeds and reduce reliance on third-party processors, potentially leading to cost savings and improved performance in AI applications.

If you were at the expo (I was) there was detailed information regarding the impact to power saving and new cooling technologies.

New ‘Azure Local’ form factors for clients to deploy to their own datacentres were also shared which came in three ‘flavours’: Small & rugged, Connected and Disconnected (honestly) – you can read more here.

Conclusions for your business:

From a technology standpoint these developments underscore Microsoft’s commitment to integrating advanced AI capabilities into its product offerings, aiming to drive operational efficiency, enhance security, and support flexible work environments. Therefore, meeting most of my previously mentioned Leadership’s sustainability trilemma.

I have only touched on some of the new feature highlights, and if you have a lot more time, I would strongly encourage you to set an hour (or more) aside to review the Ignite 2024 Book of News.

From a leadership perspective and indeed, Satya’s and therefore Microsoft’s challenge, I am mindful of the trilemma and the explicit dimension of society. To truly have ‘democratised access for all’ then cost, or at least a ‘freemium’ model has to be a consideration.

Pricing from Microsoft is ultimately regional, so hopefully developing nations can benefit across all dimensions mentioned, we just have to be acutely mindful that an unintended consequence is easily foreseeable, namely the potential for mass unemployment across all tiers of society for knowledge workers, no matter their spans of capability or indeed, seniority. Likewise, geography is no barrier either – through the rapid development of agents, simply automating us into a reality, predicted by Alex Garland in Ex Machina “One day the AIs are going to look back on us the same way we look at fossil skeletons on the plains of Africa. An upright ape, living in dust, with crude language and tools, all set for extinction.”

This sounds dramatic I know, and my concerns are by no means new or unique, it is just that my risk level for society is ‘somewhat elevated’ due to the advancement in Copilot in just twelve months.

We have to remind ourselves that ‘scaffolding and frameworks’ exist to protect humanity, not least the basic AI principle – Proportionality and Do No Harm – as laid down in the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence | UNESCO

I personally take comfort by reminding myself that Microsoft are a purposeful company, striving to do good and that, they can be trusted.

Considering the innovation demonstrated at Microsoft Ignite, Copilot continues to get my absolute support, and that of our colleagues in Prosperity 24/7.

We will do all that we can to ensure that our colleagues, clients, and communities are sustainable, economically, socially and purposefully.

If you are not using AI today, I would urge you to explore Copilot as soon as you can, as I really fear that your company may be at risk of not keeping pace with those who are.

The acceleration and adoption curve of those who are using AI, learning continuously how best to benefit, driving productivity up, must naturally be leaving others in their wake…

I hate to say it, but if you don’t want to be a dinosaur e.g. extinct, we all need to take personal responsibility to understand the implications, consider the human impact, yet embrace the automation to improve not only our businesses but also the positive contribution in GVA we can deliver for our respective nation states. You would hope that through eliminating waste and driving up productivity, this will lead to improved profitability and thus the natural tax revenues which will follow, will help to feed, educate and nurture our respective societies accordingly.

Personally, I believe I am a ‘conscious capitalist’ and not the ‘unthinking capitalist’ that you need to be to exploit AI to its core. I am certain there will be company owners, with less of a moral compass, who will, by leveraging AI Agents to autonomise their entire workforce, drive up profitability for the minority and not worry about the consequences for society.

Ultimately, I am a human, a social being, and whilst I will encourage the pragmatic use of innovation and indeed AI, I will fight for humanity and society, as otherwise, we are all, seriously up a creek and as yet, I have not seen a paddle, automated (on second thought, I have, it’s called an engine, so I’ll take that back – and that is how you ought to think of Copilot, an engine that will power your organisations productivity in turbulent waters).

Finally, and on a lighter note, Ignite has inspired me to watch ‘The Terminator’.  A film I have not seen since 1984, set in Los Angeles, all the way out in the distant future – 2029 – highlighting a post-nuclear dystopian future where the machines have taken over.

Thankfully, as we all know, that will never happen…

The post Microsoft Ignite 2024 – the rise of the machine… appeared first on Prosperity 247.

Planner is an innovative tool that is revolutionising task and project management within Microsoft 365. It merges the best features from Planner, To-Do, and Project for the Web into a single unified and seamless platform that caters for both simple day-to-day task management and project management. 

Benefits and key features

Intuitive User experience -It creates an effortless unified experience that is scalable; from simple task management project management activities; it empowers everyone to manage their work in one place. It is intuitive to use, robust, and deeply integrated with Microsoft 365. It is quick and easy to add items or create a plan from scratch due to the small number of required fields, or use one of the provided templates and as we have quickly come to expect, all of this is assisted by Microsoft’s next generation AI (Copilot) which can help lift the burden of everyday tasks or give you that all important ‘starter for 10’.  

Configure and Extend – Users can configure, extend, and automate tasks and processes (leveraging Power BI and Power Automate to name a few applications), and track against your plan’s baseline, to meet your company’s changing needs while ensuring team members are continually focusing on delivering the right work items at the right time.  

Seamless Integration – A key feature is that Planner 2024 can also be seamlessly integrated with SharePoint and Teams. You can add Planner as a link, a web part, or a tab to SharePoint pages and Teams channels. Enhancing the user experience, extending the aforementioned unified work management experience across different platforms. And…to make the experience even easier Microsoft have created a MS Teams template that comes with an MS Planner tab to link to your project plan, a link to a SharePoint site for your project that includes an issue and project tracker so you can set everything up with ease and little overhead.  

Collaboration – MS Planner 2024 also allows for collaboration with people outside of your organisation through guest access. This feature grants external parties, with the appropriate Microsoft licence, the ability to view and interact with your plan. Guest users can create and delete items as well as edit task fields. You can also add guest users to the Teams channel and SharePoint site ensuring all project communication is easily accessible, shared and centrally located to help achieve the best outcome for your project. 

Centralised functionality – From a functionality perspective, there are not any new features of note that we did not have in Planner, To-Do, or Project for the Web. However, for the first time these features are now in a centralised, unified, one-stop-shop application. No more switching between multiple applications and to-do lists. From the end-user experience I would say that this is a game changer for Microsoft as in brings together ‘the project space’ with ‘operations’ and ensures all involved know what they need to do, across all their to-do items (assigned project activities across all projects, flagged emails, loop components etc) and when they are due! 

Considerations 

That said, there are some areas that would benefit from further development. You can’t @ team members in the comments of tasks (although this is actively being looked at and developed). You can create checklists within tasks, but they don’t have to be marked complete to complete the overall task. These seem like oversights and easy wins / improvements if addressed. The built-in dashboard, or ‘Chart’s as they are called aren’t great but show potential. But as we know it is super easy to link with Power BI and you can even create your own Power BI tab in your Teams Project channel so you and your teams can always and easily view meaningful and bespoke up-to-data MI. Although, we have to acknowledge that, depending on your organisation, this will require the appropriate licenses (and costs) and specialist skillset, thus increasing overhead. 

As I see it there are two immediate development areas that Microsoft should look to address in Planner 2024. The lack of being able to grant users distinct levels of permission / access rights. All users with access can freely edit. External users will have all the same access as internal teams and will have access to all associated files attached to the plan. And, if you or a user accidentally delete a task, or even the whole plan, you are unable to retrieve it or ‘undo’ the deletion. It is gone. You will need to start again. Not great – but there are several steps you need to take so it would take more than a ‘fat finger’ to delete. Hopefully, this will be promptly addressed by Microsoft. 

Licences

There are several license options available. If you are wondering what licence option is best for you and your firm is then please reach out. We have several experts at Prosperity 24/7 who would be able to assist and advise.  

Conclusion

Despite a few limitations, Microsoft Planner 2024 is a powerful application, that offers significant benefits and with its deep integration with Microsoft 365 and other applications like SharePoint and Teams it really does enhance the end-user experience. The benefits and the potential for improvement outweigh any negatives and make it worth considering for those seeking to streamline their task management and project management processes.  

As with anything, it is essential to weigh the pros and cons to determine if it is the right fit for your organisation’s needs. Remember, the perfect application does not exist, but the right one does. And Microsoft Planner 2024 could just be the ‘right’ one for you, especially when considering the benefits of being in a leading class and secure ecosystem. 

I encourage anyone looking to enhance the end-user experience and bring internal teams together, while staying within the Microsoft ecosystem, to explore Microsoft Planner 2024. See how it can help chart a course for streamlined workflows and improved productivity.  

Alternatively, if you are navigating larger projects, programmes and portfolios, and are happy to stretch out beyond the Microsoft shores, I recommend the all singing all dancing Smartsheet, which can also be used outside of the project space and is arguably more user friendly at the time of writing this article. Here at Prosperity 24/7, we offer a solutions-based approach and are not anchored to any one product. This enables us to provide the best advice to meet your business requirements and ensure smooth sailing. 

The post MS Planner 2024: The True North of project and task management appeared first on Prosperity 247.