Leveraging AI to maximize the Microsoft ecosystem: How to use Copilot for meetings with Microsoft Teams

Distributed workplaces are now commonplace, and virtual meetings that depend on digital tools like video, chat, and voice are a daily occurrence. Team members across the organizational structure often have increased workloads, making multi-tasking a standard operating procedure. It takes an organized employee to stay on top of meetings, incoming data, agenda items, and next steps while taking notes during important calls, meetings, and other team interactions.

New AI Accelerator tools increase operational efficiency by auto-producing meeting notes and transcriptions with comprehensive features such as key takeaways, suggested follow-up actions, and new agenda items. These tools also help businesses leverage data and the enterprise search function, drawing on dedicated information repositories and validated web data.

This article explains how to use Copilot during Microsoft Teams voice calls and meetings to auto-generate summaries and transcriptions and link meeting insights pre-, post-, and during the call or conference. The post will also explore other work optimization strategies available through Copilot using Microsoft functionalities like e-mail, files, Channel messages, and group and personal Chat.

Activating Copilot for Microsoft Teams Voice calls, meetings

The first step in taking advantage of its full suite of benefits is enabling Copilot in Microsoft Teams and Voice when Teams Phone is used for PSTN and VoIP calls. The company’s Microsoft Teams administrator or a managed services provider like OnX can assist with the activation process:

• Confirm your Microsoft license includes a paid Copilot add-on.
• From the global Copilot menu, enable the recording and transcribing functions.
• Enable the transcription feature for the designated Microsoft Teams meeting.

Using Copilot during Microsoft Teams meetings

The meeting facilitator decides which Microsoft Copilot features callers and meeting attendees can access. Remember that Copilot policy settings supersede this functionality in addition to meeting template settings and data classification labels. 

Tips for how to use Copilot before, during, and after Microsoft Teams meetings:

• Pre-meeting –­ Copilot can create a meeting agenda with relevant summaries from prior meetings or current projects relevant to that meeting.
• Throughout the meeting – Transcription can be disabled during a meeting. However, a recording can still be made, and Copilot can still produce a meeting summary, show actionable items, and suggest other cues as the meeting occurs. Meeting attendees must copy and paste their Copilot interactions into a new file, as Copilot does not store the prompts or a meeting transcript.
• As the meeting progresses and after – Copilot auto records meeting transcripts, user engagement with Copilot, and a register of suggested prompts when transcription is turned on. Documentation is instantly available.
• Smart meeting summary – This functionality is part of the Microsoft Copilot license in addition to Teams Premium. The latter enhances the Copilot license, offering smarter, more customizable, and more secure features. Your company’s IT administrator can assist with Teams Premium permissions.

Remember that Copilot user engagement during Teams meetings is confidential and can only be accessed by other company employees if and when the user opts to provide their Copilot interactions with others.

Read: Microsoft 365 Copilot Quick Success Guide

How to use Copilot for Voice calls

When callers use Microsoft Teams Phone and are equipped with the relevant Microsoft licensing, Copilot can be enabled for legacy-style landline phones VoIP calling. In these cases, Copilot auto-produces transcripts while the call is taking place, and following the call, an overview with key takeaways is generated.

The transcription includes suggested actions that can deliver a variety of different results, including: 

• Recommended actions.
• What issues were addressed?
• Who contributed the most to the call, and what main topics were discussed?

Also read: Nine best practices for seamless AI integration in UCaaS

Capitalizing on calls and meeting transcriptions

Microsoft can offer prompt examples that are beneficial. However, Copilot allows callers and meeting attendees to customize their engagements with the technology.

Copilot generates notes from meetings and calls. It can also summarize messages sent via Channel or Chat, complete with insights for the team to reference.

Following are several situational examples of the advantages Copilot offers to callers and meeting attendees:

Tapping into enterprise search

Training teams on how to use Copilot during Teams meetings is only the first step in the process of understanding enterprise search. This system will enable users to obtain company data such as Chat messages, call transcripts, and e-mail. Copilot can retrieve the full data content contained with the associated Microsoft license. Supplemental data requires uploading or integration.

The enterprise search functionality available with Copilot allows users to seek data contained in Channels, e-mails, Chat, transcripts, Meeting Chat, and files. As Copilot progresses into this next iteration, clients can further mine their Microsoft software by quickly searching all the data on all channels.

But generative AI has a vulnerability. It is not transparent about the original data source, nor can it identify the origin of information. Copilot counters this issue by assigning reference numbers to AI-generated responses so users can correlate the original data source from which Copilot sourced the requested information. 

Optimize staff productivity with Microsoft 365 Copilot and Teams Voice

OnX oversees your Microsoft 365 license, so your business can focus on maximizing the technology benefits available through Copilot. We ensure your company knows exactly how to use Copilot while maintaining a secure environment. We will also configure Teams Voice so your business’ staff can efficiently communicate and collaborate. OnX’s comprehensive methodology enhances staff output, teamwork, and overall performance.

Contact us today to learn how Copilot features in Teams meetings and across the Microsoft environment can bolster team productivity and improve efficiency.