Microsoft has announced the first New Zealand organisations to access Microsoft 365 (M365) Copilot as part of the invitation-only global Early Access Program.
BNZ, Beca and Genesis Energy are among the first organisations in New Zealand to deploy M365 Copilot, a powerful generative AI service that combines the power of large language models (LLMs) with organisational data from Microsoft 365. As part of the M365 Copilot Early Access Program, these businesses will access the latest generative AI technologies to unlock new productivity levels across apps like Microsoft Teams, Word, PowerPoint and Excel.
“Business leaders within the Early Access Program have an opportunity to gain a first-mover advantage in their sectors, and enable greater productivity in a market that is navigating sustained economic pressure,” said Lucy Debono, Modern Work Business Group Director, Microsoft Australia and New Zealand. “These early adopters will work closely with Microsoft to use this technology, test it within their teams, help us to improve it further and drive great employee experiences. This is such an exciting opportunity to see how New Zealand companies will use this incredible new tool to fundamentally change how we work.”
BNZ, Beca and Genesis are three of just a handful of New Zealand organisations selected to pilot the technology and will receive support from Microsoft modern work experts and Copilot Cloud Solution Architects to enable them to derive maximum value.
Customers in the Early Access Program will also benefit from the recently announced extensibility model, with developers able to integrate their apps and services into Microsoft 365 Copilot. This includes plugins from partners such as Atlassian, Adobe, Servicenow, Thomson Reuters, Moveworks and Mural.
"BNZ is always looking for new ways to deliver market-leading products, services and expertise to our customers,” says BNZ Executive of Data Analytics and Strategy Kate Skinner. "We’re excited that we are one of the first organisations in New Zealand to bring the power of generative AI to our workforce. It offers immense potential to increase productivity, but what excites me the most is the impact it could have for our employees in helping them to deliver exceptional customer experiences with greater ease.”
Debono’s team at Microsoft have been testing the technology for several months, and reflecting on learnings and early benefits, she sees the opportunity for financial services organisations to benefit from speeding up content creation for things like customer communication and reports, which could free up teams to spend more time on higher value customer support and service delivery.
“Generative AI productivity tools like M365 Copilot offer tangible, real opportunities to change how we work,” said Debono. “My team have not only boosted how quickly we can produce content or get intelligent meeting recaps but also freed us up to be more engaged and creative. It makes you better at what you're good at, helps you learn new skills, and saves you time.”
