As 2023 winds down, it’s unbelievable to mirror on all of the progress we’ve made throughout the Microsoft 365 ecosystem this yr. Above all, I wish to thank our prospects for trusting Microsoft Groups to be your software and platform for collaboration and communication. I’m proud to report that tens of hundreds of thousands extra individuals adopted Groups this yr, together with the brand new model launched in October. Microsoft Groups now has over 320 million month-to-month energetic customers.
I additionally wish to share my deep gratitude with the impartial software program distributors (ISVs), system integrators, and enterprise builders who’ve partnered to assist construct our Groups ecosystem. Because of your funding, there are actually greater than 2,000 apps within the Groups retailer and over 145,000 customized line-of-business (LOB) apps constructed by enterprises.
This yr’s greatest information was the introduction of Microsoft Copilot, your highly effective new AI assistant for work. Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 turned usually obtainable Nov.1, and we’re making certain that your funding in Groups gives the inspiration for Copilot extensibility, which lets you increase Copilot with customized abilities and convey its capabilities to your apps. Organizations with Copilot for Microsoft 365 can decide into the public preview for extensibility.
As we glance ahead, I wish to share key sources we’ve created for ISVs and enterprise builders as a way to plan the way you’ll harness the ability of AI by extending Copilot. I additionally wish to spotlight a number of incredible Groups apps that may assist enterprises enhance their end-of-year operations, acknowledge excellent workers, and kick off subsequent yr with renewed function.
Suggestions for extending Copilot for Microsoft 365 utilizing Microsoft Graph connectors
In 2024, enterprise adoption of Copilot for Microsoft 365 will achieve growing momentum, and enterprise builders and ISVs should put together accordingly. You possibly can lengthen Copilot two methods: plugins and connectors. First, we’ll cowl Microsoft Graph connectors, which carry info and content material from exterior information sources into Microsoft Graph, enhancing the data layer and grounding Copilot’s responses in additional of your distinctive context. This extensibility possibility, which is usually obtainable, additionally helps customers uncover extra of your group’s content material throughout Microsoft 365 experiences, like Microsoft Search.
For instance, in early spring 2024, Copilot customers will have the ability to seek for and summarize content material from Lucidspark’s digital whiteboards and Lucidchart’s clever diagramming, bringing pure language processing to a brand new stage. Lucid will obtain that new functionality by extending Copilot with Graph connectors, making it doable to cause over the assorted information properties within the whiteboard or diagram and reply advanced consumer questions. Data such because the content material of Lucid canvases, the date the Lucid doc was created or modified, the writer, and different related fields will probably be ingested through Graph connectors to floor wealthy insights to customers. Content material ingested from Graph connector information will probably be linked in Copilot’s references, permitting customers to hyperlink again to the unique Lucid whiteboard or diagram.
Go to Microsoft’s new developer portal to be taught extra about tips on how to get began constructing Graph connectors, or take a look at this fast begin information. You possibly can obtain options from the Pattern Resolution Gallery, and go to the Microsoft 365 Developer YouTube channel for movies on finest practices. It’s also possible to overview the checklist of all printed Graph connectors which were enabled to be used with Copilot.
Suggestions for extending Copilot for Microsoft 365 with plugins
It’s also possible to lengthen Copilot utilizing plugins. A strong approach to create a plugin is to use Groups message extensions, which might retrieve exterior information, analyze and summarize info, and permit customers to take actions through Adaptive Playing cards in Groups. Builders can now create message extensions utilizing Groups Toolkit for Visible Studio and Visible Studio Code. For current message extensions, be certain that app manifests are up to date.
We’ve a wealth of sources to assist builders construct best-in-class plugins and efficiently lengthen Copilot.
- Observe our information for constructing high-quality plugins.
- Construct plugins with low code, or create your individual enterprise copilots, with Microsoft Copilot Studio.
- Take a look at finest practices for designing Adaptive Playing cards and Groups job modules to set the stage for nice plugins.
- Develop an experience in immediate design and engineering to extend the accuracy of responses from massive language fashions (LLMs).
- Arrange a dev surroundings by making use of for the Microsoft 365 Developer Know-how Adoption Program, which has a restricted variety of Copilot licenses obtainable for ISVs to buy in personal preview.
How Groups AI library allows clever apps
Enterprises and ISVs may start their AI journey by utilizing Groups AI library, in public developer preview, to streamline the event of clever apps utilizing APIs, controls, and prebuilt code. Ramp, an ISV that automates funds and expense administration, used the AI library to map consumer intent to actions contained in the Ramp expertise extraordinarily shortly, with out requiring customized immediate engineering or handbook LLM calls. The API additionally makes it easy so as to add actions to Ramp’s Groups app with little or no growth effort.
The ensuing integration with Groups removes friction from conventional monetary workflows and unlocks vital productiveness positive factors—in the end making finance easier and extra environment friendly.
“Ramp is right here to redefine the established order and make finance easy, so companies can give attention to work that issues,” says Eric Glyman, CEO of Ramp. “Simplicity and ease-of-use are on the coronary heart of what our prospects love about Ramp—from clever routing for the appropriate approvals, to mechanically matching receipts to transactions, to sustaining efficient controls. By seamlessly integrating with Groups, we make clever monetary instruments obtainable the place lots of of hundreds of thousands of individuals do their finest work every single day.”
Ramp has additionally taken the following step by integrating with Copilot, offering every worker with a finance assistant that may full expense workflows on their behalf, give instantaneous perception into spending tendencies, and reply expense coverage questions.
Groups apps to enhance year-end actions and jumpstart 2024
With the yr wrapping up, I’d additionally like to spotlight some Groups apps that may enhance recognition applications for excellent workers in 2023 or assist refine enterprise operations for 2024, beginning with one other take a look at Ramp.
Along with accelerating day-to-day duties, Ramp’s integration with Copilot additionally fosters extra strategic, data-backed considering and decision-making. With deep perception into the monetary interior workings of your small business, the Ramp plugin is a useful accomplice to finance groups planning, monitoring, and managing budgets as we strategy 2024. For instance, finance managers planning journey and leisure budgets can use Ramp to know how a lot their firm spent on motels final yr and modify their forecasts based mostly on the info.
Achievers for Groups: Rejoice moments that matter
Because the tempo of labor accelerates, Achievers for Groups helps prospects simplify worker engagement by merging the worker expertise into the each day stream of labor, and by leveraging a software that workers already use and love—Microsoft Groups. This extends the worth of worker engagement methods and will increase a way of belonging by embedding recognition alternatives all through each day routines.
“The Achievers for Groups app permits us to carry recognition into the stream of an worker’s regular course of labor,” says Michael Cohen, Chief Product Officer at Achievers. “With so many workers spending the majority of their day in communications instruments like Groups, the power to ship and obtain recognition from throughout the utility permits us to satisfy workers the place they’re and to encourage culture-building with out ever leaving the Groups app.”
Organizations which have applied the Achievers for Groups integration have seen vital will increase within the variety of recognitions despatched and better general worker engagement versus these with out the combination.
Enterprises may use Achievers to amplify year-end recognition initiatives, using key features like celebrating moments that matter the place and once they happen by sending social or points-based recognitions inside Groups. Factors-based recognitions are redeemable for rewards workers truly need. Achievers is an business chief with a market of over 3 million rewards and a pair of,500 international manufacturers—with native success companions that guarantee speedy and dependable supply in over 190 international locations, all backed by award-winning customer support.
BHN Rewards: Simplify worldwide gifting to incentivize workers
In response to BHN’s 2022 Worker Incentives Report from NAPCO Analysis, 83 % of workers say that getting rewards improves their productiveness and loyalty. Present playing cards and pay as you go playing cards are probably the most requested possibility (cited by 90 %).¹ BHN Rewards for Groups makes it simple to provide workers what they need whereas additionally simplifying finances controls, worldwide rewarding, and reward monitoring.
Customers can ship rewards throughout reside digital conferences or in one-on-one chat messages, and the reward announcement could be simply shared to Groups channels as nicely. The choice to ship rewards publicly—even amongst distant, hybrid, and international groups—amplifies the impression as a result of colleagues can see and touch upon the popularity. Recipients can simply declare their digital reward card or pay as you go card with just some clicks.
With the exponential rise in distant workers and international workforces, delivering end-of-year employees appreciation items and honoring high performers has gotten extra sophisticated for lots of enterprise corporations. However with BHN Rewards for Groups, these rewards could be despatched on the spot throughout digital division conferences or vacation gatherings, making them easy, significant, and efficient worldwide.
Matter for Groups: Give customizable kudos to revolutionize recognition
Matter for Groups begins by making a recognition behavior referred to as Suggestions Friday, the place workers are mechanically inspired and guided to supply kudos to their friends. Enterprises can make the most of Matter’s templating system to create totally customizable kudos templates to match your organization’s model, firm values, or particular occasions. Matter’s rewards platform consists of reward playing cards and donations from 1,500+ retailers in 80+ international locations, and you’ll create your individual firm rewards retailer for objects like merchandise or a PTO day.
“Matter for Groups has made worker recognition and rewards enjoyable and simple to make use of proper the place you’re employed,” says Matter CEO Brett Hellman. “Inside weeks, 83 % of workers actively interact in peer-to-peer recognition, all from computerized reminders. This uptake highlights Matter’s effectiveness in fostering a tradition of appreciation. It is not nearly software program; it is about revolutionizing how we acknowledge and reward our teammates.”
Use Matter’s analytics instruments to know engagement and recognition patterns. This information can inform HR and administration in regards to the effectiveness of recognition methods, worker morale, and areas needing enchancment. When the yr ends, you need to use Matter’s highly effective analytics to search out which workers acquired probably the most recognition for a selected firm worth or theme after which reward these workers nearly in your Matter Groups channel or in actual time.
Discover out extra in regards to the apps highlighted above on the Achievers web site, the BHN Rewards web site, the Lucid web site, the Matter web site, and Ramp’s web site and Groups integration web site.
Maximize your funding in Copilot and Groups in 2024
Take a look at these sources for extra on tips on how to get began with Copilot and profit from your funding in Groups apps:
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¹2022 Worker Incentives Report, NAPCO Analysis and BHN. March 2023.
