Copilot for SMB: Initial learnings from Microsoft EAP

Microsoft originally released Copilot for Microsoft 365 (M365) on November 1, 2023. However, this initial version was only available to larger organizations willing to commit to a minimum of 300 annual licenses (at $30/user/month this represented a minimum investment of $108,000).

Soon after Microsoft launched an invite-only Copilot for Microsoft 365 (M365) Early Access Program (EAP) for small and medium businesses (SMBs).

As part of the Copilot for M365 EAP for SMB nearly 1,000 tenants activated approximately 6,500 SMB licenses, according to Microsoft.

From these thousands of SMB Copilot users, Microsoft learned that SMB organizations were able to setup and use Copilot without the "high touch" account management that was provided to the larger enterprise EAP participants.

Microsoft also commissioned a study from Wakefield Research that explored perspectives about AI from 1,000 small business owners with between 0 and 24 employees.

Microsoft summarized the impact of Copilot in the following slide. Note that these impacts applied equally to SMB and larger organizations.

Small business powers much of the U.S. economy, representing 99.9% of businesses and employing nearly half of the U.S. workforce (U.S. Small Business Administration. (2023). Frequently Asked Questions.)

Given this, it is great to see Microsoft follow-through on their stated intent to democratize technology and more specifically artificial intelligence (AI) by making Copilot available to organizations of any size.

On January 15, 2024 Microsoft announced three specific changes:

1. They removed the 300-seat purchase minimum for Copilot for Microsoft 365 commercial plans. (This is also good for large orgs who want to experiment.)
2. They removed the Microsoft 365 prerequisite for Copilot—so now, Office 365 E3 and E5 customers are eligible to purchase.
3. They announced that Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now generally available for small and medium-sized businesses—from solopreneurs running and launching their first business to 300-person fast-growing startups. If you are using either Microsoft 365 Business Standard or Microsoft 365 Business Premium, you can now purchase Copilot for Microsoft 365 for $30 per user per month. (Microsoft also announced that they are removing the seat minimums for education customers with A3 or A5 licenses.)

Based on feedback from the SMB EAP program, Microsoft also created specific adoption materials targeted at SMB customers. This includes a new SMB Copilot community site.

The community site is designed as a hub where SMB customers can congregate and share information to explore the power and possibilities of Copilot and Microsoft 365. Microsoft is hosting a SMB community call on Tuesday, January 30, 2024 12:10-1 pm PT (3:10 - 4 pm ET) at: https://aka.ms/SMBCommunitycall?

(I have been been told additional documentation will be updated over the next seveal months; many of the "how to prepare" guides for Copilot are still targeted at larger organizations that have dedicated IT staff.)

Generating Value from AI for SMB

These are exciting times and it is good news that small and medium-sized companies will now be able to experiment and discover if and how they can extract value from Copilot.

I expect to continue to share additional learnings throughout 2024!

If you are attending the Enterprise Connect conference please consider attending two sessions that will have lots of additional Copilot information:

(Save $400 off Conference passes by using code Kieller400 when registering)

??Monday, March 25 | 9:00am - 9:45am

??MICROSOFT TEAMS COPILOT: IS IT READY FOR YOUR ENTERPRISE (AND ARE YOU READY FOR IT)?

Expert: Kevin Kieller

Kevin Kieller has delivered an independent session focused on Microsoft for the past 14 years, covering OCS, Lync, Skype for Business, and Teams. This year he is focused on helping you understand and leverage Copilot where it makes the most sense for your organization. This session is expected to be well-attended so plan to arrive early in order to get a seat.

??Wednesday, March 27 | 2:00pm - 2:45pm

??NAVIGATING THE LLM LANDSCAPE IN UCAAS: UNDERSTANDING AND LEVERAGING AI-POWERED FEATURES

Expert: Kevin Kieller and co-presenter Brent Kelly

In a session sure to be widely attended, Expert Kevin Kieller and co-presenter Brent Kelly focus on helping you better understand #GenAI and leverage it whether you are using #MicrosoftTeams, #Cisco #Webex, #Zoom, or #Google.