Extend Copilot Knowledge

Microsoft has published the release note for the upcoming December release of version 10.0.42 for Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management. The release notes are available at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/supply-chain/get-started/whats-new-scm-10-0-42.

As you may know, this release is not marked by Microsoft as Major, and accordingly, it does not contain a large number of changes. According to the release notes, only four new features are included.

One of them immediately caught my attention, and I can’t resist testing how it works. I’m referring to the feature: “Customize the conversational help provided by Copilot.” Based on the provided description, now you can extend Copilot's knowledge by adding new knowledge to it in Copilot Studio. For example, you can add individual document files (in file formats such as PDF, RTF, or Word) or link to other information sources (such as SharePoint).

I found this feature very interesting and promising. Previously, Copilot relied on system documentation describing the standard functionality and capabilities. But what if you've customized the process or use it differently from what Microsoft envisioned? Now you can teach Copilot to guide users in the way you want.

For example, if you have a specific sequence for processing a purchase order and want to make life easier for new employees, you can teach Copilot to provide the correct prompts.

To do this, go to Copilot Studio, and in the Copilots section on the Knowledge tab, upload the instruction file by simply dragging and dropping it into the designated area on the screen.

I created a simple file containing six sequential steps for purchasing goods. Here’s the content:

The correct process to create a purchase is:

• Step 1: create a purchase request
• Step 2: create a vendor quotation
• Step 3: create a purchase order
• Step 4: Approve purchase order using workflow process
• Step 5: create purchase invoice
• Step 6: create a payment order

Then, with a few simple clicks, I uploaded and published the file in my test environment. And here’s the result of how Copilot responds to my questions:

Example 1:

Example 2:

As you can see from the examples, Copilot began to use the information from the file I uploaded to generate its responses.

I believe this new feature will be very useful for companies with a large number of employees and complex, non-standard processes—in other words, almost all large companies.

I will definitely include a Live Demo of this feature in the webinar program dedicated to reviewing the new functionality released in version 10.0.42. Let me remind you that the planned release date is the end of December 2024.

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