How to Use Microsoft Copilot in Outlook!

Scott Brant
21 Feb 202415:43

TLDRThe transcript discusses Microsoft's co-pilot, a digital assistant integrated into Office on Microsoft 365, which aims to revolutionize email management in Outlook. Co-pilot can draft, summarize, and reply to emails, offering various tone options and length settings. It also integrates with Outlook's calendar and search functions, providing meeting summaries and updates on communications. The assistant's coaching feature offers sentiment analysis and suggestions for email improvement, though it currently lacks direct integration into the email composition process. The video highlights co-pilot's potential to save time and increase productivity while acknowledging the need for future enhancements.

Takeaways

  • 📧 Microsoft Outlook remains a widely used application for email management and is difficult to avoid in professional communication.
  • 🤖 Microsoft's new digital assistant, co-pilot, integrated within Office on Microsoft 365, promises to enhance productivity within Outlook.
  • 📝 Co-pilot can draft, summarize, and manage emails, potentially transforming the way users work with Outlook.
  • 🔍 Co-pilot can improve the email search experience in Outlook by using natural language queries rather than traditional filters.
  • 💌 The AI assistant can generate replies to emails, allowing users to respond quickly and efficiently.
  • 📅 Co-pilot has access to the user's calendar and can provide insights and summaries for upcoming meetings.
  • 🚀 Co-pilot's coaching feature offers sentiment analysis and suggestions for improving the tone and content of emails.
  • 📈 Co-pilot's capabilities are continuously evolving, with future updates expected to enhance its performance and user experience.
  • 🔒 Using co-pilot ensures data security and privacy as the data remains within the organization's ecosystem.
  • 👍 The integration of co-pilot directly into Outlook streamlines the workflow, eliminating the need to switch between multiple applications.
  • 💡 Despite its potential to save time, co-pilot is still in its early stages, and some features like coaching could benefit from further development for a more seamless user experience.

Q & A

  • What is Microsoft's co-pilot and how does it function within Outlook?

    -Microsoft's co-pilot is a digital assistant integrated within the Office suite on Microsoft 365. It operates inside Outlook to streamline email management by drafting, summarizing, and replying to emails, as well as organizing the user's day. Co-pilot leverages AI to help users save time and potentially transform their workflow.

  • How does co-pilot assist in drafting emails?

    -Co-pilot can draft emails by用户提供简单的情景描述和相关信息。用户可以指定邮件的基调，如直接、中立、随意或正式，甚至可以是诗歌形式，并且选择邮件的长度。Co-pilot then generates a draft that users can refine, adjust, or directly send after review.

  • Can co-pilot help in replying to emails?

    -Yes, co-pilot can assist in replying to emails. When a user clicks the reply button, co-pilot suggests drafts that are contextually relevant to the original email's content. Users have the option to keep the suggested reply, modify it, or discard it and draft a new one.

  • How does co-pilot aid in searching for emails?

    -Co-pilot enhances the email search experience by allowing users to search using natural language queries rather than traditional search filters. It can be accessed via the chat feature in Microsoft Teams, where users can ask for specific emails or content, and co-pilot will identify and reference the relevant emails.

  • What is the role of co-pilot in summarizing emails and threads?

    -Co-pilot can summarize emails and their threads, providing users with a concise overview of the content. This feature is particularly useful for quickly understanding the context of long or complex email exchanges, saving users significant time.

  • How does co-pilot integrate with the user's calendar?

    -Co-pilot has access to the user's Outlook calendar and can provide insights about upcoming meetings, including details about the agenda and participants. It can also suggest topics to cover based on the meeting's title and the identities of the attendees.

  • What is the coaching feature of co-pilot and how does it work?

    -The coaching feature of co-pilot allows it to analyze user-drafted emails for sentiment and appropriateness. It offers feedback and suggestions for improvement, such as increasing politeness or clarity. However, as of the current version, users need to manually incorporate the coaching feedback into their emails.

  • What are the data security and privacy implications of using co-pilot?

    -Co-pilot operates within the Microsoft ecosystem, ensuring that data ownership remains with the user's organization. This provides a level of data security and privacy, as the data is managed within the organization's control and in compliance with its policies.

  • What are some limitations of co-pilot as highlighted in the script?

    -The script mentions a few limitations, such as the inability to directly incorporate coaching feedback into emails with a single click, and occasional formatting issues when generating emails. Additionally, the coaching experience could be improved for a more seamless user experience.

  • How does co-pilot's email management capabilities potentially save users time?

    -Co-pilot's capabilities in drafting, replying, summarizing emails, and managing the calendar can significantly reduce the time spent on email-related tasks. By automating these processes, users can focus on more critical tasks, potentially saving hours each week.

  • What are the future expectations for co-pilot's development?

    -The script suggests that co-pilot is a version one product and is expected to evolve over time. Future updates are anticipated to improve existing features and address current limitations, enhancing the overall user experience and efficiency of the tool.

Outlines

00:00

📧 Enhancing Email Productivity with Microsoft Co-Pilot

This paragraph introduces the prevalence of Microsoft Outlook in daily communication and the challenges of managing emails. It discusses the potential of Microsoft's new digital assistant, Co-Pilot, integrated within Office on Microsoft 365, to streamline email tasks. Co-Pilot can draft, summarize, and manage emails, transforming the way users work with Outlook. The speaker plans to demonstrate Co-Pilot's capabilities, such as drafting and replying to emails, and how it could save time and improve productivity.

05:03

🔍 Improving Email Search and Management with Co-Pilot

The second paragraph addresses the frustrations users face with Outlook's search functionality and how Co-Pilot can enhance this experience. It explains that while Outlook's search filters can be time-consuming, Co-Pilot offers a more intuitive, human-like search method through Microsoft Teams and the web. Co-Pilot can find specific emails based on user queries, making it easier to locate important information quickly. Additionally, Co-Pilot can provide updates on communications from specific individuals, offering a summarized overview of recent exchanges.

10:04

📆 Co-Pilot's Integration with Calendar and Meeting Preparation

This paragraph highlights Co-Pilot's ability to integrate with the user's calendar, providing insights into upcoming meetings and helping users prepare. Co-Pilot can summarize email threads, saving time by condensing lengthy discussions into brief overviews. It also offers coaching on email responses, suggesting improvements for tone and clarity. However, the speaker notes some limitations, such as the inability to directly apply coaching suggestions into the email and potential formatting issues with generated emails. Despite these challenges, the speaker is optimistic about Co-Pilot's evolution and its potential to enhance Outlook usage.

15:06

🤖 Reflecting on Co-Pilot's Impact on Outlook and Future Improvements

The final paragraph wraps up the discussion on Co-Pilot's features and its impact on improving email management and productivity within Outlook. The speaker acknowledges the current limitations of Co-Pilot, such as the coaching experience and email formatting, but expresses hope for future updates and improvements. The speaker encourages viewers to share their thoughts on Co-Pilot's effectiveness and concludes the video with a call to action for likes and subscriptions for more content on enhancing productivity with Microsoft 365.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Outlook is a widely used email management application that is part of the Microsoft Office suite. In the video, it is discussed as the platform where Microsoft's new digital assistant, co-pilot, is integrated to help users manage their emails more efficiently. The script mentions how Outlook is an essential tool for handling emails, and the video aims to show how co-pilot can transform the way users work with Outlook.

💡Co-pilot

Co-pilot is Microsoft's digital assistant integrated within Office on Microsoft 365, designed to enhance productivity by automating tasks such as drafting emails, summarizing content, and managing the daily schedule. In the context of the video, co-pilot is presented as a transformative tool that could potentially save users significant time and effort in their email management and other Outlook-related tasks.

💡Email Drafting

Email drafting refers to the process of creating and composing a message to be sent via email. In the video, co-pilot's ability to draft emails is emphasized as a key feature that allows users to generate content efficiently by providing scenarios and desired tones, thus streamlining the email creation process and reducing the time spent on crafting messages.

💡Email Summarization

Email summarization is the process of condensing a lengthy email into a shorter, more digestible format while retaining the essential information. The video highlights co-pilot's capability to summarize emails and email threads, which can save users significant time, especially when dealing with complex or lengthy correspondence that needs to be quickly understood.

💡Sentiment Analysis

Sentiment analysis is the process of determining the emotional tone or attitude conveyed in a piece of text. In the context of the video, co-pilot uses sentiment analysis to draft emails that are appropriate in tone, whether it be optimistic, confident, formal, or any other desired sentiment. This feature ensures that the emails align with the user's intended message and the recipient's expectations.

💡Email Management

Email management involves organizing and handling the incoming and outgoing emails effectively. The video discusses how co-pilot can assist in email management by not only drafting and summarizing emails but also by helping users find specific emails and providing updates on communications, thus improving overall productivity and organization.

💡Search Functionality

Search functionality refers to the ability to find specific content within a platform or application using various filters or search terms. In the video, it is mentioned that co-pilot can enhance the search experience in Outlook by allowing users to find emails using more natural, human-like search terms instead of traditional filters, making the search process more efficient and less time-consuming.

💡Calendar Integration

Calendar integration is the process of linking a calendar application with other tools or services to streamline scheduling and organization. In the video, co-pilot's ability to access and provide insights about the user's Outlook calendar is highlighted as a feature that can help users prepare for meetings and manage their schedules more effectively.

💡AI Coaching

AI coaching refers to the use of artificial intelligence to provide guidance and suggestions for improvement in various aspects, such as communication skills or task management. In the video, co-pilot offers AI coaching by analyzing the user's drafted emails and providing feedback on sentiment, politeness, and clarity, aiming to enhance the quality of communication.

💡Productivity

Productivity refers to the efficiency and effectiveness with which tasks are completed. The video's main theme revolves around improving productivity by using co-pilot within Outlook to automate and manage email-related tasks. The integration of co-pilot is presented as a solution to common productivity challenges faced by users, such as managing a large volume of emails and preparing for meetings.

💡Data Security and Privacy

Data security and privacy refer to the measures taken to protect digital information from unauthorized access, disclosure, or loss. In the context of the video, it is mentioned that co-pilot ensures that the data used to draft emails remains within the user's organization, implying that there are appropriate safeguards in place to maintain data security and privacy standards.

Highlights

Microsoft Outlook remains one of the most widely used apps for handling emails, signifying the importance of email management in our daily work.

The tide of emails seems insurmountable, with the task of managing them feeling like an endless battle.

Microsoft's new digital assistant, co-pilot, integrated within Office on Microsoft 365, promises to enhance productivity by handling various email-related tasks.

Co-pilot has the capability to draft emails, summarize them, and manage your day, potentially transforming the way you work with Outlook.

By pressing the forward slash key in Outlook, users can access the submenu and select 'draft with co-pilot' to begin the process of email creation.

Co-pilot allows users to provide context for the email, adjust the sentiment, and even choose the length of the email to be short, medium, or long.

The AI assistant can generate emails with different tones, ranging from direct, neutral, casual, to formal, and even creative forms like poetry.

Co-pilot can also reply to emails by suggesting drafts that are in sync with the content and sentiment of the received message.

Searching for emails can be frustrating, but co-pilot can alleviate this by using natural language processing to find relevant emails faster than traditional search filters.

Co-pilot can be accessed through Microsoft Teams to perform Outlook searches, showcasing its versatility and integration across different platforms.

The AI assistant can summarize emails and email threads, providing a quick overview of the content and saving significant time for users.

Co-pilot can access the calendar and provide insights into upcoming meetings, aiding in better preparation and organization.

The coaching feature of co-pilot analyzes the sentiment of drafted emails and offers suggestions for improvement, enhancing communication skills.

Despite its potential, co-pilot is still in its early stages, with some limitations such as the inability to directly apply coaching suggestions into an email.

The integration of co-pilot within Outlook and its alignment with data security and privacy standards within an organization make it a valuable tool for businesses.

The continuous evolution of co-pilot suggests that future updates will address current shortcomings and enhance its overall functionality.

Co-pilot has the potential to save users hours of work each week by streamlining email management and improving productivity.