Everyone is talking about it: Copilot. Microsoft’s AI assistant that writes your emails, summarizes reports and saves time. But what does it really mean for an SME without an IT department? And how do you turn that hype into a concrete return on investment?

Why this is important now

In 2025, Copilot is no longer an experiment. More and more Flemish companies are deploying it within Outlook, Word, Teams and Excel. According to Microsoft, Copilot increases productivity by 29% on average, and reduces repetitive tasks by 32%.

Yet barely 1 in 4 SMEs is pulling out its full potential. The reason? Lack of preparation, unclear policies and too little integration with existing processes.

Copilot can be a gamechanger but only if you know where the gains are.

The challenge

Many SMEs start Copilot enthusiastically, but quickly run into frustration.

• Employees do not know how to use Copilot efficiently.
• There is no clear data security or access policy.
• Files are scattered in OneDrive, SharePoint and local folders.

• Copilot gives “strange” answers due to poor data quality.

Without a clear strategy, you lose time instead of gaining time.
And that’s a shame, because Microsoft 365 has all the tools on board to use AI safely and smartly.

💡 Practical Tip: Start with a “Copilot Readiness Scan.”

Make sure your Microsoft 365 environment meets the basic requirements:

• Are your licenses set up correctly (Business Standard or Premium)?
• Is your data stored uniformly in OneDrive/SharePoint?
• Are your security and access rights in order?

👉 Network-IT can analyze this in one session and create a concrete action plan.

1. Bring structure to your Microsoft 365 environment

Copilot learns from your data. If your documents are scattered everywhere – from desktop to old server – Copilot won’t know what’s relevant.
So create one clear structure in SharePoint and OneDrive.
Use folders by project, customer or department. Set clear permissions via Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) and let Intune policies determine who has access.

Result: Copilot has clean, relevant data to work with.

2. Define clear use cases

Copilot can do a lot, but not everything at once. Choose 2-3 priority use cases:

• Sales: let Copilot create sales emails based on CRM data.
• Administration: have Copilot summarize invoices or check quotes.
• Meetings: have Copilot generate minutes in Teams.

By starting small, you increase adoption and see measurable gains faster.

3. Train your team on smart prompts

Copilot is only as good as the questions you ask.
Teach employees how to write efficient prompts:

• Use context (“Write an email to customer X about quote Y”)
• Set clear goals (“Make it short and to the point”)
• Ask for improvements (“Rewrite this in a friendlier tone”)

Network-IT organizes short Copilot training courses for SMEs for this purpose that focus on practical scenarios in Outlook, Word and Teams.

4. Protect your data with Intune and Sensitivity Labels

AI can accidentally share sensitive info if you don’t shield it.
Therefore, use Microsoft Purview to label confidential documents (e.g., “internal,” “confidential”).
Use Intune to manage which devices get access, and Defender for Business to block suspicious data requests.

This keeps AI safe within the confines of your organization.

5. Automate repetitive processes

Combine Copilot with Power Automate and Loop to speed up processes:

• Automatically send follow-up emails after meetings.
• Generate reports based on Excel data.
• Summarize quotes in Word and send via Outlook.

AI and automation together make the difference between “convenient” and “game changer.”

What this means for your business

Copilot is not a panacea, but a lever.
Companies that invest in data hygiene, policy and training today create measurable gains within six months:

• Less time wasted searching for info
• Fewer errors in communication
• Higher employee satisfaction

Those who wait will see the gap grow. AI-driven companies are becoming faster, smarter and more attractive to new talent.

Conclusion

Microsoft 365 Copilot is much more than a gadget – it’s a digital colleague that makes your business work smarter.
But only if your environment, processes and people are prepared for it.

Don’t start from hype, but from structure. And let experts like Network-IT help you turn Copilot into a real profit generator.