Kyle Hill, Chief Technology Officer at digital transformation company and Microsoft Services Partner of the Year ANS, explores the three key ways Microsoft Copilot can enhance business performance in the financial sector.
The AI wave in the financial sector
The post-pandemic world has seen one of the biggest workplace shake-ups in generations, with over 80% of financial sector employees valuing a hybrid working model. Powered by changing working habits and an exponential rise in the use of AI, this shift is allowing businesses and employees alike to embrace a more flexible and adaptive working model.
However, such a seismic shift in the traditional 9-5 structure doesn’t come without its challenges. And, with some of the most labour-intensive and sensitive data-handling tasks, financial institutions must navigate technological and procedural change as smoothly as possible.
Many financial businesses already know the importance of preparation when it comes to digital transformation, but sorting through the massive amount of noise surrounding AI-driven business applications is no easy feat. As AI continues to boom, and the expectations for employee and customer experience begin to change, financial leaders need have all the information and aid to make smart choices around AI adoption and maintain a competitive edge.
What AI options are out there?
We’ve seen a lot of AI-driven apps and tools hit the market in recent years, but one that all financial leaders should be aware of is Microsoft Copilot. It’s accessible, affordable, and easy to set up in just about any workplace.
Regardless of its simplicity to use, making the most of any AI tool requires businesses to take the time to understand what, exactly, its capabilities are. Yet many financial business owners and IT decision-makers remain in the dark about the benefits of Copilot. Disruptive banks and competitors, who are massively data driven, might already have started their adoption process, so it’s in everyone’s best interest to adopt responsible AI practices into the workplace now to stay ahead of the curve.
There are so many versions of Microsoft Copilot to choose from, from Copilot for Sales to Copilot for Security. And there may be no better Copilot to introduce organisations to the world of AI than Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365. Why? It opens up new possibilities in the apps that businesses are already familiar with, and acts as a neat stepping stone to other tools.
It’s clear that AI is here to stay, and Copilot is just one tool to accelerate the beginning of an organisation’s AI journey. Taking time to understand how it can add value to businesses in the financial sector is key to unlocking its full potential.
Copilot: Transforming financial businesses
Microsoft Copilot has the potential to completely redefine the financial sector, making an impact in more ways than one. Some of its key features include:
- Seamless integration with existing finance tools
With roughly 400 million monthly active users of Office 365, Microsoft Office 365 is already present in nearly every office across the globe, from small and medium-sized financial firms to enterprises and multinational banks. Therefore, Copilot for Microsoft 365 can seamlessly slot into existing Microsoft software, such as Excel. This means there’s less risk of disrupting crucial functions like investments or data management during the rollout phase.
Microsoft M365 Copilot spans across the suite of Office 365 products, making it even easier for users to access new tools in Excel for better data management. Manually crunched unstructured data can be processed faster by Copilot, whilst also flagging anomalies that could indicate fraudulent behaviour.
- Unlocking accessibility and efficiency
Much of working life is taken over by administrative tasks. It’s no surprise that 80% of finance leaders and teams find it challenging to prioritise strategic work over operational tasks, whether it be organising meetings or reading and replying to long email threads.
Copilot is changing the game for businesses, streamlining workflows and boosting productivity. Copilot for Microsoft 365 allows workers to strategically prioritise tasks and spend more time analysing trends to gain a deeper understanding of the financial market.
Just one example of this is Copilot’s power to summarise key discussion points raised in meetings, so attendees can focus on the meeting and activities rather than taking notes. After Teams meetings, takeaways and actions are taken care of too. The stats speak for themselves, with the top 5% of teams using Copilot to summarise meetings finding that within one month they’d saved eight hours – a full working day that they can now dedicate to more strategic tasks such as enhanced data analysis.
- Fuelling automation
Like many operational tasks, financial processes such as data entry and transaction monitoring can be repetitive and time-consuming. And the highly regulated and business-critical nature of a lot of these tasks means that they can’t be rushed. So, there’s less time for innovation and digging deep into the financial landscape.
Copilot steps in to automate parts of these tasks and reduce the risks of errors, such as logging data and entering details in business systems. This frees up time for these businesses to invest in other key areas, increasing productivity and helping to boost customer-focused efforts.
With the ability to improve productivity and reduce energy spent on repetitive tasks, it’s a no-brainer that finance businesses should be adopting Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Taking the next steps
Whilst the future of AI powered business is exciting, it does require thorough preparation and the right level of investment.
Preparing the right employees and resources for AI now can improve performance and customer retention positively in the long run, ensuring that businesses can make the most of the AI tools they choose to adopt.
So, how can the financial sector get ready for AI adoption?
- Partner with experts
Starting your digital transformation journey might feel overwhelming, so why not bring in some expert help? Tech partners can accelerate the process and ensure you’re getting the most out of AI, providing expertise and resources on tap for an effective and safe implementation.
However, it’s key when choosing a partner that they provide some sort of co-managed service, and act as an extension of the business to enable the adoption. By giving the tech teams access to learn from the AI experts, they can avoid downtime and access all the latest improvements whilst gaining the knowledge to run the systems themselves.
- Understanding responsible AI
Unlocking the true value of AI comes from responsible usage. By training your employees to work safely with Copilot and understanding its limitations, you can prevent unnecessary risks and ensure the protection of sensitive data.
This is especially critical within the financial sector, where a large amount of sensitive financial data is managed each day. But once this upskilling to responsible AI has been implemented, the possibilities for improving business performance are endless.
Copilot’s capabilities are continuously evolving and growing, so it’s essential that businesses are preparing in a manner that gives them flexibility to keep up.
What’s next for Copilot in the financial sector?
The opportunities with Copilot are endless. Once enabled within a bank or financial business, apps like Copilot can work in the background on a wide range of tasks. From automating complex processes like fraud detection and regulatory compliance to enabling proactive decision-making, Copilot is the way forward for boosting performance in the financial sector.
Although it can enable acceleration, easier processing, automation, and efficiency, Copilot is still at the beginning of its journey. But as the business role of AI keeps evolving, businesses will see ‘invisible AI’ seamlessly integrating into the financial sector’s set practices. Memories of time-consuming and repetitive tasks will be forgotten as financial businesses cement AI in their processes.
Copilot is just one AI app that is leading the charge. The financial sector is set for a future where AI not only supports innovation but drives it, transforming the way businesses operate and thrive.
