5 Ways Your Organization Is Unprepared for M365 Copilot

Top of Mind for Every Business Leader

The computer revolutionized the world, but generative AI is quickly ushering in a new era for the working world. This technological leap (unlike anything we've seen before) is poised to reshape businesses at an unprecedented pace.

The rate at which AI advances will be faster than we've ever experienced before as algorithms learn and improve automatically and independently.

McKinsey recently analyzed generative AI's impact on 63 defined business use cases such as AI's ability to:

• support interactions with customers
• generate creative content for marketing and sales
• and draft computer code based on natural-language prompts.

McKinsey's 2025 workplace AI report found that almost all companies invest in AI, but just 1% believe they are at maturity. The economic potential remains massive, yet the gap between investment and impact keeps growing.

With so much ground swell around generative AI right now, executive teams and IT teams feel the urgency to prepare. According to a 2026 enterprise AI adoption survey by Writer's Room, 79% of organizations face challenges in adopting AI, with only 29% seeing significant ROI from generative AI.

Microsoft has invested billions into its generative AI solution, Copilot, which it plans to integrate throughout the Microsoft ecosystem from security products to Outlook. And while they are rapidly preparing to roll out Copilot into their product ecosystem, most companies are simply not prepared, whether they know it or not.

The pattern is consistent: organizations deploy AI tools and grant access, but behavior doesn't change without a structured approach. Access alone does not equal adoption.

Here are five reasons your organization is unprepared for Microsoft Copilot:

1. Users already have access to Copilot but don't know it

Your users can start leveraging Copilot today even with your current Microsoft licensing. Included in common Microsoft licensing today is Copilot in Edge, Copilot.Microsoft.com, Copilot in Bing, and Copilot in Windows. These are versions of Copilot your users already have access to but may not know about or may not know how to use effectively.

So, start by making end users aware of current Copilot offerings and inviting them to start using them. Remember, if your employees are going to test out generative AI tools at work, you want them using a secure tool, like Copilot, which protects personal and company data.

This is the Awareness stage of AI adoption: users can't adopt what they don't know exists. In BrainStorm's ADOPT™ framework, awareness is the deliberate first stage of turning tool access into real adoption. You have to make AI visible before you can make it useful.

2. You haven't started educating users on Copilot

Most organizations are waiting on licensing for Microsoft 365 Copilot (Copilot in apps like Teams, Outlook, and OneDrive) before driving awareness in their organization. While you are waiting on licensing (or even just considering it), it's important to start training users on how to use their current tools.

Why? Users will undergo a paradigm shift when starting to use Copilot at work. Just like we all had to learn how to speak Excel, and how to find the right information with Google, we have to learn how to prompt AI well.

Copilot only works well when it has good inputs to use. It's important to start with teaching users how to write effective prompts in the version of Copilot they have access to today. Otherwise, Copilot will sit on the sidelines as users continue on with their day. At $30/license, that's too expensive to be underutilized by users. Not to mention the lost opportunity for productivity gains.

How should organizations train employees on AI tools?

1. Start with the tools users already have. Don't wait for premium licenses. Copilot in Edge, Bing, and Windows are available now, and they build the muscle memory users need for M365 Copilot.
2. Teach prompting skills through adaptive learning flows. Drip-style campaigns that deliver short, contextual lessons over time build real competence. One-time training sessions don't.
3. Deliver learning in the flow of work. Meet users where they are: email, Teams, and portal. Training that requires users to seek it out reaches only the already-motivated.
4. Measure behavior change, not course completions. Track whether users are actually prompting AI in their daily work, not just whether they clicked through a module.

This is the Orientation stage of ADOPT™: creating conditions for users to practice new behaviors. BrainStorm's AI training content packs (covering Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Chat, ChatGPT, and Claude AI) and adaptive learning flows teach prompting skills through drip-style campaigns that build competence over weeks, not hours.

3. You haven't started driving adoption of new Teams, Outlook, OneDrive, Whiteboard, Loop

Perhaps your leadership team is hearing about Copilot and asking you when the organization can license it. If you haven't yet moved users to new Teams, new Outlook, Whiteboard, or Loop, you won't be able to get Copilot licensing any time soon.

Why? To get the most out of Copilot licensing in apps, your organization first must do these things:

• Ensure your users have switched to the latest version of Teams. Microsoft 365 Copilot works with the new Teams app, so you will want to ensure your users have updated their Teams environment.
• Your users need to have a OneDrive account and use it. Features with M365 Copilot require minimum usage levels of OneDrive.
• Another requirement for M365 Copilot is enabling Microsoft Loop. Copilot works with Loop and unless you have Loop enabled for the organization, you will not be able to fully take advantage of Copilot.
• Lastly, you will need to enable Microsoft Whiteboard for your organization. M365 Copilot also works with Microsoft Whiteboard, so you will want to make your users aware of Whiteboard and how to use it.

4. You're not using M365 in an optimal way

You simply won't get value from Copilot without optimizing your current M365 environment. M365 Copilot will only work well for you if you have good inputs for it to pull from. To fully take advantage of Copilot in your key apps and use cases, your organization must have good information management hygiene. You will want to clean up files in SharePoint and OneDrive to get your M365 ecosystem ready for Copilot. This is no small feat as it doesn't just require your IT team to re-structure data, but to get your users to change how they manage files and information.

Here are specific data readiness actions to prioritize before your Copilot rollout:

• Clean up redundant, outdated, and trivial (ROT) content. Old drafts, duplicate files, and abandoned project folders become noise that Copilot will surface in its responses.
• Review and tighten file sharing permissions. Copilot respects existing permissions, so oversharing becomes visible. Files that were shared too broadly will now appear in Copilot answers for anyone with access.
• Set up sensitivity labels for confidential data. Label financial reports, HR documents, and strategic plans so Copilot handles them appropriately.
• Archive inactive sites and projects. Move completed projects and retired team sites out of active SharePoint so Copilot pulls from current, relevant information.

Ensure your users are maximizing the tools they already have. Check your usage data and see what adoption looks like among the required apps for Copilot.

This is the Participation stage of ADOPT™: users developing competence with proper data practices. BrainStorm's adoption analytics connect learning activity to tool usage, so you can see which teams are actually changing how they manage files, not just completing training.

5. You haven't started fleshing out use cases for M365 Copilot

M365 Copilot could very well become an underutilized part of your tool stack without proper use cases defined for users. To plan for a M365 Copilot roll out, you will need to work with teams to identify initial employee use cases for Copilot in their day-to-day.

You should also establish metrics for how M365 Copilot will bring value to the organization and review them regularly. In addition to usage, consider measuring user sentiment, confidence and competence with M365 Copilot over time to help leadership see its value.

How do you measure AI adoption ROI?

1. Track learning engagement alongside actual tool usage. Course completions alone tell you nothing. Pair training data with Copilot usage metrics to see if learning translates to behavior.
2. Measure behavior change over time. A one-week spike after training doesn't count. Look for sustained usage patterns across 30, 60, and 90 days.
3. Use sentiment surveys at regular intervals. Short, in-line polls capture confidence and satisfaction trends that usage data alone misses.
4. Connect adoption data to business outcomes. Copilot will initially provide clearer ROI on soft objectives like time savings and productivity. Having data that supports your Copilot objectives is key to your success.

Sustained adoption requires more than a launch campaign. You need ongoing communications when usage drops, regular reporting to leadership, and adaptive programs that respond to how users are actually working. BrainStorm's multi-channel campaign Flows reach users via email, Teams, and portal without going through HR or Comms. Behavior-driven personalization adapts based on role and observed usage, so a power user and a reluctant adopter get different messages. Adoption analytics make behavior change visible to leadership, connecting learning activity to tool usage and business outcomes.

Frequently communicating to your end users about Copilot has to be a part of your plan. Copilot is no Outlook or Teams application that users have to use to do their job. Without planning to frequently communicate about Copilot use cases, Copilot successes, and others, the tool can be easily forgotten about.

BrainStorm is here to help with use case resources and communications geared to end users about Copilot. Our team of software adoption experts have the tools you need to successfully roll out M365 Copilot to your organization.

This section spans the Participation stage (building competence through defined use cases and measurement) and the Transformation stage (making behaviors stick as part of daily work through sustained communications and adaptive programs) of the ADOPT™ framework.

Want to learn more about getting started with BrainStorm? Talk to our team.

What Is an AI Readiness Framework?

An AI readiness framework is a structured approach to preparing your organization for AI adoption, covering both the technical prerequisites and the human behavior change required to get value from AI tools.

BrainStorm's ADOPT™ framework is built around five deliberate stages that move users from first contact with AI to durable, daily behavior:

1. Awareness — Users understand that AI tools exist and why the organization is investing in them.
2. Desire — Users develop motivation to explore AI, driven by relevant use cases and clear personal value, not mandates.
3. Orientation — Users get the conditions to practice: adaptive learning flows, contextual training, and access to tools in their workflow.
4. Participation — Users build competence through repeated use, data readiness, and measurable skill development.
5. Transformation — New behaviors stick as part of daily work through sustained communications, ongoing measurement, and adaptive reinforcement.

What Is Copilot Readiness?

Copilot readiness means more than having the right licenses and technical prerequisites in place. It means your users know Copilot exists, understand how to prompt it, have clean data for it to work with, and have defined use cases for their daily work. Technical readiness gets Copilot deployed. Behavior readiness gets it adopted.

What Must You Do Before Using Copilot?

Before your organization can get value from M365 Copilot, you should:

• Make users aware of Copilot tools they already have access to
• Start training users on prompting skills before premium licenses arrive
• Move users to new Teams, Outlook, OneDrive, Whiteboard, and Loop
• Clean up your M365 data environment (permissions, ROT content, sensitivity labels)
• Define use cases, establish success metrics, and plan ongoing communications

How Do You Drive AI Behavior Change in the Workplace?

Behavior change is not a single training event. It is a staged process that requires adaptive learning delivered in the flow of work, ongoing communications that reinforce new habits, and measurement that tracks actual usage, not just completions. One-time rollout announcements and course catalogs don't change how people work day to day.

BrainStorm's ADOPT™ framework guides organizations through each stage, turning Copilot access into lasting adoption. The platform delivers adaptive learning flows, multi-channel communications, and adoption analytics that make behavior change visible to leadership.