The Business Owner's IT Podcast Ep. 89 - Is Microsoft Copilot Cowork Worth It?

<p>Microsoft Copilot Cowork is here, but is this finally the AI assistant that actually does the work for you?In Episode 89 of The Business Owner’s IT Podcast, Anthony Gerasch and Ryan Carter take a first look at Microsoft Copilot Cowork and what it could mean for business owners and Tech Champions using Microsoft 365.Unlike traditional AI tools that simply respond to prompts, Copilot Cowork is designed around outcomes. You tell it what you need accomplished, and it can help take action across your emails, calendar, meetings, messages, documents, and other Microsoft 365 tools.Ryan shares his hands-on experience using Cowork to catch up on his inbox, identify emails that needed immediate attention, prepare draft responses, and schedule meetings based on availability in his calendar.Tony and Ryan also discuss how Cowork compares with building custom agents in Copilot Studio, why its consumption-based pricing needs to be monitored, and why businesses should establish guardrails before rolling AI tools out across their organization.In this episode:• What Microsoft Copilot Cowork is.• How Cowork differs from traditional Copilot.• Using AI to organize and prioritize your inbox.• Drafting email responses with Cowork.• Scheduling meetings automatically.• Preparing for meetings using past communications.• Cowork vs. building agents in Copilot Studio.• Consumption-based pricing and AI costs.• Why businesses need spending guardrails.• How Cowork works with Microsoft 365 data.• Security considerations for business users.• Why Cowork could save business owners valuable time.Chapters:0:00 – The Business Owner’s IT Podcast0:17 – What Is Microsoft Copilot Cowork?0:58 – Using Cowork to Manage Your Inbox1:48 – Drafting Emails &amp; Scheduling Meetings2:15 – Cowork vs. Building Your Own AI Agents2:55 – AI-Powered Meeting Preparation3:11 – Turning Business Goals Into Tasks3:36 – The Challenges of Copilot Studio4:13 – Is Building AI Agents Worth the Time?4:41 – Copilot Cowork Pricing &amp; Consumption5:02 – Setting AI Spending Guardrails5:29 – Is Cowork Right for Your Business?6:12 – An AI Assistant That Actually Does the Work6:36 – How Cowork Uses Microsoft 365 Data6:49 – Is Microsoft Copilot Cowork Safe?7:25 – How Businesses Should Start Using Cowork8:08 – Final Thoughts on Copilot Cowork8:31 – ClosingFor Ryan, this gets closer to what he wanted from Copilot from the beginning: an assistant that doesn’t just tell you what to do, but actually helps do the work.If you’re a bus