Learn how Copilot agents enhance collaboration within your team on Microsoft Teams

Microsoft brings the benefits of Copilot to all the apps you use in Teams. Some of the apps available are designed to help you be more productive. Some of them are now Copilot-enabled. What does this mean? They work with Microsoft 365 Copilot chat. You can easily call these apps from Copilot chat and use them seamlessly across M365 products to help you be more productive. Integrating some of these apps with Copilot makes it very intuitive to perform searches, queries, and immediate assistance with next steps. These capabilities will be available to all users with Copilot licenses starting in mid-September. More details are shared below, for example, in the subsequent sections.

Benefits of Using Copilot Agents

Copilot agents can significantly improve your overall Teams experience. They help automate routine tasks, improve efficiency, and create a more collaborative environment. Best practices include regular updates, leveraging analytics for insights, and encouraging user feedback to improve functionality. To further enhance your Teams experience, we’ve curated innovative Copilot agents that address a variety of business needs. These agents are redesigned to streamline processes, promote collaboration, and provide valuable insights, helping your organization run more smoothly and efficiently. Below, we’ll introduce four innovative Copilot agents that can help you increase your team’s productivity and engagement.

Identifying Copilot Agents in the Teams Store

To maximize the power of Teams, it is essential to integrate the right Copilot agent to fit your business needs. The Teams Store is your gateway to accessing these powerful tools. Here’s how to identify and select the most beneficial Copilot agent.

Explore the Team Store:

Open the Teams application and click on the “Apps” icon in the left sidebar to go to the App Store. This will take you to the main interface where you can explore a wide range of applications, including the Copilot agent. All Copilot agents have the Copilot logo, making them easy to find among other apps in the App Store. This logo serves as a visual indicator that the agent is using Copilot’s advanced features.

Pilot Agent Category:

From the App Store landing page, you can go directly to the Copilot Agents page from the left tray. This dedicated page provides a curated list of all available Copilot Agents. Here you can find detailed descriptions and installation instructions to help you find the right tool for your organization.

Installation and Permissions

Once you’ve found the right Copilot agent, select ‘Add’ on the description page to begin the installation. If the app is not available, you may see ‘Request’. Trigger the flow and ask your admin to enable the app. Your admin can review the permissions requested by the agent, which will explain the data they will access and the features they will integrate with within your Teams environment.

Activate and use the Copilot agent

1. Activate Copilot Agent via Plugin [refer image below]

After installation, some Copilot agents may not be automatically enabled. You may need to go to Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and enable them via the toggle. You can find them in the bottom right of the Copilot chat. Chat is at the top of any chat page in Teams. When you open the plugins page for this chat in the bottom right, as shown in the image below, you will see a list of organized plugins. To enable or disable an agent, click the toggle next to that plugin. You can get more plugins via the side panel.

2. In the right menu of Copilot Chat

Not all apps can be activated via command calls and Copilot Agent Chat. These unique types of agents can be found in the right menu of Copilot Chat. You can access the right menu of Copilot Chat to find the available agents directly from the menu. This method provides a centralized location to manage all Copilot Agents, allowing for simplified configuration and supervision.

3. Call by command

After installing and activating it, you can use it with commands. Users who prefer command line interaction can activate the Copilot agent by typing ‘@’ and the agent name in the Copilot chat. This method is especially useful for experienced users who know the specific tools they need.

4. In the counselor’s chat

Open the chat area within Teams and go to the Installed Copilot Agents tab. Simply click on the desired agent to activate it. This method provides a quick and efficient way to activate the tools you need without leaving the chat interface, allowing you to seamlessly integrate them into your daily workflow. See the image below to learn more.

5. From the command line

Some Copilot agents can be called from the command line in Copilot Chat. Once you access Copilot Chat, type ‘@’ and the agent name in the input field. Once the agent is activated, you can type a specific prompt to trigger the desired action.

4 Copliot Agents and Real Case Studies

To further illustrate the power and versatility of Copilot agents, let’s look at four key apps: Microsoft Meetup, Proximity Matrix, Viva Goals, and Mural. Each of these agents offers unique capabilities that can be enhanced through targeted prompts. Below, we’ll look at individual case studies that demonstrate how to effectively leverage these prompts.

Microsoft Meetup

outline: Microsoft Meetup is designed to simplify the process of organizing and managing meetings and ensure seamless collaboration among team members.

Case Study: Knowing Today’s Guest

Jane, a project manager, uses Microsoft Meetup to track the day’s guests. She previously used an agent to invite and schedule multiple meetings with various stakeholders. To see who all the guests are for the day, she types “@Microsoft Meetup” into the Copilot chat, which activates the agent and displays the View Prompt option. She clicks “View Prompt” to see a sample prompt. She then clicks “Guest List for Today,” which displays a list of all the guests the agent has invited, along with their names, roles, and meeting times.

procession

outline: Priority Matrix is ​​a smart tool for managing impactful tasks and improving team productivity and focus. Track individual tasks, balance workloads, and easily align team goals.

Case Study: Managing Individual and Team Work

John, a team leader, wants to better manage his personal and team work. On the Priority Matrix chat page in Teams, he activates agents, views prompts, and clicks ‘Open PM’ to see projects integrated into the workflow. He can use the 1:1 view to access Outlook emails, calendar events, OneDrive files, and Planner tasks all together.

viva goal

outline: Viva Goals is a useful tool for setting, tracking and achieving organizational goals and aligning team efforts with strategic objectives.

Case Study: A Snapshot of Your Goals

Sarah, who leads the marketing team, used Viva Goals to set ambitious quarterly goals. She wanted to track progress on her goals and how they aligned with the company vision. She went to the Viva Goals agent’s chat page and selected the option to “Show me a snapshot of my goals.” The agent showed her a dashboard with the status of her goals, completion rate, impact, and feedback from her team members.

Create

outline: Creately Teams is a collaborative diagramming tool that lets teams easily create and share diagrams, flowcharts, and mind maps.

Case Study: Checking Out Project Management Templates

David, a product manager, needs to set up a project timeline using the available templates for new feature releases. He selects ‘Show project management templates’ from the options provided. Agents can create a simple and professional timeline by providing a variety of templates, shapes, and icons. He can also invite team members to collaborate and provide feedback on the diagram to ensure everyone is aligned.

These case studies highlight how Copilot agents can be used to streamline tasks and increase productivity through targeted prompts.