The fastest way to see the point of artificial intelligence is to watch it do a job you recognise. Below are real, everyday use cases from the library we build for clients, each with a ready-made prompt for Microsoft Copilot. Try them on your own work and judge the results for yourself. They are the same prompts we lean on ourselves; how EPX IT uses AI shows what they add up to.
Every prompt here is written for Microsoft Copilot, which works inside your own Microsoft environment, on files you already have permission to see. Most need the full Microsoft 365 Copilot licence, the paid add-on that works inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel and can search your own files, mail and meetings; the Copilot Chat included with Microsoft 365 covers web research and any file you give it directly. That is a very different thing from pasting company information into a free public tool. Before AI spreads across your business, you want the rules in place: what may go into which tool, permissions corrected so AI only reaches what it should, and your people briefed. That groundwork is AI Foundations, and it is why our clients can use prompts like these with confidence rather than crossed fingers. Never paste passwords, keys or other credentials into any AI tool.
You do not need to learn a new language, you need to be specific. In Google's UK research, only 37% of AI users had ever asked an AI to help them improve a prompt, which is a lot of value left on the table. The ready-made prompts below all follow the same shape, so they double as worked examples.
Say what you want back: a summary, a draft, a table.
Give the background: who it is for, the tone, why you need it.
Point at the material to use: this document, this thread, the web.
Say the format and length: five bullets, a short email, one page.
Each prompt carries a traffic-light flag, the same tiers our clients' AI policies use. Green means fine with everyday business data in Copilot once your basics are in place. Amber means it touches personal or sensitive data, so check your permissions and your AI policy first; AI Foundations is what puts those in place.
Copilot Chat Green
Ask a question in plain English and let Copilot find the answer across everything you have access to, then point you at the source files.
The promptFind everything we hold on [topic or project name]. Search my files, emails, chats and meetings, give me a short brief of what you find, and list the source documents with links so I can open them.
Copilot Chat Amber
Turn a policy library or a SharePoint site into a question-and-answer assistant, for example an HR policy chatbot the whole team can use.
The promptActing as an HR policy assistant, answer using only the documents in [the HR SharePoint site or folder]. Question: [for example, how much paid compassionate leave am I entitled to?]. Quote the exact policy wording, cite the document and section, and if the policy does not cover it, say so rather than guessing.
Copilot Chat (web search on) Green
Get a quick, sourced briefing on a competitor from public information on the web.
The promptResearch [competitor name] and give me a concise briefing: what they sell, their positioning and pricing where it is public, any recent news or announcements, and how they compare with us on [dimension, for example price, service, coverage]. Use the web and cite your sources.
In the Teams meeting (Copilot panel) Green
Get a clean recap of a meeting you could send round afterwards, without taking notes during it.
The promptSummarise this meeting: the key points discussed, the decisions made, and the agreed next steps. Keep it to a short recap I could send round to attendees afterwards.
In the Teams meeting (Copilot panel) Green
Slip into a meeting in progress and get up to speed in seconds.
The promptI joined late. Summarise what I have missed so far and flag anything that needs my input.
In the Teams meeting (Copilot panel) Green
Turn the recap straight into an email to the attendees, ready to review and send.
The promptDraft a follow-up email to the attendees with the summary, the decisions and the action items from this meeting. Keep the tone friendly and professional.
In Outlook (Summary by Copilot) Green
Condense a sprawling thread into the points that matter, and check whether a specific thing has come up.
The promptSummarise this email thread: the key points, any decisions, and what is still outstanding. Then tell me whether anyone has mentioned [topic] and, if so, what they said.
In Outlook (Draft with Copilot) Green
Draft a new email from a few bullet points, or rewrite an existing draft to sound warmer, shorter or more formal.
The promptDraft a professional email to [recipient] about [subject]. Points to cover: [bullet points]. Keep the tone [warm and concise / formal / friendly]. Then give me a shorter alternative version.
In Word (Copilot) Green
Get the gist of a long document, or a one-page summary aimed at a busy reader, in seconds.
The promptWrite a one-page executive summary of this document: its purpose, the key findings, and the recommendations, in plain English for a busy reader who will not read the full text.
In PowerPoint (Copilot) Green
Hand Copilot a document and get a first-draft slide deck back, structured and ready to refine.
The promptCreate a presentation from [this document or the file named X]. Use one slide per main section, keep the bullet points short, and add a title slide and a closing summary slide.
In Excel (Copilot) Green
Describe the result you want in plain English and let Copilot build the formula or column for you.
The promptAdd a column that shows [the outcome you want, for example the profit margin as a percentage for each row], and explain in one line how you worked it out.
In Excel (Copilot) Green
Let Copilot read the numbers and tell you what stands out, including outliers worth a look.
The promptLook at this data and tell me the main trends, any outliers, and anything that looks unusual or worth investigating. Suggest one chart that would show the most important trend.
Copilot Chat Green
Ask Copilot to assemble a project update from the latest emails, chats, meetings and documents in one go.
The promptDraft a project status update for [project name] from the latest emails, chats, meetings and documents. Cover progress since [date], any risks or blockers, and the next steps. Cite the sources you used.
Copilot Studio / Agents in Copilot Chat Amber
Package a grounded chatbot once (an HR policy bot, an IT help-desk bot, an onboarding guide) and share it so the whole team gets the same answers.
The promptCreate an agent that answers questions using only [the SharePoint site or documents]. It should act as [role, for example an HR policy assistant], always cite the source document and section, and say when something is not covered. Suggest a name, a short description, and three example questions to show users.
These fourteen are the free sample. Behind them sits the full library we maintain for clients: more use cases, tied to your data rules so everyone knows what may go into which tool, kept current as the tools change, and delivered in your own governance portal alongside your policy. And the library is only the shelf. The real value is in finding the use cases specific to your business, which is what the free AI Discovery Call is for: we look at how your week is actually spent and show you where AI takes the load. Further down the line, when a use case earns it, we can build it into an agent or an automation tailored to your business, governed like everything else we do.
Book a free AI Discovery Call. We will run live demonstrations on your own world, show you the use cases that fit your business, and map the groundwork that makes them safe. There is no obligation to go further.
Book a meeting with our AI leadDave Coleman, EPX IT's AI leadContact us
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