If you’ve used ChatGPTGenerative Pre-trained Transformer is an AI model by OpenAI that generates human-like text. More, Bing, or Google Bard – or any of the multitude of AIArtificial Intelligence is a field of computer science dedicated to creating systems that mimic human intelligence. More tools that have flooded the web this past year – you’ve no doubt appreciated how much time and effort can be saved by using them smartly.
If you haven’t, now really is the right time to get started!
Imagine having this kind of functionality at your fingertips when using D365 F&O. Perhaps you’ve forgotten how to complete a process, or maybe you’re looking to do something new. Imagine asking simple question and getting a straightforward answer based on your companies’ data.
Copilot has landed
The extensive functionality of D365 F&O necessitates user training and experience – that’s to be expected with with any comprehensive ERPEnterprise Resource Planning software is used by businesses to manage day-to-day activities. More or line of business system. However, it’s not always practical to chase a super-user around the office, submit a helpdesk ticket to your friendly Microsoft support partner, or trawl Internet forums looking for the answer.
Instead, Microsoft CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More provides in-product AI-based help streamlines access to information.
Set up
You’ll need environment administrator privileges to do this, so this step isn’t for your average user.
Once your sandbox environment has platform update 10.0.38 or later deployed, the next steps are to (1) get the Dataverse link setup for D365 F&O and (2) install the F&O CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More solution in LCSMicrosoft Dynamics Lifecycle Services (LCS) is a portal that simplifies and standardises the implementation and maintenance processes for D365. More. If you don’t, you’ll get prompted to do so in the Feature management workspace.
What is it like?
Technically, CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More in D365 F&O is in public preview, so in other words, beta testing phase, meaning it’s early days. To that end, I wasn’t expecting too much from it – and besides, I am always mindful of the risk of AIArtificial Intelligence is a field of computer science dedicated to creating systems that mimic human intelligence. More confabulation, hallucination, or bias. This always has to be expected when using LLMsA Large Language Model is a sophisticated mathematical representation of language, based on extensive data, enabling computers to generate human-like text. More.
I tried throwing some basic questions and the initial responses were acceptable:
- I asked, “Where do you find purchase orders?”
- CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More suggested the Purchase orders page, which whilst not incorrect, I thought it might’ve been better to say ‘All purchase orders’. It would’ve been even nicer to have been provided with a contextualised link, i.e. https://[ENVIRONMENT_URL]/?mi=PurchTableListPage
- I asked, “Can I filter out Invoiced purchase orders?”
- CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More suggested I use the Advanced sort and filter dialogue (SysQueryRangeUtil), via the keyboard shortcut. This probably isn’t the easiest option vs a grid column filter, but it’s certainly not wrong. Step 3 didn’t exactly help a user to identify the correct field (i.e. Purchase order status) or criteria, so that could have been much better.
I decided to try a few HR questions – this time it didn’t do so well:
- I asked, “Where can I find a list of colleagues in the system?” – deliberately avoiding use of the terms workers or employees – to see how it would deal with synonymous language.
- It’s safe to say CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More lost the plot here! It signposted me to the Customer definitions data entity, with a link to the Microsoft Learn article about data entities. Of course, I was hoping to be sent to Workers in the Human resources module, or at the very least, the Global address book.
- I asked, “How can I change the current position of a worker?”
- I reverted to F&O terminology here, but CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More gave me an incomplete list of steps, including taking me via Mass hire projects, which any HR user worth their salt would tell you is not necessary to change an employee’s position!
Conclusion and other considerations
It’s very easy to see the potential of CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More for D365 F&O, but it’s a bit early to rely on it in a production environment, in lieu of more traditional forms of training. That’s fine, because it’s still in public preview, with no set date for becoming GAGeneral Availability is the stage when software, or specific functionality, is considered stable and fully operational, tested and approved, and is available for public use. More yet. Nonetheless, it’s an exciting glimpse of what’s to come, adding to the list of reasons why D365 F&O trumps the competition in the ERPEnterprise Resource Planning software is used by businesses to manage day-to-day activities. More market.
One last thought. Any HR manager reading my third prompt might have experienced mild palpitations, along the lines of, “$#@%!, does AIArtificial Intelligence is a field of computer science dedicated to creating systems that mimic human intelligence. More in ERPEnterprise Resource Planning software is used by businesses to manage day-to-day activities. More mean everyone can suddenly see all of our sensitive company data?”
There should be little concern in this regard, because even as CopilotMicrosoft Copilot is an AI companion that assists with tasks like coding, writing, generating images, and answering questions. More begins to have access to more data within the system (i.e. not just acting as an interactive help guide), it will inherit the security roles and permissions of the system, in the same way as the Microsoft Dynamics Office Add-On, for example. You shouldn’t need to worry about a forklift driver in your warehouse logging in and requesting access to all of your payroll data.