As a leader of a small or medium-sized business (SMB), you’ve likely heard the buzz around generative AI and its potential to revolutionize companies of all sizes. Microsoft commissioned Forrester Consulting to dig deeper and quantify the return on investment (ROI) of Microsoft 365 Copilot for SMBs. The findings are compelling.
According to Forrester’s “New Technology: Projected Total Economic Impact™ Of Microsoft 365 Copilot for SMB,” organizations can potentially experience a very impressive ROI over a three-year period, ranging from 132% to 353%. The study also details how businesses are already witnessing AI’s impact in several key areas:
- Faster time to market
- Increased productivity
- Improved employee satisfaction
Investing in Copilot: Substantial Returns for SMBs
The Forrester research underscores that AI, and specifically Copilot, is not just a productivity tool but rather a strategic investment, driving long-term growth for SMBs. Key findings include:
- 6% average increase in net revenue
- 20% average reduction in operating costs
- 25% acceleration in new-hire onboarding
“Upskilling on AI now is absolutely critical to being prepared for its capabilities in a few years. In five years, running a business without Copilot would be like trying to run a company today using typewriters instead of computers.”
—Forrester Study: Head Vice President of Technology Services, IT Services and Business Consulting
Turning Innovation into Action with Faster Time to Market
For businesses, getting new products to market quickly and satisfying customer needs is critical. Copilot can accelerate revenue growth and create new opportunities. Specifically, the Forrester study revealed that:
- 24% of the businesses saw a 16% to 20% reduction in the time it takes to bring new products to market.
- 27% of businesses experienced a 11% to 15% improvement in time to market.
These enhancements to speed can boost your agility and sharpen your competitive edge. Optimize your business processes with Copilot by mapping workflows and asking for suggestions to eliminate inefficiencies, and share recommendations with your team.
“With Copilot, we have faster turnarounds…with the ability to turn things around more quickly, clients can come to us with more work. It can be 15% more business.”
—Forrester Study: Head Vice President of Technology Services, Managed Technology Solutions
Boosting Productivity across the Business
SMB employees frequently juggle multiple roles, working across several departments. Copilot addresses this by handling repetitive tasks, allowing teams to focus on more strategic activities. Key data points include:
- 51% of businesses using Copilot reported a 1% to 10% reduction in supply chain costs.
- 59% saw operating costs decrease by 1% to 20%.
This frees up resources for growth-focused initiatives without overburdening your team.
“In terms of getting the information to the various departments and having my legal assistants then redo it, so they can enter that data and answer questions from other departments more easily. My guess is on contract review we’ll save at least 50% of time in the coming years.”
—Forrester study: General Counsel, Chief Diversity Officer at the Staffing, IT, and Business Solutions Firm
Copilot lets your team swiftly locate crucial details from client contracts or vendor agreements and prioritizes emails, managing communications more efficiently. It can also extract, analyze, and visualize data from spreadsheets and documents.
Enhancing Employee Satisfaction and Retention
The study also highlights Copilot’s positive impact on employee satisfaction. By freeing employees to collaborate more effectively and take on more fulfilling tasks, SMBs have seen or expect an average 18% increase in employee satisfaction and an 11% to 20% decrease in employee churn.
“People have a lot of anxiety [about going] on vacation because of what they’re going to miss. Well, the ability to ramp up fast with summarization on a lot of those key meetings doesn’t just save the person the time, but it also is going to save the other leaders in the organization the time to have to ramp them up.”
—Forrester study: President, Staffing, IT, and Business Solutions
Copilot supports creating training materials and presentations to help new team members get up to speed quickly. Meeting and email summaries also allow your employees to stay informed, even when they miss meetings. This can relieve stress and promote smoother transitions between projects, fostering a more inclusive and productive work environment.
The Time to Invest in AI is Now!
With potential benefits like increased revenue, faster time to market, and a solid ROI, Microsoft 365 Copilot is a valuable investment for SMBs seeking to thrive in a competitive market. To learn more about the Forrester findings and understand how to integrate Copilot into your business, join a webinar on October 31, 2024, 9 AM PST – 10 AM PST. To use Copilot, purchase it as an add-on to your Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Standard, or Microsoft 365 Business Premium subscriptions.
Find out more about Microsoft 365 Copilot or reach out to a Microsoft Cloud Solution Partner to learn more. Also, explore the new Copilot Success Kit for Small and Medium-Sized Business for resources covering licensing, technical requirements, and AI capabilities.
Sources: “New Technology: The Projected Total Economic Impact™: Of Microsoft 365 Copilot for SMB,” a commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Microsoft. Results are based on Microsoft 365 Copilot customer interviews and surveys of over 200 companies with up to 300 employees across various industries, from retail to financial services. Forrester modeled a range of projected low-, medium-, and high-impact outcomes based on evaluated risk. This financial analysis projects that the composite organization accrues the following three-year net present value (NPV) for each scenario by enabling Microsoft 365 Copilot: Projected high impact of a $955,000 NPV and projected ROI of 353%. Projected medium impact of a $658,000 NPV and projected ROI of 243%. Projected low impact of a $358,000 NPV and projected ROI of 132%.
