Training course · Microsoft 365 Copilot · NGOs & Non-Profits

Microsoft 365 Copilot for Non-Profit Organisations

Use Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot Chat in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams productively, securely and in line with permissions.

Duration
1 day (7 hrs)
Format
Online or on-site
Language
German or English
Participants
open dates or exclusive for your team
Certificate
Certificate of attendance

Overview

This course connects Microsoft 365 Copilot with the everyday processes of NGOs & Non-Profits. Participants work on realistic scenarios and leave with prompts, workflows and checklists they can use straight away.

Microsoft 365 Copilot brings AI right into the applications where your daily work happens: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams. What sets it apart from publicly available chatbots is its grounding in your organisation's data via Microsoft Graph – Copilot can draw on the emails, meetings, chats and documents you already have access to. In this practical day you learn to use that connection deliberately: drafting content from existing files, summarising inboxes and long threads, following up on meetings and generating presentations from Word documents.

You also learn how the licensed Copilot differs from Copilot Chat, when web-grounded and when work-grounded answers make sense, and how to use both prebuilt and your own agents. A central topic is the permission model: Copilot only surfaces what you are allowed to see, so sharing settings in SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams directly determine the quality and security of results. You leave with tested prompts for every Office application and a clear understanding of responsible use within your tenant.

Charities, foundations, associations and NGOs tackle big challenges with limited resources. A large share of their capacity goes into grant applications, reports to funders, donor communication, public relations and coordinating volunteers. Generative AI can reduce exactly this burden: it helps draft project proposals and impact reports, personalises fundraising letters, creates social posts in several languages and summarises feedback from programmes. Automations ease membership administration and volunteer coordination. That leaves more time for the mission itself. At the same time, non-profits carry special responsibility for sensitive beneficiary data and for credible, authentic communication.

The course is delivered live – either online in a virtual classroom or on-site in our training rooms in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart and Kaiserslautern. We can also run it exclusively for your team.

Who is this course for?

  • Fundraising and donor relations staff
  • Project and programme managers
  • Communications and campaigns teams
  • Directors of charities, foundations and associations
  • Volunteer coordinators

Typical challenges we address

  • Scarce staff and financial resources
  • Heavy effort for grant applications and reporting to funders
  • Communication with many audiences across many channels
  • Protecting sensitive data of beneficiaries, donors and members

What you will be able to do

  • You use Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams for your recurring tasks.
  • You write prompts that draw on existing files, emails and meetings as context.
  • You distinguish between Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot Chat and choose the right mode.
  • You use prebuilt agents and create a simple agent of your own for your team.
  • Produce grant applications, reports and donor communication more efficiently and precisely with AI.
  • Use AI responsibly and with data minimisation when handling beneficiary and donor data.
  • Relieve your team through simple automations in volunteer and membership administration.

Course outline

Module 1 Copilot fundamentals and Microsoft Graph
  • Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot Chat: capabilities and licensing
  • Grounding in organisational data through Microsoft Graph
  • Switching between web and work context and referencing specific files
  • Prompt structure with goal, context, source and expectations
Module 2 Word and PowerPoint
  • Drafting from existing documents, notes and emails
  • Rewriting, shortening, adjusting tone and summarising text
  • Generating presentations from Word documents or outlines
  • Refining slides, adding speaker notes and sharpening key messages
Module 3 Excel and data analysis
  • Querying tables, spotting trends and highlighting outliers
  • Getting suggestions for formulas, calculated columns and conditional formatting
  • Creating charts and pivot analyses from natural language
  • Sanity-checking results and ensuring data quality
Module 4 Outlook, Teams and agents
  • Summarising long email threads and drafting replies
  • Summarising Teams meetings and extracting action items and open questions
  • Using Copilot Pages and Notebooks for collaborative work
  • Using prebuilt agents and creating your own with Agent Builder
Module 5 Permissions, data protection and governance
  • The permission model: Copilot only shows what you can access
  • Identifying oversharing in SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams
  • Sensitivity labels, data boundaries and GDPR considerations
  • Usage policies, team adoption and measuring impact
Module 6 Practice lab: NGOs & Non-Profits
  • Drafting grant applications
  • Impact and narrative reports
  • Donor communication
  • Campaigns and social media
  • Coordinating volunteers
  • Analysing feedback and surveys
Module 7 Data protection, quality & transfer to daily work
  • Beneficiary data can be highly sensitive, such as health, ethnic origin or religion, and does not belong in unapproved AI tools; donor and member data is subject to the GDPR. Funders may set their own rules on AI use, and AI-generated images in fundraising should be clearly labelled.
  • Ground rules for safe AI use in your team
  • Checking results: facts, sources, tests and the four-eyes principle
  • Personal action plan for the next 30 days
  • Open questions, outlook and resources for further learning

Practical scenarios from your field

Drafting grant applications

Funding criteria are turned into checklists, project logic with objectives, indicators and activities is structured, and proposal text is written to match the funder's requirements.

Impact and narrative reports

Project data, participant numbers and feedback become clear impact reports, annual reports and grant reports that present results transparently and honestly. Setbacks and lessons learned are presented constructively rather than hidden.

Donor communication

Thank-you letters, mailings and appeals are tailored to the audience and prepared in variants for segments such as first-time, regular or major donors. Personal tone and real stories stay central.

Campaigns and social media

AI helps sharpen key messages, build content calendars and write posts for different channels and languages – with a focus on authentic stories rather than generic copy.

Coordinating volunteers

Rotas, induction materials, FAQs and reminders for volunteers are prepared, and recurring coordination is simplified through forms and automations. New volunteers find their feet faster and tend to stay longer.

Analysing feedback and surveys

Open-ended feedback from participants, members or partners is grouped by theme and summarised to develop programmes in a targeted way. Results also feed into impact reports and funder conversations.

Prerequisites

Confident everyday use of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams; no prior AI knowledge is required. Experience working in a non-profit organisation; no technical background required.

Technical requirements

A laptop with access to Microsoft 365 via your work account; a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence is ideal for all exercises, while Copilot Chat covers part of the content.

Data protection & compliance

Beneficiary data can be highly sensitive, such as health, ethnic origin or religion, and does not belong in unapproved AI tools; donor and member data is subject to the GDPR. Funders may set their own rules on AI use, and AI-generated images in fundraising should be clearly labelled.

Suggested dates

All dates are suggestions – your preferred date is always possible.

  • Wed, 25 November 2026 Online Request
  • Fri, 11 December 2026 Berlin Request
  • Fri, 18 December 2026 Online Request
  • Tue, 12 January 2027 Stuttgart Request
  • Thu, 21 January 2027 Online Request
  • Tue, 2 February 2027 Hanover Request

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot Chat?

Copilot Chat is available to many work accounts without an additional licence and answers mainly from web content and uploaded files. The licensed Microsoft 365 Copilot also reaches your emails, meetings and documents through Microsoft Graph and is built directly into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams.

Can Copilot see my colleagues' confidential files?

Copilot respects existing permissions and only surfaces content you can already access yourself. Problems arise when files are shared too broadly – with the entire organisation, for instance. In the course you learn how to spot such oversharing and how to fix it properly together with your IT team.

Do I need prompting experience for this course?

No. We start with the fundamentals of good prompts and practise them directly in the Office applications. What matters is that you are comfortable using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams day to day. Everything else – from referencing files to working with agents – we build up step by step through realistic tasks.

Which AI tools suit organisations on a tight budget?

Many vendors offer discounted plans for non-profits, and even the basic versions of common AI assistants deliver a lot of value. What matters is that data protection and contract terms fit your data. The course is tool-neutral and helps you choose a suitable, affordable setup.

Is it credible to write fundraising letters with AI?

Yes, as long as the content stays authentic. AI helps you structure and vary text, but the stories, figures and images must be real and come from your work. Invented case studies or unlabelled AI images can damage trust for a long time.

How much does “Microsoft 365 Copilot for Non-Profit Organisations” cost?

The course costs a flat €949 plus VAT per participant – whether online or on-site. This includes 1 training day(s) with a live trainer, course materials, a lab environment and a certificate of attendance.

Can I suggest my own date?

Yes. Our suggested dates are just a guide. In the request form you can always describe your preferred date or period in free text – we check availability and confirm within one working day.

Is the course online or on-site?

Both are possible: live online in a virtual classroom or on-site in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart or Kaiserslautern. We can also run the course exclusively for your team.

More courses for Non-Profit Organisations

More Microsoft 365 Copilot courses

All 45 Microsoft 365 Copilot courses

Microsoft 365 Copilot · MunichMicrosoft 365 Copilot · SalzburgMicrosoft 365 Copilot · BerlinMicrosoft 365 Copilot · AugsburgMicrosoft 365 Copilot · HanoverMicrosoft 365 Copilot · BremenMicrosoft 365 Copilot · StuttgartMicrosoft 365 Copilot · KaiserslauternMicrosoft 365 Copilot · Online