Training course · Microsoft 365 Copilot · Public Sector

Microsoft 365 Copilot for the Public Sector

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 Public Sector. 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.

Public authorities and local councils face a double squeeze: the digitalisation of public services is accelerating while skilled staff are scarce and caseloads keep rising. Generative AI can noticeably relieve caseworkers – drafting decisions and replies to citizens, summarising submissions in public consultations, turning official language into plain language and preparing committee and council papers. AI assistants also help staff navigate legislation and administrative guidelines more quickly. At the same time, the public sector faces particularly high standards for lawfulness, transparency, data protection and IT security. Introducing AI means building approval rules, record-keeping duties and final human decision-making into the process from day one.

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?

  • Caseworkers in federal, regional and local government
  • Managers of departments and public agencies
  • Digital transformation and e-government leads
  • Staff in citizen service centres and contact centres
  • Committee and council secretariat staff

Typical challenges we address

  • Rising caseloads combined with staff shortages
  • Complex legislation and administrative rules that change frequently
  • Citizen communication that must be legally sound yet easy to understand
  • Media breaks between specialist systems, electronic files and paper records

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.
  • Use AI lawfully for drafting, citizen communication and summaries.
  • Understand the limits of AI in discretionary decisions and design review and approval steps.
  • Identify processes in your department that are suitable for AI support and automation.

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: Public Sector
  • Drafting decisions and letters
  • Answering citizen enquiries
  • Plain language and translation
  • Analysing public consultations
  • Committee papers and minutes
  • Preparing procurement documents
Module 7 Data protection, quality & transfer to daily work
  • Administrative and citizen data is subject to the GDPR, national data protection law and, where applicable, social security or tax secrecy; AI may only be used in approved, secure environments and not for automated individual decisions without a legal basis. The EU AI Act, e-government legislation, procurement law and staff council participation must also be observed.
  • 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 decisions and letters

Using standard clauses, the facts of the case and the relevant legal provision, AI drafts hearing letters, statements of reasons or requests for documents, which caseworkers review, adapt and sign off under their own responsibility.

Answering citizen enquiries

An AI assistant drafts replies to frequent enquiries by email or web form, points to the responsible office and online services and keeps a friendly, accessible tone.

Plain language and translation

Leaflets, form guidance and web content are rewritten in plain or easy-read language and translated into common languages, improving accessibility of public services. Technical terms are explained as well.

Analysing public consultations

Large numbers of submissions from citizens and statutory consultees are grouped by topic, summarised and transferred into a response table that serves as the basis for professional assessment.

Committee papers and minutes

AI helps structure decision papers, condenses expert reports into status updates and turns notes into structured minutes for committees and council meetings. Proposed resolutions are kept clearly separate from the facts.

Preparing procurement documents

Specifications, selection criteria and award matrices are pre-structured from requirement descriptions and checked for completeness; legal responsibility under procurement law remains with the contracting authority.

Prerequisites

Confident everyday use of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams; no prior AI knowledge is required. Experience with administrative procedures and casework; 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

Administrative and citizen data is subject to the GDPR, national data protection law and, where applicable, social security or tax secrecy; AI may only be used in approved, secure environments and not for automated individual decisions without a legal basis. The EU AI Act, e-government legislation, procurement law and staff council participation must also be observed.

Suggested dates

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

  • Wed, 25 November 2026 Online Request
  • Tue, 8 December 2026 Stuttgart Request
  • Fri, 15 January 2027 Online Request
  • Wed, 27 January 2027 Berlin Request
  • Tue, 9 February 2027 Online Request
  • Fri, 26 February 2027 Munich 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.

May a public authority produce decisions with AI?

AI may prepare drafts, but the decision and signature remain with the responsible officer. Fully automated administrative acts are only permitted with an explicit legal basis and no discretion involved. The course shows how to review AI drafts in a documented way to ensure lawfulness and traceability.

Which AI tools are suitable for public administration?

Suitable tools are those your organisation has cleared for data protection and security, such as AI assistants provided centrally by government IT or enterprise editions with EU data processing. The course is tool-neutral and teaches working methods that transfer to whichever tools are approved in your authority.

How much does “Microsoft 365 Copilot for the Public Sector” 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.

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