10 Microsoft 365 Copilot Prompts that Save Hours Every Week

Last week, I saved three hours on a single project report. Not because I worked faster or skipped steps—because I let Copilot do the heavy lifting.

I’ve been working with Microsoft 365 for over 20 years, and Copilot is the biggest productivity shift I’ve seen since SharePoint introduced metadata. It’s not just a fancy autocomplete tool—it’s a genuine work partner that drafts emails, summarises meetings, analyzes data and creates presentations while you focus on the work that actually requires your brain.

But here’s the thing: most people are using Copilot wrong. They’re asking vague questions and getting vague answers. Or they’re not using it at all because they don’t know where to start.

You don’t need a massive rollout or a six-month training program to see results. You just need a few high-impact prompts that work across Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint, Excel and Word—and the discipline to use them consistently.

This post gives you 10 copy-ready prompts, simple workflows and quick measurement tips so you can prove results fast. These are the exact prompts I use every week to save hours of work—and the ones I teach teams to use when I’m helping them get Copilot-ready.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• • Where Copilot shines in each Microsoft 365 app (and where it doesn’t)

• • How to write prompts that get you exactly what you need

• • How to connect the apps into a smooth cross-app workflow

• • How to measure the time you’re saving (so you can prove ROI)

Use these prompts today, then refine them with your team’s language, KPIs and brand tone. The result is a repeatable system that saves time every single week.

Start now: Pick one meeting or report due this week and commit to running Copilot for the first draft. Just one. See what happens.

How to Use Copilot in Outlook to Draft Emails Fast

Inbox triage is where Copilot pays off immediately. Instead of staring at a blank email trying to find the right words, you use the “Draft with Copilot” button to turn bullet points into a polished email—or to reply with the right tone and next steps.

I use this every single day. Someone sends me a complicated question and instead of spending 15 minutes crafting the perfect response, I give Copilot context and let it draft the reply. Then I tweak it and hit send. Five minutes instead of fifteen.

Give Copilot context to sound on-brand. Paste your meeting notes or link a reference file, then ask for a concise, customer-friendly reply. The more context you give, the better the output.

Example prompt:

“Draft a reply that acknowledges the delay, offers two options, and confirms Friday delivery in a warm, professional tone.”

Short, specific prompts reduce edits. The tighter your guidance, the better your first draft. Instead of “write a reply,” try this:

“Reply to this thread in 120–150 words. Confirm we’ll ship the Q4 deck by Friday 3 p.m. PT. Ask for the final logo file.”

The more specific you are about word count, tone and deliverables, the less editing you’ll need to do.

Best Microsoft 365 Copilot Prompts for Teams: Meeting Summaries and Action Items

Run smarter meetings by shifting note-taking to Copilot. During or after the call, Copilot can summarise decisions, pull quotes and identify follow-ups with owners—so you’re not scrambling to remember who said what.

I used to spend 20 minutes after every meeting writing up notes and action items. Now I let Copilot do it in 30 seconds, and I spend my time actually following up on the action items instead of documenting them.

Ask pointed questions to extract next steps. Instead of asking for a generic summary, be specific about what you need:

“Summarise key decisions, risks and next milestones from this meeting. List action items with owners and due dates in a table.”

Turn on transcription if you want to query the meeting later. This is especially helpful for long meetings where you need to find a specific decision or quote.

A quick win: After a meeting, ask Copilot:

“What did we decide about the regional launch timeline? Who’s on point for pricing analysis?”

You’ll leave with a clear to-do list in under a minute—no more “wait, who was supposed to do that?” moments.

Make the Recap Actionable

Ask Copilot to convert the summary into a customer-facing email or a Jira worklog. If the response is long or includes a table, use “Open in Word” or “Open in Excel” from Teams to keep momentum going.

This is where the cross-app workflow really shines. You’re not copy-pasting between apps—you’re letting Copilot move the work forward for you.

Create PowerPoint from a Brief using Copilot

Turn a one-page brief into a complete slide deck in minutes. Copilot can generate topics, slides, layouts and speaker notes—then you refine, reorder and polish.

I used to spend hours building slide decks from scratch. Now I give Copilot an outline and let it create the first draft. I spend my time making it better, not starting from zero.

Feed Copilot your outline and constraints. The more specific you are, the better the output:

“Create a 10-slide client pitch using our brand voice. Prioritise benefits, add a 1-slide case study and include speaker notes for each slide. Use a clean, minimal template.”

If you already have a Word brief, use “Create presentation from file.” You’ll get a structured draft that you can tighten, reorder, and style in minutes—not hours.

Copilot for Excel: Data Analysis Examples You Can Reuse

Skip manual formulas—ask plain-English questions about your data. Copilot can highlight trends, outliers and pivots when your data is in a table. It’s like having a data analyst sitting next to you.

I’m not an Excel expert. But with Copilot, I don’t need to be. I can ask questions in plain English and get charts, pivot tables and insights in seconds.

Aim for analysis, not just formatting. Instead of asking Copilot to make things look pretty, ask it to find insights:

“Explain the top drivers of revenue variance by region vs. last quarter. Return a PivotTable and a 3-point narrative in 120 words.”

For cleanup tasks:

“Create a ‘Risk Flag’ column that labels customers with churn risk >8%.”

Example workflow: Paste a CSV of pipeline data, then ask:

“Which three segments have the highest win-rate lift month-over-month? Plot a chart and add a one-paragraph insight.”

You’ll get visuals plus a short, sharable story—perfect for executive updates or team meetings.

Speed Up Word: Draft Rewrite and Format Documents with Copilot

First-draft speed changes everything. Give Copilot a short brief and tone, and it will produce a draft you can refine in minutes instead of hours.

I use this for everything from blog posts to client proposals. Copilot gives me the structure and the first draft, then I add my voice, examples and personality.

Use targeted rewrite requests to finish faster. Instead of rewriting entire sections yourself, ask Copilot to do it:

“Rewrite this section for a CFO audience, keep under 120 words and add a 3-item executive summary.”

Or:

“Convert this list to a clean table with columns: Owner, Due Date, Status.”

When formatting stalls progress, ask Copilot to clean it up:

“Apply consistent H2/H3 headings, tighten paragraphs to 2–3 sentences and remove repetition.”

Your document becomes clearer and more skimmable for stakeholders—without you spending 30 minutes manually reformatting.

Cross-App Workflows: Time-Saving Copilot Workflows for Knowledge Workers

Keep work flowing across apps without copy-paste roulette. Copilot can take a Teams recap, draft a Word summary, and spin up a slide outline—staying grounded in the same context.

This is where Copilot becomes genuinely powerful. You’re not just using it in one app—you’re chaining prompts across apps to create a complete workflow.

Chain small wins into one smooth workflow: Here’s my Friday routine:

1. 1. After a project meeting, I ask Teams Copilot for decisions and action items

1. 1. I open the response in Word to craft a one-pager for executives

1. 1. Then I ask PowerPoint Copilot to build a 6-sllide update from that one-pager

The whole process takes 10 minutes instead of an hour – and the output is better because everything stays connected.

A 5-Minute Weekly Workflow

On Friday, I run this prompt in outlook Copilot:

“Summarise my priority emails from this week and upcoming deadlines.”

I turn that into a short team update in Word, then create a slide or two for Monday’s stand-up in PowerPoint. My team starts the week aligned – and I spend less time catching everyone up.

The 10 High-Impact Prompts: Copy, Paste and Customise

Steal these prompts and tailor the details to your team’s needs. The structure works – you just need to adjust the specifics.

Measuring Time Saved: Before/After Benchmarks and KPIs

Time you can bank is time you can redeploy. To quantify impact, define a baseline, run a two-week test and compare results.

I’m a big believer in measuring what matters. If you can’t prove Copilot is saving time, it’s hard to justify the investment or get your team to adopt it consistently.

Tie savings to business outcomes. Don’t just track time saved—track what that time enables. Are you responding to customers faster? Are you creating decks in half the time? Are you spending less time in meetings because the recaps are better?

A simple “before vs. after” comparison shows where Copilot cuts the most friction.

Your Quick Metric Set

Email response time: Average minutes to first meaningful reply

Deck creation time: Hours per standard 20-slide update

Meeting efficiency: Time from meeting end to shared recap

Run a 14 day pilot: Choose two recurring workflows (weekly status deck + customer replies). Capture baseline times, use the prompts above and review with your team

This gives you real data to show stakeholders – and helps you identify which prompts are worth standardising across your team.

Governance, Permissions and Data Security Tips for Copilot

Copilot respects your existing permissions and only surfaces content users can already access. It’s not a security risk—but it does expose bad permission hygiene.

This is one of the biggest concerns I hear from organisations: “What if Copilot shows people files they shouldn’t see?” The answer is: it won’t. Copilot only shows users what they already have access to.

But here’s the catch: if your SharePoint permissions are a mess, Copilot will expose that mess. If everyone has access to everything, Copilot will surface everything. If sensitive files are sitting in public folders, Copilot will find them.

Make security part of your setup. Before you roll out Copilot, clean up your SharePoint and OneDrive permissions. Apply sensitivity labels to confidential content. Teach teams to reference the right files in prompts. When sharing outcomes, remove sensitive details from generated text before sending.

A pragmatic rule: Ground prompts in approved sources and keep requests specific. The tighter your context and audience, the safer—and more accurate—the output.

Troubleshooting: When Copilot Gets It Wrong and How to Fix It

Bad outputs happen—fix them with better inputs. If Copilot gives you a generic or unhelpful response, it’s usually because your prompt was too vague.

I’ve learned this the hard way. When I ask Copilot a vague question, I get a vague answer. When I’m specific about what I need, the output is dramatically better.

Add missing context, cite the target audience and tone and specify the format or length. If quality still lags, regenerate with a clearer task decomposition and a concrete example.

Diagnose quickly like a pro. Ask yourself:

• Did I provide an example?

• Did I attach the correct source file?

• Did I specify the output structure (e.g., bullets, table, 120 words)?

Small tweaks often turn a “meh” response into a keeper.

FAQ: Quick Answers

Can Copilot summarise missed meetings?

Yes—but to ask questions later, ensure transcriptions are on. For post-meeting Q&A, work from the Recap tab and prompt for decisions, risks, and owners.

Should I paste sensitive data into prompts?

No, you shouldn’t paste sensitive data into prompts without safeguards. Use sensitivity labels, keep sources in approved locations, and sanitise outputs before sharing externally.

Can Copilot match my brand voice?

Yes, if you provide examples. Paste a short sample and instruct: “Match this tone and sentence length,” then ask it to rewrite.

What if Copilot feels generic?

Add concrete constraints. Specify audience, word count, structure, and success criteria: “120 words, table with Owner/Due, 3 risks, plain language.”

Turn Prompts into Team Playbooks (And Get Copilot-Ready)

Prompts become playbooks when your team reuses and improves them together. Start with the 10 prompts above, save your best variants and standardise them for weekly status updates, executive summaries, and customer replies. That’s how small wins compound into big time savings.

Pilot, measure, then scale. Run a two-week experiment, review the metrics with stakeholders, and publish the “house style” prompts in your wiki or SharePoint site. When you’re ready to enable more roles across your organisation, you’ll have proven workflows and real data to back them up.

Your work doesn’t need more hours—it needs better leverage. With Copilot, your team can ship higher-quality work sooner, with less burnout.

But here’s the truth: Copilot is only as good as your SharePoint environment.

If your files are disorganised, poorly named, or buried in folders, Copilot will struggle to find them. If your permissions are messy, Copilot will expose that mess. If your metadata is missing, Copilot won’t be able to filter and surface the right content.

That’s why I created the SharePoint Copilot Readiness Course.

This 60-minute course walks you through exactly how to get your SharePoint environment AI-ready—so Copilot can actually help you instead of frustrating you.

You’ll learn:

• • How to clean up old content and archive outdated files

• • How to add metadata that makes files findable

• • How to improve file names so Copilot knows what they’re about

• • How to organize with information architecture

• • How to set up governance so your content stays clean

Get Copilot-ready for $37 →

Or get the Complete Copilot Readiness Bundle ($397, save $76) with the course, implementation toolkit, and all the templates you need.

Get the Complete Bundle and Save →

Want more Microsoft 365 tips like this?

Every Wednesday, I send a newsletter with practical tips, real-world stories, Microsoft 365 news, podcast episodes, and resources that actually help. No spam, no daily emails—just one useful email every week.

Subscribe to the Simply SharePoint newsletter

Hi, I’m Liza 👋

I’ve been working with SharePoint since 2005, and nothing excites me more than diving into a messy SharePoint environment and transforming it into something streamlined and intuitive.

I created Simply SharePoint to share practical, real-world advice for end users, managers, and teams who need more than just basic tutorials. My focus is on information architecture, out-of-the-box solutions, and making Microsoft 365 work the way it should—without the jargon.

When I’m not fixing SharePoint chaos, you’ll find me exploring the city with my daughter, enjoying live music, or indulging my passion for fashion and bold color (which you might notice in my brand!).

Ready to make SharePoint make sense? Get my free Quick Start Guide and join 1,000+ professionals learning inside Simply SharePoint.

Get the Free Quick Start Guide →