Source proof for Australian Government runs a six-month whole-of-government Microsoft 365 Copilot trial with more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 agencies

…both public and private are looking to maximise its benefits. In November 2023, the Australian Government announced a six-month, whole-of-government trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a generative AI chatbot and assistant that uses a combination of large languag…

…predict, and generate content. The trial ran from January until June 2024​ and included more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 participating agencies. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, te…

…– 1 in 3 participants used Copilot daily during the trial Productivity gains – 69 per cent reported improved task completion speed and 61 per cent saw enhanced work quality Time savings – Participants saved up to one hour per day, reallocating this tim…

…per day, reallocating this time to higher-value activities High satisfaction – 77 per cent were satisfied with the AI tool and 86 per cent wanted to continue using it beyond the trial High adoption effort – Concerted effort is required to address technical, legal…

…and included more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 participating agencies. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, testing the extent to which the promise of AI had translated into real-world a…

…and included more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 participating agencies. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, testing the extent to which the promise of AI had translated into real-world a…

…both public and private are looking to maximise its benefits. In November 2023, the Australian Government announced a six-month, whole-of-government trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a generative AI chatbot and assistant that uses a combination of large languag…

…predict, and generate content. The trial ran from January until June 2024​ and included more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 participating agencies. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, te…

…es. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, testing the extent to which the promise of AI had translated into real-world adoption by public servants. The results would help the Australian Government consider future opportunities and challenges related to AI adoption. “The Australian government’s Copilot trial was the world’s largest public secto…

…e of APS classifications, job families, AI experience levels, and expectations. Participants were encouraged to use Copilot in a range of business-as-usual activities: Content generation – Drafting documents, emails, and PowerPoint presentations…

…eployed across the broader APS. Its use could also be controlled and monitored. The trial was non-randomised, with agencies nominating staff to take part. Trial participants comprised a range of APS classifications, job families, AI e…

…– 1 in 3 participants used Copilot daily during the trial Productivity gains – 69 per cent reported improved task completion speed and 61 per cent saw enhanced work quality Time savings – Participants saved up to one hour per day, reallocating this tim…

…eas: summarisation of content, creating first drafts, and information searches. Trial participants estimated efficiency gains of around an hour when completing one of these three tasks, with participants at junior levels (APS3-6), EL1s, and those in information an…

…nology roles perceiving the most efficiencies in these activities. In addition, 40 per cent of post-use survey respondents reported they were able to reallocate their time to higher-value activities such as staff engagement, culture building and mentoring, and building relation…

…per day, reallocating this time to higher-value activities High satisfaction – 77 per cent were satisfied with the AI tool and 86 per cent wanted to continue using it beyond the trial High adoption effort – Concerted effort is required to address technical, legal…

…address technical, cultural, and capability barriers in order to improve usage. Our evaluation found that agencies faced both technical and cultural adoption challenges during the trial. Capability challenges were also highlighted, with trial participants requiring…

…ment announced a six-month, whole-of-government trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a generative AI chatbot and assistant that uses a combination of large language models to understand, summarise, predict, and generate content. The trial ran from January until June 2024​ and included more than 5000 APS st…

…maximise its benefits. In November 2023, the Australian Government announced a six-month, whole-of-government trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a generative AI chatbot and assistant that uses a combination of large languag…

…predict, and generate content. The trial ran from January until June 2024​ and included more than 5000 APS staff across almost 60 participating agencies. We were engaged by the Digital Transformation Agency to evaluate the trial, te…

…aluation. X Evaluating Copilot’s flight To ensure breadth and depth of insight, we took a mixed-methods approach to our evaluation, which assessed the use, benefits, risks and unintended outcomes of Copilot in…

…d pulse surveys, post-trial interviews with key stakeholders, and focus groups. All told, more than 2000 trial participants took part in the evaluation. Copilot users from both this evaluation and agency-specific evaluations consist…

…– 1 in 3 participants used Copilot daily during the trial Productivity gains – 69 per cent reported improved task completion speed and 61 per cent saw enhanced work quality Time savings – Participants saved up to one hour per day, reallocating this tim…

…ment announced a six-month, whole-of-government trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot, a generative AI chatbot and assistant that uses a combination of large language models to understand, summarise, predict, and generate content. The trial ran from January until June 2024​ and included more than 5000 APS st…