Copilot just got better at being your boss’s favorite snitch — Microsoft’s new tool can benchmark AI habits and compare them to others

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Microsoft created Copilot to be a helpful AI assistant built right into your computer, aiming to make everything easier and more productive. It offers some genuinely useful time-saving features, but many people haven’t yet explored what it can do.

In business, if you’re using new tools to get ahead, your manager will want details – how you’re using them, why, and when. They’ll also be interested in how you’re tracking what competitors are doing, both within your company and in the wider industry.

A long-awaited feature is now available for Microsoft’s Copilot Dashboard in Viva Insights. Called Benchmarks, this new tool helps Copilot understand how quickly and effectively AI is being adopted throughout your organization, providing valuable data and tracking progress (according to ITPro).

Benchmarks allow companies to see how their use of Copilot stacks up against both their own internal teams and similar companies. This raises understandable concerns about data privacy, but Microsoft has outlined steps to address those concerns, which I’ll explain next.

Microsoft is now starting to release its new Benchmarks feature for Copilot through the Viva Insights dashboard, initially to a limited group of preview users. They plan to make it available to everyone later this month.

Benchmarks in Copilot Dashboard is watching you use (or not use) AI

The Benchmarks feature initially focuses on gathering data about how employees are using Copilot AI and comparing that usage to others, both within your company and across similar organizations.

Our internal tracking system monitors how people are using Copilot, including the percentage of active users, how widely it’s being adopted across different applications, and how often users come back for more. This data is then visualized in charts, allowing you to easily compare usage patterns across different employee groups, job titles, and locations within your company.

Microsoft explains that when they evaluate performance using internal tests, the results are averaged with more weight given to data from users with similar job functions within an organization.

Our external benchmarking system takes things a bit further. It gathers your organization’s data and compares it to data from either the top 10% or 25% of businesses similar to yours. You can also compare your data to the top 10% or 25% of all data collected by the program.

Microsoft explains that “companies like yours” refers to businesses similar to yours in terms of industry, size, and location. The data used for comparing your performance comes from a group of at least 20 other companies and is based on estimates, which helps protect everyone’s privacy.

To protect user privacy, Microsoft explains its published performance scores are generated using random calculations. The company is also actively monitoring the accuracy of these scores and plans to consider adding more tests based on what users think.

Employees remain reticent about using AI

The current AI boom is having more than a few side effects on corporate employees.

AI company leaders are enthusiastically promoting AI’s capabilities and suggesting it could significantly reduce white-collar jobs globally, a prospect that excites many business leaders and investors. However, employees themselves are approaching these claims with skepticism.

A new study by MIT’s NANDA project found that most AI pilot programs – around 95% – don’t move past the testing phase. The research indicates this is because businesses often struggle to integrate and utilize AI tools effectively, lagging behind other industries in their ability to adopt the technology.

Microsoft has previously integrated analytics into Viva. They already offer Microsoft 365 Copilot Analytics, which creates reports showing how well Copilot is being used and adopted throughout your company.

The new Benchmarks tool simplifies comparing data, both within the company and with external sources. If you’ve been trying to hide your reluctance to use Copilot, this tool might make it harder – it’s a good time to give the AI assistant a try.

What is Copilot Dashboard and Viva Insights?

Microsoft launched Viva in 2021 to improve what it’s like to be an employee. It works closely with Microsoft 365 and Teams.

Insights is one part of Viva’s overall strategy, which has four main components. Here’s how Microsoft originally described the idea behind Insights:

Each employee can use personal data to schedule regular breaks, concentrate on important tasks, make time for learning, and build stronger relationships with coworkers. Managers and leaders can see overall patterns across their teams and the company, and get suggestions for improving both productivity and employee wellbeing. This data is always combined and kept anonymous to protect everyone’s privacy.

Microsoft

The Insights project has expanded significantly, and the new Benchmarks feature will likely worry some leaders when they see how their company’s AI adoption compares to others.

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2025-10-14 17:10