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The AOC participates in the II Conference on artificial intelligence and data protection of the APDCAT and the EAPC
In 2024 the UK Government, through the Government Digital Service (GDS), carried out a ambitious experiment with Microsoft 365 CopilotThis test, which has had the participation of 20.000 public employees from several government organizations, aimed to evaluate the impact of AI tools on productivity and job satisfaction.
Saving time and improving productivity
The results are clear: participants in the experiment saved an average of 26 minutes a day thanks to the use of M365 Copilot. This translates into a potential savings of 13 working days per year per user. More than 70% of users confirmed that Copilot reduced the time spent on routine tasks and searching for information, which allows them to focus on more strategic activities.
User satisfaction has been overwhelming, with a 82% of participants would not want to return to their previous working conditions at CopilotThe satisfaction and recommendation scores were 7.7 and 8.2 out of 10, respectively.
Key uses and benefits
Copilot was primarily used in communication applications such as Teams (71% maximum adoption) and Outlook (with 33% daily use)Significant use was also made of Word (25% daily use) for content creation. The main benefits reported include the productivity improvement I la reduction of time on mundane tasks, especially in the preparation of documents.
In addition, it has been observed that positive impact on users with accessibility needs, such as dyslexia or dyspraxia, who have found Copilot a very helpful tool to improve their written communication and efficiency.
Challenges and considerations
Despite the benefits, the experiment also highlighted some challenges. Some users expressed concerns about security and management of sensitive data, as well as limitations in the handling of complex or nuanced tasksThe need for the human supervision was constantly emphasized, as the tool is care-based and requires critical judgment. The importance of good change management and training programs to maximize the benefits of the tool was also highlighted.
In summary, the British government experiment has demonstrated the great potential of generative AI in the daily tasks of public employees and in the way they work, boosting efficiency and employee satisfaction, always with careful management and training.