Microsoft Inspire is the company’s premier annual partner event; it’s typically a multi-day event that serves as a platform for Microsoft to announce new products, services, partnerships, and strategies for the upcoming year. The event serves a strategic purpose for Microsoft, allowing it to communicate its vision and roadmap, motivate its partner network, of which Crimson are a gold member, and build momentum for its products and services.

This week's Inspire 2023 was brimming with new insights and advancements tailored to push the boundaries of what’s achievable with technology. Among the innovations presented were several cutting-edge advancements designed to revolutionise the digital landscapes of various industries, particularly with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).

As we delve into the digital transformation era, housing associations must stay abreast of these technological innovations. With this in mind, Crimson is prepared to guide housing associations through this journey. By offering an ‘Art of the Possible’ workshops, Crimson can demonstrate how these advancements can streamline operations, optimise resources, and improve resident services.

Key Findings and Observations

Bing Chat Enterprise

The Bing Chat Enterprise is an AI-powered chat system designed for organisations prioritising security and data protection. This platform provides a robust and secure communication network for housing associations, essential for maintaining resident privacy and organisational integrity. Housing associations can safely and efficiently coordinate activities through the Bing Chat Enterprise, share crucial information, and engage with residents.

Understanding the impact of Bing Chat’s features firsthand is invaluable; hence Crimson is equipped to conduct a proof of concept. This allows housing associations to experience how Bing Chat Enterprise can be tailored to meet their unique communication needs and assess its effectiveness in providing a secure communication platform.

Microsoft 365 Copilot

Microsoft 365 Copilot is an advanced automation tool simplifying routine tasks and workflows. Its integration within housing associations can significantly automate report generation, data management, and administrative tasks, freeing up valuable time and resources.

To truly appreciate the potential of this tool, Crimson offers ‘Art of the Possible’ workshops, demonstrating how Microsoft 365 Copilot can be integrated into your specific operations. Through a hands-on approach, housing associations can explore the transformative impact of task automation on their processes and efficiency.

AI for Sales and Customer Service

Integrating AI into Dynamics 365 Sales brings a new dimension to customer service management. Housing associations can now manage resident inquiries more efficiently and effectively, utilising AI-powered chatbots to provide swift, accurate responses.

Crimson is ready to help housing associations integrate this technology into their customer service systems. By understanding your unique requirements and tailoring the AI to meet those needs, housing associations can experience improved service efficiency, heightened resident satisfaction, and reduced time spent on customer service tasks.

Process Mining in Power Automate

Process Mining in Power Automate presents a revolutionary approach to identifying and addressing workflow bottlenecks. It provides granular insights into workflow performance, facilitating process optimisation. Consider a use case where a housing association needs to process numerous maintenance requests. Traditional methods might involve manual data entry and paperwork, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors. With Process Mining, the association can track this workflow in real-time, identifying any bottlenecks or inefficiencies. For instance, if a particular approval stage consistently causes delays, steps can be taken to streamline this process.

Crimson can conduct a detailed assessment of your existing workflows, pinpointing areas of inefficiency and providing recommendations for improvement. With the application of Process Mining, housing associations can heighten operational efficiency, streamline processes, and foster a more productive work environment.

Azure OpenAI Service Expansion

The expansion of the Azure OpenAI Service presents housing associations with an opportunity to democratise AI, making it more accessible and useful. Azure OpenAI Service can be harnessed to analyse large volumes of data, make accurate predictions, and automate complex tasks, contributing to improved decision-making and operational efficiency.

Crimson can facilitate workshops using design thinking to identify opportunities for business transformation through Azure OpenAI Service adoption. These workshops will explore how AI can be integrated into different aspects of housing association operations, bringing about transformational changes that drive efficiency and improve resident service delivery.

New Azure Capabilities and Investments

Microsoft’s investments into Azure Migrate & Modernize and the launch of Azure Innovate offer housing associations the chance to move towards more secure, accessible, and efficient cloud-based systems. These technologies can support digital transformation initiatives, facilitating better data management, enhanced security, and increased operational efficiency.

Crimson stands ready to provide comprehensive assessments of your cloud readiness, assisting housing associations in transitioning to a more secure and efficient cloud-based system. The goal is to fully leverage these new Azure capabilities, enhancing service delivery and operational efficiency.

Meta and Microsoft Partnership

The collaboration between Meta and Microsoft, especially in developing large language models like Llama, offers numerous opportunities for housing associations. These AI-powered models can process large volumes of resident feedback or survey responses, extracting key trends and insights to inform strategic decision-making.

Crimson can help housing associations discover and apply the potential benefits of Llama. By understanding your unique challenges and operational needs, we can identify where Llama can bring about the most significant improvements, contributing to enhanced operational efficiency and resident satisfaction.

Conclusions

Microsoft Inspire 2023 has set the stage for transformative AI-powered solutions across industries, including housing associations. With a range of new offerings, Microsoft has laid the foundation for significant shifts in how housing associations operate and deliver services to residents.

Peering into the future, we envision Microsoft continuing to shape the trajectory of the low-code revolution, positioning itself at the forefront of this transformative tech movement. This promises an abundance of prospects for housing associations to capitalise on.

Low-code platforms offer the advantage of speed, agility, and the democratisation of app development, making it possible for non-programmers to create applications using intuitive, drag-and-drop interfaces. By leading the charge in this space, Microsoft has the potential to empower housing associations to become more self-sufficient in their digital transformation efforts, enhancing productivity and improving service delivery.

Furthermore, as Microsoft continues to innovate in this domain, it could expand the capabilities of low-code tools, possibly integrating them more seamlessly with next-generation technologies like augmented and virtual reality. This would open up even more exciting avenues for housing associations, like immersive virtual tours of properties, interactive maintenance requests, or augmented reality assisted troubleshooting for residents. Thus, Microsoft’s commitment to pioneering the low-code revolution and advancing cutting-edge technologies has immense potential to continue empowering housing associations, transforming their operations, and enhancing their service delivery.

Crimson offers several services designed to help housing associations embrace these advancements. We provide ‘Art of the Possible’ workshops to help envision the future, health checks of your digital environment to ensure optimal security and efficiency, assessments of your technology operating model to identify areas for automation and self-sufficiency based on the paragon framework, and design thinking workshops to pinpoint opportunities for business transformation.

As Microsoft continues its trajectory of technological innovation, Crimson stands ready to guide housing associations through each new development. We are committed to helping you seize these opportunities and adopt technologies that align with your digital transformation strategy. Crimson is here to partner with you in embracing these new technological advancements, positioning your housing association at the forefront of service delivery in an increasingly digital world.