Your First SharePoint Agent: Company Policy Magic in Minutes
Everyone talks about agents all the time and it sounds very advanced and very complex, but really it can be very simple.
In this video, you’ll see how to create your first SharePoint agent. I demo it with an agent that can discuss company policies, then I give some examples of what else you can use it for.
Start in SharePoint
Today's newsletter is for SharePoint and Microsoft users.
In the video, you’ll see my staff hub demo site that I created using a Microsoft template.
There’s an area for policies, with some demo policies to play with.
How are we going to create an agent?
Up the top, there’s the agent area. Click the little arrow, then select “Create agent.”
And that’s pretty much it. It says your agent is ready. You can change it slightly, but not a lot.
Open the agent, and there it is, my policies agent: an agent grounded in my company policies.
What your agent can do
You can start chatting with your agent right away. Ask it questions about our policies.
It replies based on the documents in the SharePoint folder. So, it will always be up to date.
For example, it can instantly pull the definition of a conflict of interest from your code of conduct.
Make it smarter
You can also edit and customise your agent. Give it a name, set where it gets its information, and adjust its behaviour.
By default, the agent’s instructions say: “Provide accurate information about the content in the selected files and reply in a formal tone.” But you can make it much more specific. For instance:
“You are a helpful HR assistant that helps employees find information about company policies. When answering questions, search the company policies library. Provide clear, concise answers. Include the policy number. If information isn’t found, say ‘I don’t have this information.’ Always be professional and helpful.”
You can link it to a full SharePoint site, a single library, or multiple libraries, whatever suits your setup.
Bring your agent into Teams
People can find your agent in SharePoint, but you can make it even more interesting.
Copy the link to your SharePoint agent, go to Teams, paste the link in a chat, and add this agent to the chat.
Now you can add it to a teams chat: chat with your colleagues, and with your policy agent in the same conversation.
Every so often, you can mention the policy agent and ask questions. It’s aware of your conversation and can jump in with the answers or even take actions. We will cover giving it actions another day.
Why I am so excited about this
I am excited when the use of AI becomes accessible for everyone.
SharePoint agents make it really easy for anyone to set up an expert in a set of docs.
And it is accessible. You can chat with it anywhere in your Microsoft environment. You don’t have to go to AI, it comes to you.
If you work inside Teams all day, your policy agent can live there too.
I am seeing firms experimenting with SharePoint Agents for HR guidelines so managers can ask quick questions about how to handle different situations. Others have made client-specific or project-based agents that instantly pull the right info from the right place.
Give it a go. It’s there for you, it’s easy to use, and it truly feels like magic.
Get on with the magic!
—-
Inbal Rodnay
Guiding Firms in Adopting AI and Automation
Keynote speaker | AI Workshops | Executive briefings | Consulting CIO
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