Join Microsoft at IACP 2025: Empower public safety operations with trusted AI
The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Annual Conference and Exposition is the premier global event for law enforcement leaders, bringing together more than 16,000 public safety professionals. This year, IACP 2025 takes place October 18–22 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, and Microsoft is proud to be part of the conversation. As your trusted partner in public safety innovation, we invite you to connect with us at booth #362 to discover how Microsoft and our ecosystem of partners are helping agencies modernize operations, improve decision-making, and build safer communities through trusted AI. Microsoft’s presence at IACP 2025 centers around three key pillars that reflect the evolving needs of law enforcement and public safety agencies: Empower the government workforce Streamline workflows with secure AI copilots, enhance collaboration across departments, and boost efficiency with intuitive digital tools. Enable AI-driven decision making Accelerate officer workflows with real-time insights and unify data to support faster, more informed decisions. Transform emergency response Modernize communications, integrate systems for real-time situational awareness, and automate operations to improve coordination and outcomes. Experience Innovation Firsthand At booth #362, attendees can explore hands-on demos of Microsoft solutions including Microsoft 365 Copilot, Researcher and Analyst agents, and Copilot Studio agents tailored for first responders. These tools are designed to help agencies work smarter, respond faster, and serve communities more effectively. You’ll also have the opportunity to connect with our partners, Altia, DisasterTech, Insight, Pimloc, Remark, Revelen.AI, Triangula, and Zencos who are showcasing their solutions that support officer workflows, evidence management, reporting, and analytics. Don’t miss the Emergency Response Platform vehicle demo, supported by Darley, Dejero, and 3AM which highlights how AI and real-time data can transform field operations and emergency response at the tactical edge. Attend Our Thought Leadership Session Join us for a featured education session in the Leadership Track: Is "Technology Sharing" the Key to Law Enforcement Innovation? 📅 Saturday, October 18 🕤 9:30 – 10:30 AM MT 📍 Room 505/506 This session explores how collaborative platforms and shared technology models can reduce costs, accelerate deployment, and improve outcomes across jurisdictions, offering a blueprint for scalable innovation. Let’s Connect We’d love to meet with you one-on-one to discuss your agency’s goals and challenges. Request a meeting with a Microsoft expert to explore how AI and cloud technologies can support your mission. Visit Microsoft at booth #362 to explore AI-powered public safety solutions and skilling opportunities. Together, we can build safer, more resilient communities through innovation.How to Add a Timer to Microsoft Teams Meetings | Step-by-Step Guide
🚀 Boost Your Microsoft Teams Productivity! Have you ever wished you could keep your meetings on track and avoid running over time? Good news: Microsoft Teams has a built-in way to add a timer to your meetings! In my latest YouTube video, I walk you through: ✅ How to add a timer in Teams ✅ Why timeboxing improves meeting efficiency ✅ Tips for making your meetings more productive 📺 Watch the full tutorial here: https://youtu.be/5OEMaRZOfmY If you’re looking to optimize your Microsoft 365 experience, this one’s for you! 👉 What’s your favorite tip for running efficient meetings? Share it in the comments! #MicrosoftTeams #Productivity #Microsoft365 #Collaboration #WorkSmarterReady to accelerate your Zero Trust journey? Discover what’s next
For admins | 1-minute read Zero Trust isn’t just a security buzzword—it’s the new baseline for protecting your organization in a world where threats are always evolving. But what does it really take to move from strategy to action? Find out by reading our recent blog, Accelerate your Zero Trust journey: Using the Microsoft Zero Trust workshop for impact on the M365 Accelerator site. In it, we break down some of the real-world challenges IT admins face and show how this hands-on workshop can help you build a clear roadmap forward. For example, learn how you can use the workshop to: Assess and improve your security posture by evaluating your organization’s current security maturity across six critical Zero Trust pillars (Identity, Devices, Data, Network, Infrastructure, Security Operations), identify gaps, and prioritize actions for improvement. Drive cross-team alignment and executive buy-in by bringing together stakeholders from security, infrastructure, networking, and compliance for communication, consensus building, and creating a data-driven roadmap that resonates with leadership. Turn security strategy into actionable results with practical steps for leveraging the Zero Trust Workshop to transform security from a reactive task into a proactive, strategic advantage for your organization. Next steps Ready to move beyond theory and see how Microsoft’s approach can help you secure identities, apps, and data? Then Accelerate your Zero Trust journey is your next must-read. Get the full story and workshop details here.How are you keeping your associates up to date on Microsoft changes? HELP
I’m looking for ideas or best practices from other organizations on how you're keeping associates up to date with the constant changes across Microsoft 365 especially in Teams, Outlook, SharePoint, Planner, Visio, and Copilot. With so many updates rolling out daily from the roadmap and message center, it’s a challenge to make sure users are aware of new features and understand how to use them in our environment. Do you have an intake process for all changes or just some? Do you vet all changes? Do you have a self-service model? Do you have a centralized communication or training strategy? Are you using internal champions, newsletters, Viva tools, or other methods? How do you make updates engaging and easy to understand? Any tips for turning roadmap and Message Center updates into actionable guidance? Thanks in advance for sharing what’s working for you!New Landing Pages for Word, Excel and PowerPoint (rant)
So I found out this week that MS is piloting new landing pages for the core Office apps (again). Instead of loading in the M365 Home page, they now load in an entirely new page. Why was this necessary? We've already been here before and MS spent years moving everything to the Home app. The dust has finally settled and things are working great. Why move things out again?Transforming Emergency Response: How AI is reshaping public safety
Brand new released Smart City Trend Report: Discover how AI is transforming emergency response and public safety in cities worldwide. In an era of escalating climate events, urban complexity, and rising public expectations, emergency response systems are under pressure like never before. From wildfires and floods to public health crises and infrastructure failures, cities must respond faster, smarter, and more collaboratively. The newly released Transform Emergency Response Trend Report offers a compelling roadmap for how artificial intelligence (AI) is helping cities meet these challenges head-on, by modernizing operations, improving situational awareness, and building resilient, resident-centered safety ecosystems. As Dave Williams, Director of Global Public Safety and Justice at Microsoft, puts it: AI models are increasingly embedded in public safety workflows to enhance both anticipation and real-time awareness. Predictive analytics are used to forecast crime hotspots, traffic incidents, and natural disasters by analyzing historical and real-time data, enabling proactive resource deployment and faster response times. This transformation is not theoretical, it’s happening now. And at the upcoming Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, November 4–6, Microsoft and leading technology innovators will showcase how AI is driving real-world impact across emergency services, law enforcement, and city operations. Government AI Transformation in Action: Oklahoma City Fire Department: Digitizing Operations for Faster Response Serving over 700,000 residents, the Oklahoma City Fire Department (OKCFD) faced mounting challenges due to outdated, paper-based workflows. From rig inspections to fuel logging, manual processes slowed response times and increased risk. Partnering with AgreeYa Solutions and leveraging Microsoft Power Platform, OKCFD built 15+ custom mobile-first apps to digitize core operations. The results were transformative: Helped drive a 40% reduction in manual tasks Real-time dashboards for leadership visibility Improved data accuracy and faster emergency response This modernization not only boosted internal efficiency but also strengthened community trust by ensuring timely, reliable service delivery. North Wales Fire and Rescue Service: Empowering Remote Teams with Secure Access With 44 stations and a mix of full-time and on-call firefighters, North Wales Fire and Rescue Service (NWFRS) needed a better way to support staff across a wide geographic area. Their legacy on-premises systems limited remote access to critical data. By deploying a SharePoint-based intranet integrated with Microsoft 365 tools, NWFRS enabled secure, mobile access to documents, forms, and departmental updates. Improved communication and workflow efficiency Reduced travel time for on-call staff Enhanced compliance and data security This shift empowered firefighters to stay informed and prepared—no matter where they were. San Francisco Police Department: Real-Time Vehicle Recovery Reporting Managing thousands of stolen vehicle cases annually, the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) struggled with a slow, manual reporting process that delayed updates and eroded public trust. Using Microsoft Power Apps, SFPD built RESTVOS (Returning Stolen Vehicle to Owner System), allowing officers to update vehicle status in real time from the field. Helped reduce reporting time from 2 hours to 2 minutes Supported 500 officer hours saved per month Improved resident experience and reduced mistaken stops This digital leap not only streamlined operations but also reinforced transparency and accountability. Join Us in Barcelona: See Emergency Response in Action At Smart City Expo World Congress 2025, Microsoft and our AI transformations partners will showcase emergency response AI transformation with immersive demos, theater sessions, and roundtable discussions. Transform Emergency Response will be a central focus, showcasing how AI, cloud platforms, and agentic solutions are enabling cities to: Modernize emergency operation centers Enable real-time situational awareness Foster community engagement and trust Featured AI demos from innovative partners: 3AM Innovations Disaster Tech PRATUS Sentient Hubs Tomorrow.io Unified Emergency Response with Microsoft Fabric and Copilot These solutions are not just about technology, they’re about outcomes. They help cities cut response times, improve coordination, and build public trust. Why This Matters Now As Dave Williams emphasizes, the future of emergency response is not just faster, it’s smarter and more resilient: Modern emergency response increasingly relies on unified data platforms that integrate inputs from IoT sensors, satellite imagery, social media, and agency databases. AI-powered analytics systems synthesize this data to support real-time decision-making and resource allocation across agencies. Cities must also invest in governance frameworks, ethical AI policies, and inclusive design to ensure these technologies serve all residents fairly. Let’s Connect Whether you’re a city CIO, emergency services leader, or public safety innovator, we invite you to join us at Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, November 4–6. Explore how Microsoft and its partners are helping cities transform emergency response, and build safer, more resilient communities. Visit our booth at Hall 3, Stand #3D51, attend our theater sessions, and see demos from AI transformation partners delivering demos on Transform Emergency Response. Together, we can reimagine public safety for the challenges of today and the possibilities of tomorrow.Loop governance, lifecycle, manageability for IT Admins – Nov 2024
Dive into our latest update on Loop governance, lifecycle, and manageability tailored just IT admins! Discover how Loop's seamless integration with Microsoft 365 can transform your team's productivity with real-time co-authoring, versatile components, and enhanced security features. From Copilot Pages to comprehensive manageability roadmap items, this blog has everything you need to confidently pilot and fully enable Loop in your organization.
Enhancements wanted for Viva Engage Event Experience
In the Event tab within Viva Engage Communities it would be great with some improvements to enhance the usage and customization of Events. Similar to Facebook and Workplace events where participants had the possibility to select "Attending" and "Not attending". We have cases where we plan in person events where it would be really helpful to get an overview of participants that are attending. Similar to Facebook and Workplace events where participants had the possibility to select "Attending" and "Not attending". Additionally, giving users the ability to add events directly to their calendars would help them stay organized and maintain a better overview of company activities. To summarize very wanted features are: The options for participants to click Attending/Not attending. Option to "Add to Calendar" directly from the event page The ability to mark the event as In Person Is this on Microsoft's Roadmap for enhancements, or could it be considered for future updates?Microsoft 365 Champion community call | September 2025 | AM
Join our next community call on September 23, 2025, to learn more about how to leverage Viva Engage for Microsoft 365 Copilot adoption. Host: Tiffany Lee Guest: James Tyer, Karuana Gatimu Moderator: Jessie Hwang 📢 NOTE: our community call format has changed to using Teams webinars to enable more dynamic discussions! Join link is still the same but you must register to be able to join the call when it starts: https://aka.ms/M365ChampionCallAM ⏰ 🗨️ Each call includes an open Q&A discussion section, where you'll have a chance to ask your questions about Microsoft 365. 👋 Join the Microsoft 365 Champion program today! Champions combine technical acumen with people skills to drive meaningful change. Our community calls are open to everyone but only Champions have access to the presentation resources (access link in the initial welcome email and in the monthly newsletters). Join now: https://aka.ms/M365Champions. Note: If you are unable to watch the recording on YouTube, try watching it here.
New to teams: Are multiple outgoing sales lines possible?
Hey everyone! I am the sys admin of my small law firm, and we officially switch to Teams and Microsoft as a phone provider on September 15th. Currently we use 3cx as our PBX and Callcentric as our provider. Most everything is already set up, and waiting for the port. I already have a reception and incoming sales queue set up with a main auto attendant, basically cloning what we have now. We are noticing that our main phone line is being marked as spam when we call out, likely due to it being our main line and our sales dept is going gangbusters. It was suggested we buy multiple sales lines and switch the number our salesperson is dialing from every so often. What I am wondering is: If we purchase a handful of these numbers, is there an easy way to switch what the outgoing number of our salesperson/sales team/sales queue is showing on outgoing calls and is there a way to have incoming calls from each of those numbers funnel into our incoming sales queue, which is often populated with at least two people? For reference, we will no longer be using 3cx after the 15th so everything is under MS's roof. I also asked copilot hoping it would have some insight, but Im not entirely sure if it understood my situation. Any help is appreciated.
