The uptake of AI for workplace innovation amongst small to medium sized businesses in the APAC region is happening at a rapid rate. Partners have significant opportunity to respond to demand, yet also must decide where to invest for profitable, sustainable AI-focused practice builds.
To help our partners make sense of the AI opportunity with Copilot, we’ve teamed up with one of the region’s leading advisors on the Future of Work.
Dr. Sweeney is a recognised authority on Microsoft and a respected advisor on technology strategy for Government and business.
In this series, Dr. Sweeney offers partners an independent take on capturing AI-driven business growth with Copilot.
Watch the video for highlights and dive into Dr Sweeney’s expanded perspective in the full article.
One of the best parts of my job is exploring cutting-edge technologies as they emerge and evolve. It’s fascinating to study what’s already hitting the market while also peering into what’s still in the labs, waiting to disrupt how we live and work.
One of the biggest misconceptions I’ve encountered in my years of research is the idea that new technologies emerge out of nowhere, seemingly overnight. People often say, “Wow, this just came out of the blue!” But the reality is very different.
Over 25 years ago, I helped a friend start an AI company. Back then, we called it computational linguistics, a field that eventually evolved into machine language translation and, now, the generative AI tools everyone talks about.
The point being that technology doesn’t just explode onto the scene; it progresses steadily and predictably. Sure, that pace accelerates, but it’s not chaotic or random.
Artificial intelligence (AI)—the hottest topic in tech right now—is no exception.
Current AI tools like Microsoft’s Copilot, result from decades of groundwork. The seeds of what we’re reaping today were planted a long time ago.
I’ll say this much: the name “Copilot” is brilliant. It perfectly encapsulates what AI should be—an assistant, not a replacement.
Copilot is simply that; a tool that helps humans work better, faster, and smarter. Microsoft has done an excellent job of branding this concept.
The answer comes down to economics.
Over the years, the cost of training and running AI models has dropped significantly.
This has allowed companies like OpenAI and Microsoft to build and deploy massive AI models—tools that they can now afford to offer at a relatively low cost.
In terms of AI and harnessing it for workplace innovation, we’re seeing a lot of pilot projects with Copilot, particularly within the Microsoft 365 suite.
However, the expansion of these Copilot projects has been slower than many expected. Why?
Based on feedback I am hearing, these are some of the common factors:
In other words, once the initial excitement and rush-to-adopt subsides, organisations are asking, “where’s the value?”
This is a question that partners need to answer with confidence.
While the trend for companies to continue investing in AI is clear, there’s a key that must be turned to take the SMB market from niche projects to scaled implementations.
That key is in how partners articulate and prove that Copilot directly contributes to the achievement of critical business and/or IT objectives.
One of the biggest challenges faced in driving AI adoption is trust—or, more accurately, the lack of it.
Distrust of AI is widespread, and it’s not just limited to concerns about the technology itself. People are worried about how AI will impact jobs, privacy, and organisational decision-making processes.
However, an interesting correlation emerged in a recent study I conducted with over 1,000 Australian workers.
The data shows that people’s trust in AI and overall perception of its benefits were strongly linked to whether they had direct experience using AI tools like Copilot in the workplace.
In other words, familiarity breeds trust. The more people use AI and see how it can help them, the more likely they will be to embrace it.
This finding highlights an important takeaway for organisations: if we want to build trust in AI, we need to increase exposure to it.
That means giving workers access to these tools and opportunities to experiment, learn, and experience their value firsthand.
The frontline will need to see – in real world terms – how saving time, improving accuracy, or unlocking new revenue streams provides specific benefit to their roles and responsibilities.
It sounds obvious, but the data clearly shows the importance of exposure.
To overcome frontline resistance and encourage broader adoption, we need to work with customers to build internal trust through transparency. This means encouraging business leaders to be upfront about where the business believes it can deliver measurable benefits to customers and employees alike.
It’s not enough to say, “AI will make your life easier.” It will involve bringing employees in on plans earlier rather than later and being open about how AI adoption may change established norms in the business.
Another trust building factor is having open dialogue on fair, ethical and responsible use of AI.
There is a growing body of evidence around how AI can have negative – if unintended – consequences that can cause harm.
Employees, customers and shareholders alike want confidence that AI will not be misused.
For partners, these emerging and important operational policy considerations represent new fields for advisory and consulting engagement.
As we look to the future, I’m optimistic about AI’s role in the workplace. Tools like Copilot are just the beginning. The next generation of AI agents will be more intuitive, powerful, and seamlessly integrated into our workflows. But for this vision to become a reality, we must address the challenges of trust and value head-on.
The good news is that the momentum is already there. Organisations are continuing to invest in AI, and its benefits will become more apparent as the technology matures.
I firmly believe that the future of work is one where humans and AI work together—not in competition, but in collaboration.
For Crayon’s partners, my main advice is not to wait for AI tools to become perfect; they never will. The sooner you begin experimenting with AI and integrating it into your workflows, the sooner you’ll start to see its potential.
In my next post for this series, we will explore the near-term future and how AI automation and orchestration creates new opportunities for partners, as the technology evolves from prompt-forward generative AI to agents.
Dr. Sweeney is a principal advisor and industry analyst at IBRS. He is a recognised thought leader in Future of Work, digital innovation, workforce transformation, and organisational change strategy. His fields of expertise include Microsoft, Google, AWS, VMware and Citrix.
Sales and Marketing
Business leaders don't live in the tools. They live in the outcomes. The metrics they care about most are not always limited to compliance and risk. So how do you connect data protection to the big-ticket objectives, when they're less obvious? Our in-house pre-sales expert, Michael Brooke explains.
Guides and eBooks
As SMBs mature in the Data Protection lifecycle, they need help to optimise spend, reduce the compliance burden and ensure results align to business objectives. The third installment of our Data Protection Playbook series provides practical guidance for partners on how to address emerging pressure and connect ongoing investment to measurable business value.
Training
Copilot Agents: what are they and how do they differ from AI assistants and chatbots? Our in-house Copilot expert Ksenia Turner explains the use cases and service opportunities for partners.
Blogs
Fragmented data protection systems and processes create compliance proof-gaps for SMB customers. Scott Hagenus, Director, Cybersecurity here at Crayon explains.
Sales and Marketing
Ever wonder why a pitch has some IT Managers leaning forward, while others glaze over? Michael Brooke, Cybersecurity Pre-Sales Lead offers some insight on how to tune your approach to chime with different technical mindsets.
Guides and eBooks
How can partners help their SMB customers to move from silos of security and continuity to a more cohesive, measurable and insurable data protection framework? The second edition in our Data Protection Playbook series maps out their journey, and yours.
Vendor Announcements
Copilot for Business has landed at Microsoft Ignite 2025, levelling the GenAI playing field for SMB customers. Learn all about it from our man on the ground, Andreas Bergman.
Press Release
Press Release
Blogs
As cybersecurity and continuity converge in platforms and in practice, partners need new playbooks to address modern Data Protection standards. Our in-house cybersecurity pre-sales lead, Michael Brooke explains why.
Guides and eBooks
What triggers an SMB customer to begin exploring their need for better Data Protection? The first of our four Data Protection Playbooks for partners breaks down how to position and win in the Pre-Adoption and Exploration stage.
Insights
Data Protection priorities are shifting for SMBs. Ramp up your ability to respond with curated insights, articles and resources to help you guide every customer conversation with confidence.
Partner Spotlight
In this Partner Spotlight, Acceltech Managing Director Ivy Tarrobago shares how Crayon’s responsive support enhances client outcomes and business growth.
Whitepapers
Data Protection is a must for all SMBs but how can partners align solution investment with critical business objectives? Our latest paper shows you how.
Press Release
Crayon has been recognised with a huge double win at the CRN Channel Asia awards ceremony.
Insights
All the latest insights, articles and resources on M365 Copilot, curated into one place.
Insights
SMB customers are storing greater volumes of sensitive data in more places than ever. Secure backup and recovery practices are essential to how they protect it.
Partner Spotlight
Bigfish Technology saved AU$20,000 on its annual Microsoft licensing after one call with Crayon and has since built a strong partnership that enabled Bigfish to get access to Crayon’s expertise and vendor ecosystem.
Insights
Insider risk is a subtle and continuous challenge for SMB customers. Turn it into a manageable and quantifiable aspect of their Data Protection strategy.
Blogs
From rethinking backup to governance frameworks and behavioural analytics, what's involved in building a complete Data Protection strategy for SMB customers?
Insights
We explore the evolution of Microsoft's channel strategy over the past ten years, and what can be learned by viewing it through a Value Cycle lens.
Guides and eBooks
The Microsoft Fabric Partner Guide curates our recent articles, videos and resources to accelerate Crayon partner learning.
Guides and eBooks
Partners of the Future is a guide to the past, present and future evolution of Microsoft's channel strategy, offering a frank and fearless interpretation of what recent changes mean for the Microsoft partner ecosystem.
Blogs
SMBs are on the hunt for intelligent, resilient and secure Field Service solutions. Explore a stack solution that meets all their needs!
Insights
SMBs in APAC are ramping up adoption of cloud-based business applications. Find out why and how this influences the services and capabilities sought from their trusted IT service partners.
Insights
Explore how SMBs in APAC are leveraging cybersecurity solutions and AI technologies toward achieving critical business objectives.
Insights
Explore data trends from the Future of Operations and learn how to turn insights into action in the Productivity domain.
Insights
SMB operations in the Asia Pacific region are shifting from traditional backup and disaster recovery toward something more transformative.
Training
Explore how Azure can help partners respond to dominant trends within SMB customer cloud strategies.
Insights
The latest in our Future of Operations insights series looks at why SMBs are pursuing hybrid cloud and multi-cloud strategies to achieve their business objectives.
Insights
Rhonda Robati, Executive Vice President of Crayon APAC assesses the factors driving Microsoft's channel strategy and the evolution needed to be a Partner of the Future.
Guides and eBooks
eBook: The world's greatest detective is on his toughest case yet. Find out how human ingenuity combined with unified data analytics unravels a series of wicked riddles!
Insights
What are the most critical business objectives and solution adoption priorities for SMBs in our region? Download the latest Forrester study to find out!
Blogs
From retail to corporate tech, Ksenia Turner built a career on learning, adapting, and helping others do the same. Now, as Business Success Manager at Crayon, she helps partners understand and use AI and Microsoft solutions in real, practical ways.
