• WORKSHOP: DWC Prompt-a-thon

    Ready to flip the script on how your team thinks, works, and innovates with AI?

    This half-day workshop isn’t just another Copilot demo—it’s a hands-on, high-energy prompt-a-thon designed to ignite creativity, reimagine processes, drive adoption, and deliver real ROI. Led by Kirsty McGrath, 7x Microsoft MVP in Copilot and global adoption expert, you’ll explore purposeful prompting using real-world scenarios, dive into taxonomy, and enjoy peer-to-peer collaboration. Whether you're a leader, change agent or tech enthusiast, you'll leave with prompt packs, strategies, and the confidence to lead your AI journey. Seats are limited. Impact is high. Ready to prompt like a pro?
    Event Highlights:

    Interactive Sessions: Craft and refine prompts with fellow experts and customers.
    Hands-On Learning: Discover strategies and tips from Copilot pros & SMEs.
    Networking: Connect with thought leaders in AI and prompt engineering.

    Why Attend?

    Empower innovation with Microsoft 365 Copilot.
    Expand your prompting expertise.
    Shape the future of AI interactions.

    Bealey One
    Mon 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
    • 1/2 Day Workshop

  • Digital Governance That Guides, Not Grinds

    In today’s digital workplace, no one wants to think about governance. At best, it’s something to tackle after the other fires are out. At worst, it’s actively avoided – seen as an anchor slowing innovation and stopping progress.

    But what if governance could be a catalyst?

    In this session, we’ll look at how to balance structure and freedom in Microsoft 365 environments, especially in fast-moving organisations. Drawing on real-world experience across M365 environments — think everything from information sprawl to all-out app chaos — we’ll explore how to balance control with creativity, compliance with curiosity.

    You’ll learn:
    • How to design governance that supports innovation instead of stifling it.
    • What “just enough” governance looks like in M365.
    • How to engage stakeholders in co-creating guardrails they’ll actually follow.
    • Why governance is a change management challenge, not just a technical one.

    Whether you’re a digital leader, IT pro, or change agent, this session will help you rethink governance as a strategic enabler—and leave with tools to make it happen.

    Breakout 3
    Tue 11:15 am - 12:00 pm
    • Voice & Vision

  • What’s new with Microsoft Loop and team work?

    Microsoft Loop is popping up in more places we collaborate with our teams. The lightweight canvas is now offers components, pages, and workspaces, right within Microsoft Teams. Loop also enables us to share our Copilot chats with team members.

    In this session we take a look at the maturing range of ways to collaborate with our team in Microsoft Loop. We will explore examples of how to use Loop pages and workspaces in Teams chats and channels. The demos will take us through the life cycle of an idea and explore new functionality.
    Lastly, we will take a look at an interesting overlap between Loop, Copilot, and our old note taking favourite, OneNote.

    Breakout 1
    Tue 1:45 pm - 2:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • Building a Future-Ready Business Core: Getting the most out of Dynamics 365 with legacy systems

    As organisations modernise, the opportunity in adopting Dynamics 365 as a unified business platform grows — but so does the reality that legacy systems aren’t going anywhere overnight. For many organisations, success isn’t about replacing everything at once; it’s about making smart, strategic decisions about what belongs in Dynamics 365, what shouldn’t, and how legacy systems can continue to provide value without holding the organisation back.

    In this session, our CTO will provide a practical, business-level experiences and gotchas for approaching digital transformation using Dynamics 365 as the “core system of record” while managing existing systems, data sources, and business processes. You’ll learn through examples, one in particular - A Large Membership Organisation and how they achieved the right home for data, processes, and customer touchpoints. You'll hear about how to avoid over-customisation and technical debt; and how to design an integration roadmap that reduces risk, builds confidence, and delivers value early.

    If your organisation is modernising but still dependent on older systems, this session will help you make clear, confident decisions that set you up for long-term success.

    Breakout 3
    Tue 1:45 pm - 2:30 pm
    • Deeper Dive

  • Keepin' it real: getting s**t done

    A sneaky peek into the engine room at DWR as we show you a few real-life scenarios of us getting s**t done. This isn’t your average conference talk. It’s a candid, tool-packed tour (demo-heavy) through the real-life workflows that power our team at DWR. And believe us, we "eat our own dog food" daily.....

    We’ll share mini case studies, live demos, and the “why” behind our tech choices (which truly do come from real-life-work).

    We will give you practical ideas and inspiration to supercharge your own digital workplace. Come for the hacks, stay for the honesty.

    Getting sh**t done, is Debbie's life motto and Shannon always says it’s not about ticking boxes— if it doesn't make our day easier, more productive or delightful, why do it?

    Breakout 2
    Tue 2:45 pm - 3:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • Designing a Modern Intranet in SharePoint Online: Structure, Search, and Smart Experiences

    This session dives into building a modern intranet in SharePoint Online that’s both functional and engaging. Learn how to craft a scalable information architecture, apply consistent branding, and design intuitive navigation. Explore how to centralize policies, enhance people search, and optimize enterprise search—including the role of Copilot Studio in delivering intelligent, conversational experiences. We'll also cover how to streamline business processes with forms and workflows using Microsoft 365 tools. Whether you're starting fresh or modernizing an existing intranet, you'll leave with actionable strategies to elevate your digital workplace.

    Breakout 3
    Tue 2:45 pm - 3:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • The Future of Intranets: AI Meets SharePoint

    Discover how AI is reshaping the modern intranet experience with Microsoft Copilot in SharePoint. This session explores how Copilot enhances content creation, navigation, and knowledge discovery, making intranets more intuitive, personalized, and productive.

    Learn practical use cases, see live demos, and gain insights into how AI can elevate your SharePoint environment from a static content hub to a dynamic, intelligent workspace.

    Breakout 3
    Tue 4:00 pm - 4:45 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • Tackling information overload in the digital workplace

    Employees today are drowning in digital messages, from Outlook and Microsoft Teams to Viva Engage and SharePoint. For communications and digital workplace leaders, the challenge is clear; how do you ensure important messages are seen, understood, and acted on without overwhelming your workforce?

    In this session, Emily O'Brien, Director, Global Operations and APAC at SWOOP Analytics, will share data-backed insights and real-world case studies to help you identify where overload is happening and what to do about it. You’ll learn how to quantify communication volume, pinpoint bottlenecks, and develop communication strategies that cut through the noise across M365.

    The audience will participate in a live activity using an Information Overload Calculator and will walk away with their organisation’s Employee Overload Index, ready to take action!

    Why Attend?
    - Discover how to measure and identify communication overload using the Information Overload Calculator.
    - Learn how to manage more targeted messages, cadence, and delivery across M365.
    - Takeaway practical strategies to improve clarity of communication and reduce digital fatigue, without compromising engagement.

    Breakout 2
    Wed 9:00 am - 9:45 am
    • Microsoft 365

  • Evolving from Personal Copilots to Autonomous Agents

    In this session, we’ll take participants on a journey from
    - building a personal agent that boosts daily productivity,
    - to creating shared “declarative” agents that supercharge team collaboration,
    - to designing fully custom interactive agents that streamline enterprise processes.

    In short:
    "Copilot + Me" → "Copilot + Team" → "Copilot + Organisation" → "Copilot + Copilot"

    We’ll also look at the future of intelligent agents - autonomous agents that act proactively and agent-to-agent collaboration that enables entire ecosystems of digital teammates. Along the way, we’ll share practical examples, best practices, and key strategies for scaling Copilot across your organization.

    Whether you’re an individual knowledge worker, a team leader, or an enterprise strategist, you’ll walk away with a clear roadmap for how to start simple, scale with confidence, and prepare for the future of AI-driven productivity.

    Breakout 1
    Wed 10:00 am - 10:45 am
    • Deeper Dive

  • Tag You're IT: Capturing People Impacts in Azure DevOps

    This session will cover how functional requirements can be enhanced by tracking impacts on affected end users and stakeholders. I will focus on how we can weave change strategies into functional work and strengthen relationships between functional and change management teams throughout an ERP implementation using Azure DevOps. There will be practical tips and actions that technical/functional teams can use in future projects: guiding questions for impact assessments, linking milestones to engagement activities, and more.

    Breakout 2
    Wed 10:00 am - 10:45 am
    • Microsoft 365

  • Sceptics to Superfans: How to get everyone in your organisation excited about technology

    You’re excited about AI, and Agents, but what about everyone else? Without change management and effective communications your technology adoption will fail. Learn how to bring everyone along on your journey.

    At the end of this conference your head will be buzzing with ideas. You'll be bursting to share new concepts in your organisation, but will anyone listen?

    Newsletters go unread
    Lunch and learns go unattended
    Brilliant technology remains untouched

    ... while the help desk is inundated with basic enquiries....

    Sharon Connolly will give you easy to action, tried and tested ways to get people excited about adopting new technology in your organisation.

    Topics include:

    - Creating drip feed content
    - The power of Tik Tok style social proof
    - Enabling change champions

    This time you'll not only return from the conference inspired by brilliant ideas, but you'll also know how to land them in your organisation to drive adoption.

    Breakout 2
    Wed 11:15 am - 12:00 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • Before & After: Transforming Power BI Dashboards

    In this session, we’ll explore the power of small design decisions in Power BI by walking through real before-and-after examples of dashboards and reports. You’ll see how a few simple adjustments can dramatically improve clarity, engagement, and impact.

    We’ll highlight common mistakes in data visualisation, and demonstrate practical fixes that turn confusing dashboards into clear and compelling .

    Along the way, we’ll discuss design principles that drive these improvements, including chart selection, hierarchy and layout, use of white space, and applying consistency in formatting.

    By the end of this session, you’ll have the confidence and practical skills to critique and refine your own dashboards, ensuring your Power BI reports not only look better but also communicate insights more effectively.

    Breakout 1
    Wed 12:45 pm - 1:30 pm
    • Voice & Vision

  • Gone but not forgotten: The Art of Letting Go (of information)

    Humans are hoarders by nature, clinging to "just-in-case" information like it's a security blanket. But that blanket is often a fire hazard, a compliance headache, and a massive drain on resources. Worse still, this sea of information impedes your ability to maximise the value of AI tools like Copilot. From overflowing inboxes to that spreadsheet from 2013, Redundant, Obsolete and Trivial (ROT) information is silently costing your organisation time and money - and yet the struggle to let go is real.

    This session will expose the hidden costs and real-world horror stories of digital hoarding, and reveal how Microsoft Purview acts as the clean-up crew. Understand why your organisation needs an intervention, learn how to identify ROT, and implement the tools for defensible disposal and strategic information lifecycle management.

    Walk away with a clear action plan to reclaim control, reduce your digital footprint, transform your information chaos into a clean, compliant, and efficient environment, and unlock the true potential of your AI investments.

    Breakout 3
    Wed 12:45 pm - 1:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • Securing your Microsoft Lists

    One common issue with Lists is row level security - users can see the whole list.

    Let's step through the out of the box options for security as well as some clever Power Automate workflows to ensure people only have the access they need for their step of the process.

    Submitters only need view access once submitted.
    Approvers need Edit Access, until it is approved.
    Other users only need to see items when they hit certain statuses.

    How can we build a flexible workflow to handle this.

    Breakout 1
    Wed 1:45 pm - 2:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • AI in real life – extracting structured data from PDFs

    How we reconciled original PDFs (scans of faxes of photocopies of hand typed documents) with our database record of the same information, without losing our mind.
    An external audit showed up a discrepancy between one original resource consent document’s conditions and the database record of the same document’s consent conditions. But there were 61 consents with 1506 consent conditions our staff had put into our database and 92 original documents.
    Come along to learn:
    - How to use CopilotStudio and a custom prompt to turn PDFs into structured data.
    - The value of collaboration on projects like this.
    - Traps and issues when doing this sort of reconciliation.
    I’ll take you through the different approaches we tested, some of the failures and our successes. And why you as a digital workplace professional need to know about these technologies, even if only to be able to get the IT team to do it for you ;-)

    Breakout 3
    Wed 1:45 pm - 2:30 pm
    • Microsoft 365

  • The water's fine - why won't they jump in?!

    - Your rollout went to plan
    - You’ve trained them
    - You’ve coached them
    - You’ve given them champions, cheat sheets, and chatbots

    Join us for a candid, fast-paced panel discussion with speakers from DWC as we unpack the real reasons behind low adoption—even when everything is in place. We’ll explore what motivates people to change, what holds them back, and how to move from readiness to real usage.

    Expect bold insights, real stories, and a few uncomfortable truths as we explore how to move beyond checklists and into real behavioural change. If you’ve ever asked, “Why aren’t they using it?” — this session is for you.

    This is part of the Conference Close and has been added after a hugely successful webinar in October of this topic. Debbie Ireland and Shannon Donovan (DWR) will host the discussion with our panelists. Bring your questions, submit them earlier, and join in the conversation!

    Breakout 2
    Wed 3:00 pm - 3:45 pm
    • Voice & Vision
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