In today’s fast-paced and demanding professional world, the ability to quickly synthesize large volumes of information is essential for making informed decisions and preparing effectively for meetings and presentations. The Researcher agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot is designed to meet this need by intelligently gathering relevant content from Outlook, OneDrive, and Teams.

This lab offers a hands-on opportunity to explore how the Researcher agent can help you uncover insights, organize information, and generate polished deliverables from your own data—all within the familiar Microsoft 365 environment. Whether you’re consolidating project updates, collecting stakeholder feedback, or preparing for an executive meeting, this lab demonstrates how Copilot can boost your productivity and ensure you always have the right information at the right time.

In this training exercise, you plan to use the Researcher agent to synthesize information from Outlook, OneDrive, and Teams to prepare insights on a topic using your own data.

Exercise

Think of a real project you’ve worked on in the past 90 days. Amid numerous emails, meetings, and virtual discussions, you need a comprehensive summary of all communications related to this critical initiative. The preconfigured Researcher agent from Microsoft is the ideal tool to synthesize your communication history and provide a concise recap of all activities.

With a simple command, you can ask the platform to gather and distill the essence of your emails and discussions related to the project over the past month. Watch how the agent effortlessly sorts through the information. It then presents a concise summary that captures progress made, highlights key decisions, challenges encountered, and emerging trends. This exercise illustrates how using the Researcher agent can save you valuable time while keeping you well-informed and in control of the essential aspects of your professional activities.

Steps to follow:

1. In Microsoft 365, select the Researcher agent if it appears in the navigation pane under the Agents section. If not, select All Agents, then in the Agent Store window, select Researcher under the Created by Microsoft section.
2. In Microsoft 365, the Researcher agent window will appear. In the input field, enter the following query (replace Topic X with the actual name of a project or subject you’ve worked on in your organization):
   Help me gather and summarize all recent discussions, documents, and emails related to [Topic X] over the past 90 days.
3. Review the Researcher agent’s response. If it asks follow-up questions, respond as needed. For example, Researcher may ask:
   • Are there specific aspects of [Topic X] you’re particularly interested in, such as performance, updates, or issues?
   • Would you like a detailed report or a high-level summary?
   • Is there a specific format you prefer for the summary, such as a report or a presentation?
4. After reviewing Researcher’s results, decide if you want to refine the scope. For example, you can ask:
   • List the actions I need to take.
   • Give more details about the meeting with {person’s name}.
   • Summarize the key decisions from these communications.
   • Write an email to the team about project participation.

Other queries you can submit to the Researcher agent:

General Research and Information Gathering

• Summarize all recent documents, discussions, and emails related to [Topic X].
• What decisions have been made regarding [Topic X] in the past month?
• Find and summarize feedback on our updated remote work policy.
• List key deliverables and deadlines discussed in recent meetings about [Topic X].
• Who are the main contributors to [Topic X]?

Meeting Preparation

• Help me prepare for an upcoming meeting by summarizing recent communications and shared files on [Topic X].
• What topics were covered in previous weekly team syncs?
• What follow-up actions did I miss from last Thursday’s leadership meeting?

Progress and Status Updates

• Summarize the current status and obstacles for [Topic X].
• What progress has been made on [Topic X] according to emails and Teams updates?
• Generate a one-page update on [Topic X] for next week’s check-in.

Open Questions and Gaps

• What open questions remain regarding [Topic X]?
• What actions from the last review meeting are still incomplete?

Document Discovery and Insights

• Find the latest version of [Topic X] and summarize key updates.
• List and link all budget-related files created in the past 60 days for [Topic X].
• Summarize the content of shared documents related to [Topic X].

Next Unit: Review the Prompt Coach Agent