In October, Microsoft will introduce a self-service purchasing option for Copilot, available to users with Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard, and Premium licenses. This feature will allow end users to directly purchase Copilot without admin intervention, raising some important considerations for IT management.
What You Need to Know:
- Self-service purchases will be limited to individual licenses, not departments or teams, at launch.
- Admins will still retain the ability to monitor and manage these licenses, but it requires proactive oversight through the Microsoft 365 admin center.
- This change could impact your licensing strategy, as individual purchases may lead to unintentional duplication of licenses or billing discrepancies.
- Introducing Copilot into your organization without proper preparation—such as a data governance strategy—may pose risks, as Copilot relies heavily on data access and usage. Having a clear AI strategy and data governance plan is critical to avoid potential compliance or security challenges.
Managing the Impact:
Admins will receive a 30-day advance notice in the Microsoft 365 message center before the feature goes live, and have the option to disable self-service purchases if desired. Monitoring how this feature affects your license management and data governance is key to avoiding unexpected costs or complications.
Next Steps:
If you’d like guidance on how to manage self-service purchasing in your tenant or advice on Copilot’s broader integration, we’re here to help. We can work with you to ensure a smooth rollout while keeping your tenant, billing, and data under control. If Katalyst is not your partner of record for Microsoft, reach out for us to take over the transfer of licenses. Lastly, Katalyst offers an array of managed services for Microsoft, including Tenant Administration, Advisory Services, Backups, and Security Services.
Reach out to your Account Manager if you would like to discuss this!
