Episode 410 – Joy and Jay take over and talk Change Management

Episode 410 – Joy and Jay take over and talk Change Management


Welcome to Episode 410 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast where hosts Jay Leask and Joy Apple are joined by special guest Ben Stegink for a discussion recorded live from the North American Cloud and Collaboration Summit in Branson. In this episode we focus on how organizations must adapt their change management approaches for the Microsoft 365 cloud environment.We discuss the fundamental shift from traditional IT operations, where organizations controlled software update timing, to cloud-based services with continuous updates outside of their control. Jay and Joy emphasize that successful modern IT requires cross-functional teams where IT partners closely with business units, communications, and training departments rather than operating in isolation. We then talk about the need for a shift in governance models to empower business users while requiring IT to balance user control with necessary oversight.Key themes include the importance of ongoing communication and adoption strategies, using tools like Viva Engage communities for peer-to-peer support, and adopting a “yes, and” approach to business requests rather than defaulting to “no.” The episode emphasizes treating technology deployment as an ongoing service relationship rather than a one-time project, which is essential for success in the rapidly evolving cloud environment.

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Episode 409 – Preparing for Copilot​- Securing Your Microsoft 365 Data and Beyond​

Episode 409 – Preparing for Copilot​- Securing Your Microsoft 365 Data and Beyond​

Welcome to Episode 409 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, Ben and Scott explore the configuration decisions tenant administrators face when preparing their Microsoft 365 environment for Copilot deployment. They dive into the key questions every IT professional should be asking: How do you identify and remediate oversharing in SharePoint sites before Copilot can access that content? What governance controls should be in place to prevent sensitive data from being discoverable through organization-wide search? The hosts examine practical tools for identifying high-risk sites and content, how to control which sites appear in Copilot results, and other configuration options that allow you to optimize how Copilot processes organizational content.

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Episode 408 – Model Context Protocol (MCP) Part 2: Getting the Most Out of MCP Servers

Episode 408 – Model Context Protocol (MCP) Part 2: Getting the Most Out of MCP Servers

Welcome to Episode 408 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. Part two of our exploration into Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers continues our hands-on discussion about finding, implementing, and getting the most out of MCP servers in your daily workflows.

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Episode 407 – Model Context Protocol (MCP) Part 1: The USB Port of AI Communications

Episode 407 – Model Context Protocol (MCP) Part 1: The USB Port of AI Communications

Welcome to Episode 407 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we dive deep into the Model Context Protocol (MCP) – a game-changing specification that’s extending the capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs) and creating exciting new possibilities for IT professionals working with Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365.
MCP represents a significant shift toward more extensible and domain-specific AI interactions. Instead of being limited to pre-trained knowledge, you can now connect your AI tools directly to live data sources, APIs, and services that matter to your specific role and organization.
Whether you’re managing Azure infrastructure, creating content, or developing solutions, MCP provides a framework to make your AI interactions more powerful and contextually relevant to your daily workflows.

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Episode 406 – Agents of Insight: Copilot in Action and Sentinel on the Move

Episode 406 – Agents of Insight: Copilot in Action and Sentinel on the Move

Welcome to Episode 406 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, Ben and Scott discuss their recent experiences and thoughts on Microsoft’s Copilot features and agents, specifically focusing on the Researcher and Analyst agents. They share practical applications and benefits of these tools, such as using Researcher for meeting preparations and Analyst for exploring data, summarizing data, and even coming up with python script to use with data. Additionally, they cover the upcoming migration of Microsoft Sentinel to the Defender portal, discussing its implications and potential future changes for other security tools. The episode ends with a teaser about an upcoming discussion on MCPs for AI!

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Episode 405 – Loop, Loop Workspaces, Loop Pages, Copilot Pages, Copilot Notebooks, Copilot Notebooks in OneNote Notebooks

Episode 405 – Loop, Loop Workspaces, Loop Pages, Copilot Pages, Copilot Notebooks, Copilot Notebooks in OneNote Notebooks

Welcome to Episode 405 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, Ben and Scott tackle the increasingly complex world of Microsoft’s notebook ecosystem, exploring the new Copilot notebooks feature and how it relates to existing tools like OneNote and Loop. They break down the confusing landscape where “a notebook is not a notebook unless a notebook is a notebook in the right place.”

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