In this episode, I make a simple distinction that changes everything: policy says what’s allowed; social proof says what’s normal. When respected voices work out loud (sharing links, co-authoring in the open, writing the decision at the top of the doc) adoption jumps without pep talks. I walk through how leaders and champions can model small behaviors in the exact spaces where work lives, so the habit spreads naturally. We’ll talk about answering “How do I…?” in public (not DMs), celebrating the pattern instead of the hero, and using light defaults and rituals so the better path becomes the easy path. If you want quick “how-to” support, I point to my Microsoft 365 Companion Series, Olympus Academy micro-lessons, short YouTube clips and training events with AuditSolv, but the star is culture in motion. By the end, you’ll have one move to model this week and a clear way to spot when the room has tipped.

In this episode, I make the case that you don’t need a PhD dashboard to prove your workflow is getting better—you need plain-English evidence anyone can recognize in seconds. I walk through the three signals I look for every week: were our meetings shorter or clearer, did the “can’t access / which version?” interruptions drop, and can we point to last week’s decision in under ten seconds. If you want ROI math, I share a simple way to translate those wins into numbers—but we don’t let the math delay momentum. You’ll also hear how teach-in-context changes (defaults, rituals, trace) make measurement obvious, and where my Microsoft 365 Companion Series, Olympus Academy micro-lessons, and quick YouTube clips fit as tiny “how-to” boosts at the moment of use. By the end, you’ll have a five-minute Friday ritual you can start this week.

In this episode, I make a simple promise: if you can point to the decision in under ten seconds, your workflow moves faster. I walk through why choices vanish in the noise of meetings, chats, and emails and how a single, human-readable headline in the doc (“Decision, Owner, Approver, Date”) stops re-litigating the same topic next week. I’ll show how quiet features (comments with @mentions, version history, approval notes, and sensitivity labels) serve as evidence behind the headline without turning this into a tool tour. You’ll hear the telltale signs your trace is working (shorter debates, fewer “did we decide?” pings, easier onboarding) and a tiny move you can try before your next meeting to lock it in. If you want the quick “how,” I’ll point to my Microsoft 365 Companion Series on Amazon, Olympus Academy micro-lessons, and short YouTube clips, but the win is the visible line that keeps work moving.

In this episode of Beyond the Feature, I make the case that reminders fade but rituals stick. Instead of asking people to “remember the new way,” I show how tiny, repeatable cues (an agenda seed in every invite, a two-line Decision header at the top of each document, and a simple naming pattern) quietly keep work on the rails. You’ll hear why rituals lower cognitive load, how they pair with smart defaults and visible trace, and where lightweight features (templates, pinned tabs, quick parts) support the habit without stealing the spotlight. This isn’t a tool tour; it’s a mindset shift: design the ritual, then teach the click. Along the way, I point to snackable resources like the Microsoft 365 Companion Series on Amazon, Olympus Academy micro-lessons, and short YouTube clips for quick “how-to” moments at the point of use.

And if interested in the consulting or projects that were mentioned, definitely reach out to AuditSolv ( www.auditsolv.com )for further conversation about Microsoft as a Service offering or consulting on numerous training or engineering projects.

In this special Microsoft Ignite edition of Beyond the Feature, I break down what the first two days of Ignite really mean for your organization, far beyond the headline features and shiny demos.

Instead of chasing every new Copilot button, we zoom out and look at how Microsoft’s push into agents, Work IQ, Security Copilot, and new Copilot licensing actually impacts the way you structure your tenant, govern your data, and design day-to-day work.

I share practical guidance from the front lines with clients through AuditSolv and training via Olympus Academy, focusing on how to turn Ignite announcements into a concrete roadmap and real return on your Microsoft 365 investment.

In this episode, I cover:

• How Copilot is evolving into a “work operating system,” not just an add-on

• Why Agent 365 and Windows 365 for Agents matter for governance and security

• What the Security Copilot story means for E5 customers and security teams

• How smaller and mid-sized organizations can realistically step into Copilot

• Five actionable steps to move from “feature hunting” to integrated, AI-powered workflows

If you’ve been watching Ignite and wondering, “Okay, but what do we do with all this?”—this episode is for you.

In this episode of Beyond the Feature, Patrick Jones unpacks a simple truth that quietly steers everyday behavior: defaults are destiny. Under pressure, people follow the path of least resistance: sixty-minute meetings stay sixty minutes, attachments keep spawning duplicates, and “anyone with the link can edit” invites chaos. I explain how flipping a few defaults changes outcomes without pep talks: shorter-by-default meetings with a tiny agenda seed, “links not attachments” as the cultural norm, and a visible place where decisions live. Rather than touring every feature, I show how features become support beams (templates, link settings, labels) after you set the expectation first. You’ll leave with a mental shift (“change the path, not the person”) and a small challenge to flip one default this week and watch the noise drop. Skills are still the verbs; defaults make the sentence effortless.

Set the Default meeting time

https://youtu.be/4DND0CbjzFs

Add agenda to your meeting invites

https://youtu.be/_pZPGzQ4H2Y

Change the link sharing default for security

https://youtu.be/ssP_b-NYmdw

In this episode of Beyond the Feature, I explain why most training evaporates on Monday and how to make it stick by teaching inside the real workflow. Instead of slide decks and demo tenants, we anchor skills at the exact moment of use: in the team space, in the live document, during the actual meeting. You’ll hear how context-dependent memory affects adoption, why “shared space” is the home field for behavior change, and how short, targeted moves (agenda seeds, @-mentions, decision lines) turn features into habits. Along the way, Patrick points to snackable resources (the Microsoft 365 Companion Series, Olympus Academy, and quick YouTube clips) as verbs you can drop into the sentence of real work. If you want shorter cycles, fewer “where’s the link?” pings, and decisions you can actually find, start here.