Tom Richards, Senior Director, Strategy and Planning at Cisco, discusses the evolution of the Cisco and Microsoft partnership and how Cisco Microsoft Teams Rooms brings enterprise-grade management, AI capabilities, and multi-platform flexibility to Microsoft Teams Rooms.

• How Cisco and Microsoft moved from competition to collaboration, delivering full MTR experiences without compromising RoomOS capabilities

• The engineering behind containerising Android and MTR within RoomOS, creating a unified management architecture that scales to thousands of devices

• Distance Zero AI at the edge: intelligent camera framing, microphone beamforming, and background noise removal that adapts in real time

• Multi-platform flexibility allowing organisations to run native MTR mode or RoomOS UI mode with seamless Webex and Zoom integration

• How Cisco devices are evolving beyond collaboration tools into workplace investments, providing occupancy sensors and building data for facilities teams

• The MDEP (Microsoft Devices Ecosystem Platform) initiative and what it means for the future of Android-based Teams Rooms devices

Thanks to Cisco, this episode's sponsor, for their continued support of Empowering.Cloud

Rick Garcia, EVP Product & Marketing at Momentum, discusses moving from simple workflows to AI‑assisted experiences in the Microsoft stack, from SMS agents to contextual insights across Teams data.

Find out how ideas proven in tools can translate into Outlook, Power Automate and Copilot, and what's next as Microsoft brings advanced AI capabilities into the platform more quickly.

• Packaging practical AI texting workflows that sales teams can adopt immediately
• Translating "bleeding‑edge" ideas from third‑party automation platforms into Microsoft 365
• Using Power Automate and Azure AI to build real business solutions beyond basic attendants
• Why unified Teams, email, chat and SharePoint data enables true contextual insights
• The path from BI metrics to actionable signals for leaders and product teams

Thanks to Momentum, this episode's sponsor, for their continued support of Empowering.Cloud

Ilya Bukshteyn, Corporate Vice President for Microsoft Teams Calling Devices and Premium experiences, and Irena Andonova, who leads the Teams devices product team, discuss the latest in Microsoft Teams and AI Powered Workplace from Microsoft Ignite 2025.

• “Secure, Simple, Smart” - URL protection, domain impersonation detection, and simplified threading and multi-tenant activity feed
• The power of Work IQ and Copilot integration across chats, channels, calls and meetings
• Ambient intelligence in Teams Rooms, including face and voice recognition for proper attribution in meeting transcripts and AI-powered note-taking
• Teams Admin Center AI for policy management using natural language
• AI assistant in Teams Roomos Pro Management Portal for deployment, insights and estate management at scale
• Microsoft Devices Ecosystem Platform (MDEP) partnership to enhance Android device security, management and capabilities

Thanks to Ilya and Irena for their insights.

Listen to Sean Gilmour, Principal Product Manager Lead for Advance Calling - Microsoft Teams, and Pratichi Dash, Product Manager - Dynamics 365 Contact Center Voice and Conversational AI , explain Teams Phone Extensibility (TPE), Unify and how they enable a single, unified phone system across UCaaS and CCaaS.

• What TPE is, how it works with Azure Communication Services, and why the Unify certification matters for a level playing field

• How Dynamics 365 Contact Center uses TPE to reuse existing Teams Phone architecture and Operator Connect carriers

• Coexistence with Azure PSTN/Direct Routing today, with Microsoft recommending TPE going forward

• Practical AI today: agent-assist with summaries, translation and guidance, plus the roadmap towards intelligent IVR and smarter routing

• Seamless call movement between Dynamics agents and Teams SMEs for faster resolutions across the organisation

Thanks to Numonix, this episode’s sponsor, for their continued support of Empowering.Cloud

Gareth Bleasdale, Senior GTM Manager: Modern Work and AI at Microsoft, explains what Copilot Chat is, how it differs from consumer AI, and practical steps to adopt it safely across your organisation.

• What’s included in the free Copilot Chat with Entra accounts
• Security and governance: enterprise protections, encrypted web queries, audit and e‑discovery
• New capabilities: unified history, memory and personalisation, in‑app chat in Word and Excel, GPT‑5 access
• Adoption playbook for IT, business decision makers and end users, plus Microsoft‑funded programmes and resources
• Where agentic patterns fit: web‑grounded agents on the free tier and pay‑as‑you‑go options for tenant‑grounded workflows

Check out Gareth’s webinar on 17 November 2025

Thanks to Landis, this episode’s sponsor, for their continued support of Empowering.Cloud

MVP Tom Arbuthnot shares all the latest Microsoft Teams and Copilot news and announcements in less than 15 minutes for November 2025.
Many thanks to Landis for their continued support.

PowerPoint Deck

• Microsoft-OpenAI Partnership Changes
• Microsoft Earnings Numbers (FY26 Q1)
• Teams Mode for Microsoft 365 Copilot
• Teams Channel Agents
• Teams Chat with Anyone
• 1080p 4Mbps Town Halls
• Copilot Researcher with Computer User
• Microsoft Teams Rooms New Features
• Teams Devices News
• Events

Briefings

• Customer and Agent Assist AI Demos in Landis Teams Contact Center and Attendant Console with Preston Martin and Shannon Martin, Account Exexutives at Landis
• Microsoft Teams Pro Management Portal AI: What’s Possible Today and Roadmap with Alvin Tsou, Product Manager at Microsoft and Andrew George, Principal Eningeering Manger at Microsoft
• Understanding Microsoft Teams Channel Agents: Use Cases, Features, Workflows and Demo with Sandhya Rao, Principal Group Product Manager, Teams Core AI at Microsoft
• Copilot Agents, No-Code to Pro-Code Options - Paolo Pialorsi, Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft

Teams Insider Podcasts

• How IQVIA scaled 650 Microsoft Teams Rooms with Global Standards & Smart Operations with Andre Razzuri, Associate Director at IQVIA
• How Partners can Accelerate Copilot Success – Wesley Budd, Partner Solutions Architect at Microsoft
• The Future of Meeting Rooms with Tormod Ree, Chief Product and Engineering Officer at Neat
• The Importance of Standardisation: Rolling out Microsoft Teams Rooms to 450 Rooms Globally with Andrew Liptrot, Service Owner for AV and Workplace Technology at Haleon
• Making Microsoft Teams Great on Mac, iPad and iPhone with Microsoft Engineering with Hari Krishna Reddy Juturu, Partner Group Engineering Manager at Microsoft and Avinash Prasad, Partner Director of Engineering at Microsoft

Hari Krishna Reddy Juturu, Partner Group Engineering Manager, and Avinash Prasad, Partner Director of Engineering, both at Microsoft, talk through the importance of the Apple Platforms, user experience and new features.

• How the team “sim‑ships” features across platforms while embracing earned, Mac‑native integrations like Menu Bar Extras, AirPods support, and native screen sharing.
• Why day‑zero readiness for new macOS releases matters, and how close collaboration with Apple plus early beta testing protects reliability and performance.
• The update stance: older Teams clients are actively blocked after three versions, with visibility and remediation via the Teams Client Health dashboard for IT admins.
• Advances on iPad including dedicated multi‑window for chats and channels, external monitor support, and keyboard workflows.
• CarPlay improvements for safer commutes: hands‑free replies, notifications that respect system focus modes, and a continued push toward voice‑first experiences as the platform evolves.

Thanks to Crestron, this episode’s sponsor, for their continued support of Empowering.Cloud.

Andrew Liptrot, Service Owner for AV and Workplace Technology at Haleon, shares how a global estate is moving from traditional video rooms to Microsoft Teams Rooms with clear standards, fewer components, and stronger operations.

• Four room archetypes to match business outcomes: Meet, Create, Engage, and Influence
• Consolidation on a lean set of components, with emphasis on reliability, supportability, and lifecycle
• Internal design capability, visual room design, and partner delivery against agreed standards
• Governance and service maturity across policies, SOPs, and continuous improvement
• Proactive monitoring and the push towards “self-healing” rooms at scale
• Broadening from room uptime to overall digital employee experience, including booking, signage, and workspace tools