Foundation

The first degree of AI adoption, Foundation, typically focuses on conversational AI tools like Microsoft Copilot. Organizations want secure, well-governed ways to use these “chat” tools for answering questions, writing and editing text, summarizing information, and generating new content. While some preparation and prerequisites are necessary, these tools are generally easy to implement. Giving them access to organizational data—emails, documents, and conversations—can deliver enormous value quickly. However, although highly recommended for most customers with information workers, this can lead to a race to the middle and doesn’t provide true differentiation.

Configure

So, how does an organization begin to stand out? That’s where Configure comes in. This stage takes an agentic approach—embedding your unique knowledge, skills, and processes into AI. For example, Microsoft Copilot Studio allows non-technical users to create custom agents by focusing on specific documents or websites. As customization grows through low-code and no-code tools, opportunities expand into orchestration, workflows, and predictable outcomes. When your specific processes become part of these solutions, true differentiation begins—and so does real value.

Build

So, why not stop there? For some companies, it may be enough—especially if they’re already ahead of the competition. But low-code and no-code solutions have limits, particularly when it comes to deep data integration. To achieve full data fidelity and performance, a custom solution may be necessary. And when you consider the near-limitless opportunities for interfaces and integrations on a platform like Microsoft Azure, building a custom solution can often be both faster and more cost-effective. Of course, there are trade-offs. That’s where Placid Works comes in—to help you evaluate those options and present the most compelling path forward.

Why call these “Degrees” and not “Phases”?

Whilst there is a natural order and logical progression through these degrees, it’s not necessarily right for every customer to start with One and progress through Two and on to Three. Some customers may start at Three as a priority to differentiate quickly, others may jump between them based on short-, medium- and longer-term goals.

How do we start working together?

Reach out today for a no obligation conversation about how Placid Works can help.

We want to learn about you, your business and how we can help you differentiate in this time of rapid change.