The Salvation Army UK and Ireland modernizes employee workflows to better serve communities with Copilot

Most people recognize The Salvation Army by its red Christmas kettles or the familiar sound of brass bands at community events. But those visible traditions represent something far more expansive. Behind them stands a mission-driven organization rooted in service, compassion, and practical care.

Operating through more than 650 corps and community centers across England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, The Salvation Army UK and Ireland supports hundreds of thousands of people each year. Its services span housing, food assistance, employment support, addiction recovery, modern slavery helplines, and emergency response. More than charity, it is a vital thread in the nation’s social fabric, often stepping in where others can’t.

Rooted in its Christian faith, The Salvation Army serves people in practical, compassionate ways—meeting needs, valuing every person, and offering hope.

The data dilemma

Such a wide reach brings complexity, especially around data and document management. Though the organization had already adopted Microsoft 365 tools like Microsoft Teams and SharePoint to stay connected, information remained scattered. Staff were often overwhelmed, bogged down in back-end work like writing reports, capturing case notes, and navigating multiple systems just to find the right form or policy.

“The more we produce, the harder it becomes to keep track of where things are,” says Lev Malinin, Head of Enterprise Systems, Data and AI at The Salvation Army UK and Ireland. “Unless you know exactly where to look, you're probably not going to find it.” For an organization doing critical work every day, that kind of challenge can slow people down, inhibiting the ability to act quickly and causing stress.

Miguel Fiallos, Chief Information Officer at The Salvation Army UK and Ireland saw an opportunity: “We’re all dealing with information overload. AI could help us make sense of the data we’re holding—and put it to use in ways that help us help more people.”

Bridging mission and modernization

That transformation began with a foundational shift away from legacy, on-premises systems toward a unified, cloud-based environment built on Microsoft technologies. One of the earliest and most impactful steps was migrating data from outdated N-drives into Microsoft Teams and SharePoint Online.

“The migration laid the groundwork for centralized access to documents and more seamless collaboration across teams,” says Chetan Mehta, Enterprise Business Partner at The Salvation Army UK and Ireland. With Microsoft 365, including Outlook, Word, Excel, and Teams now standardized across the organization, day-to-day work became more interconnected and efficient.

But while documents were easier to store, they still weren’t easy to find, especially for frontline staff juggling urgent responsibilities. A security audit revealed that staff had turned to nearly 200 shadow AI tools just to keep up, introducing new risks to data integrity and compliance.

Faced with this reality, the leadership knew it was time to act. “Do you just start blocking everything?” Malinin asks. “Or do you enable it?” The team chose the latter but decided to unify its systems through one technology. With Microsoft 365 Copilot, the organization could reduce risk while building out a cohesive and scalable infrastructure that could support ongoing innovation and expansion into agentic AI workflows. 

“With Copilot, we could regain control, eliminate complexity, and finally make our vast knowledge base more accessible and secure,” says Malinin.

Building trust through experience

The team knew that adoption would require building trust through meaningful hands-on experience. “There were concerns about AI and privacy, and also about it taking away jobs,” says Michaël March, Senior Microsoft 365 Analyst at The Salvation Army UK and Ireland. “Our aim was to help people understand how Copilot could support them in doing their existing work more efficiently and effectively.”

The team began with a group of 150 early adopters, offering targeted training and “promptathons,” as well as one-on-one guidance. The goal wasn’t to push usage, but to create opportunities for discovery and “aha” moments that would naturally spark interest and “prove” value to new users.

Mehta says the approach really paid off. “We’ve had people who’ve gone away and used it, and when it works, they say, ‘Wow, this is amazing. This is going to be a game changer for me.’” Over time, even skeptics began requesting access.

The rollout was guided by the organization’s internal Microsoft Center of Excellence, a group that regularly collaborates with Microsoft and helped shape the strategic integration of technology within The Salvation Army UK and Ireland. “We’ve built enough of a reputation in that space that we are actively engaging with Microsoft on this journey,” says Malinin. “The support and learnings have made a big difference.”

Everyday transformations, real value

As Copilot became part of daily work, the benefits quickly became tangible. Staff began turning to it not as a novelty, but as a practical support, especially when workloads were heavy or time was tight. “When people realize you’re giving them the best chance of doing good in the world with the best tools available, they understand the value and impact Copilot can make in people’s lives,” says March.

For Mehta, the change was both professional and personal. “It’s made me think a lot about how I work, how I plan, how to do things differently to work smarter,” he says. “When you’re overwhelmed or just stuck on how to get started, it’s really powerful to have that help and inspiration.” Copilot has become his go-to for jumpstarting complex projects and organizing ideas.

Departments across the organization are experiencing similar breakthroughs. The Salvation Army’s legal team uses Copilot to review and align policies with legislation. Administrators can turn around reports that used to take hours in five-minutes. Communications staff are quickly drafting donor updates and event briefs. “Copilot has really added value,” says March. “The formatting, structure, and clarity are often better than what I would have written on my own.”

For frontline teams, Copilot is even helping bridge language and accessibility gaps. “We’ve used Copilot to translate emails into target languages or rewrite reports in simpler formats, sometimes even for children,” adds March. “This has helped us make communication more inclusive and responsive.”

It’s also helping lift emotional burdens. “A colleague used Copilot for a particularly complex task, completing it in record time,” explains Mehta. “When she realized that she could use the tool to help her like that all the time, she said it was such a weight off her shoulders. To me, for Copilot to be able to offer that kind of relief is one of its greatest benefits.”

A future with responsible, agentic AI

With a strong foundation in place, The Salvation Army is already looking ahead. The team is exploring how AI agents can proactively respond to needs, trigger actions, and offer deeper insights into data. “We’re exploring Copilot Studio and other tools to build out agentic experiences that align with our mission,” says Fiallos. “However we use AI in the future, it must reflect our principles: clarity, compassion, and usefulness.”

Some of the use cases the team is exploring include a volunteer chatbot that answers frequent questions, an agent that scans case notes to identify high-risk situations, and an AI that drafts impact reports before they are even requested.

“For us, AI is about helping people do the things that only they can do,” says Fiallos. “By lightening the administrative load, Copilot and future AI tools will help us be more present, more focused, and more responsive to people in the world that deeply need our care.

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