JCB boosts work efficiency with adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot

Setting out to use generative AI for work transformation

JCB is the only international payment brand based in Japan. Its brand message, “Uniquely Yours” reflects a strong customer-first mindset and a deeply rooted Japanese identity—highlighted by a spirit of hospitality and thoughtful meticulous care. The company continues to offer forward-thinking payment solutions, including the JCB Touch Payment and NFC (near-field communication) tag-based smartphone payments, as well as support for various digital wallets.

As FinTech rapidly transforms the payment landscape, JCB is proactively evolving to stay ahead. A key enabler of this transformation is AI, already being utilized in areas such as credit assessments and automation of merchant evaluation and registration. In 2023, the company began applying generative AI to drive work efficiency and productivity. Mr. Hiroshi Akasaka, Assistant Vice President of the Corporate Planning Department, explains their structured approach to AI adoption.

“We view generative AI for work transformation in three levels: 1) streamline daily work, 2) enhance internal tasks, 3) support customer service. Level 1 is like strength training—it builds foundational skills needed for more advanced use. We needed AI that every employee could use in daily work.”

In November 2023, Microsoft released the enterprise version of Copilot, an AI assistant integrated into Microsoft 365. To achieve Level 1—streamlining everyday tasks—JCB began a proof of concept (PoC) in January 2024 with 440 licenses, testing Copilot in actual business workflows.

Microsoft 365 environment: Allowing for swift PoC of Copilot

Ms. Yonna Maezawa from the System Planning Department at JCB explains why the company chose Copilot.

“Employees already used Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint daily, so we could easily imagine them clicking the Copilot icon on the familiar taskbar. It would be a natural extension of their routine, making adoption seamless. Upon deployment, the fact that we were able to reference Microsoft 365’s Product Terms and Data Protection Agreements supported smooth risk assessment.”

Mr. Akasaka notes that for the PoC, the initial 440 Copilot licenses were distributed across approximately 70 departments. “Department heads selected participants, and we asked them to ensure diversity in job roles, responsibilities, and demographics to gather broader data,” he adds.

“The Copilot PoC ran from January to March 2024. In the survey at the end, 70% of 300 respondents reported time savings in gathering and searching info. That translated into about five hours monthly per person—enough to justify the license cost. This gave us the go-ahead to expand. The next challenge was fostering a culture of generative AI usage.”

In June 2024, the number of Copilot licenses was expanded to 1,000. Based on growing demand, this increased again to 1,600 in October. “For the additional 600 licenses, we invited volunteers via email and used a lottery system,” says Mr. Akasaka. “It is estimated that several hundred people were not selected, indicating a high level of interest in Copilot within the company. We monitored usage, and if someone was not using their license, we reassigned it in accordance with the internal policy.”

To ensure proper use, JCB required Copilot users to complete a training video that covers basic operations, along with a short quiz to confirm understanding of the company’s guidelines for generative AI. While they knew generative AI was a highly useful technology and wanted to encourage users to try it hands-on, they also recognized the importance of educating employees about potential risks. For this reason, the video and quiz were made a prerequisite for accessing Copilot.

The company also launched an internal community site called the “Generative AI Utilization Hub,” using Microsoft SharePoint’s Discussion Board feature. The site hosts training videos, information about Copilot, and collections of helpful tips. It now serves as a platform for employees to share knowledge and best practices around generative AI.

Boosting Copilot Utilization: Posting Weekly “Tips” to Motivate Employees

One challenge to boosting Copilot utilization is creating an environment that encourages people to use the app. Among the various measures, the most-effective so far has been posting weekly Copilot tips on Microsoft Teams. Ms. Maezawa, one of the members tasked with these posts, explains the purpose of these posts and why they have resonated with employees.

“Some users are so busy they forget that Copilot even exists. The weekly posts are designed not only to share useful information but also to encourage these users to engage with Copilot. The posts are now managed by several members of the System Planning Department via Teams chat. We mainly share tips focused on prompts and features that directly support work tasks, rather than generic advice. These tips range widely, from ideas for creative prompts to ways Copilot can help organize daily tasks and schedules. Posts that feature best practices collected through user interviews are increasing as well. When we receive individual questions or hear our colleague express appreciation for the posts, it reassures us that our efforts are helpful and motivates us to continue.”

“A key strength of these posts is that they appear in users’ chats every week,” says Ms. Maezawa. “This regular presence helps users discover new ways to apply Copilot and encourages them to try out different features.”

Users can show their appreciation or recommend a post by reacting with stamps. The post that has received the most stamps was the prompt sharing feature. “If you find a prompt you like, you can save it to your personal list by clicking the ‘Save prompt’ icon,” Ms. Maezawa explains. “This way, you can easily reuse it later. Microsoft shares updates on new Copilot features with us, and this prompt sharing function was one of the most eagerly awaited.”

“The biggest challenge for new users is figuring out how to phrase prompts,” she adds. “The prompt sharing feature was well received because it streamlines how users interact with Copilot, making it more accessible.”

Copilot expected to boost work efficiency by an average total of approximately six hours per person across top five use cases

Over the six months leading up to March 2025, Copilot recorded an impressive average monthly utilization rate of 83%. Mr. Akasaka attributes this success to both top-down and grassroots initiatives. “At monthly manager meetings, the company president shares messages encouraging Copilot use. This is posted on our internal portal. This top-down push, combined with user-focused efforts like weekly tips, builds momentum. The president was also briefed on Copilot, and showed strong interest in time saving features like one-click email summarization.”

The company has long prioritized productivity—limiting meetings to 30 minutes is one example—and Copilot has reinforced these initiatives. In January 2025, a survey was conducted to see which use cases were especially effective in saving time, and meeting-related items (taking minutes, summarizing, understanding meeting content) came out on top.

“On average, employees take meeting minutes six times a month,” says Mr. Akasaka. “Our survey showed that this task alone saved 1.4 hours per person each month.”

Overall, Copilot was found to improve work efficiency by roughly six hours per person per month across its top five use cases. The second most effective task was searching and collecting internal information. Users appreciated Copilot’s ability to surface relevant content and internal terminology. Email summarization, ranked fifth, was also widely used—around six to seven times monthly per user.

Beyond the top five, usage patterns varied by department. “Sales reps often use Copilot for idea generation—which ranked seventh—when creating proposals,” says Ms. Maezawa. “They interact with Copilot to organize their thoughts and structure presentations. Translation came in ninth and is heavily used in international departments for communications in languages other than English and Japanese. Program coding ranked tenth but was one of the top time-savers, averaging 13 hours saved per month. Marketing and other departments use it to automate tasks like data analysis.”

Creating the future of business with generative AI: How Copilot can contribute by providing support tailored to every user

One of the current trends in generative AI is the growing interest in agent-based automation for specific tasks. “Microsoft Copilot Studio enables low-code development of agents customized to match specific workflows,” explains Ms. Maezawa. “We’re currently in the midst of validating its effectiveness with a view to future full-scale deployment.”

She adds, “Within our company, we encounter many recurring tasks where agents could really help. We want to build more and more patterns where simply giving an instruction allows the task to be completed automatically. We also see strong potential for Copilot Agents to support individual employees in their day-to-day work.”

JCB is preparing to distribute Copilot licenses to all employees during FY2025, with plans to accelerate adoption even further. Mr. Akasaka explains the measures being taken to support this.

“We use Microsoft Viva Insights to visualize how Copilot is being utilized by analyzing employee behaviors and work habits. Looking ahead, we hope to give managers access to dashboards so they can better understand how their team members are using Copilot and offer tailored guidance. We are also conducting surveys using Microsoft Forms to collect employees’ perceived value of Copilot. By combining this qualitative feedback with usage data, we aim to refine our initiatives and verify their impact more effectively. In parallel, we’ll keep focusing on collecting use cases from the field and sharing them across teams. Departments where managers actively promote Copilot tend to see higher usage. Some teams aren’t there yet, so we’re exploring ways to scale successful practices to similar departments. We’ll continue driving Copilot adoption at both individual and team levels.”

As a company rooted in its Japanese identity and committed to delivering new payment experiences, JCB continues to grow as the only international payment brand originating in Japan. Copilot will remain a close partner in this journey—supporting not only the company’s innovation efforts but each and every employee along the way.