EY redefines CRM with Dynamics 365 Sales and Sales Agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot

EY found it difficult to keep customer relationship management (CRM) records current. Manual data entry is time-consuming and often neglected. Without updated data, sellers can’t build trust with clients.

With a foundation in Dynamics 365 Sales, EY added Sales Agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot and other AI agents to help sellers automate data entry with notifications and suggestions directly in Microsoft Teams and Outlook.

The company is reducing the time sellers spend updating the CRM and increasing the time spent nurturing trusting relationships. With an updated, accurate CRM, EY improved forecasting and pipeline hygiene while supporting a client-centric mindset.

Relationships are the heartbeat of professional services. Building trust happens in small, meaningful moments: a thoughtful follow-up email or remembering a client’s milestone. Million-dollar deals start with a chance meeting at a conference and close over a coffee.

But here’s the thing: when business runs on relationships, keeping track of the details is a full-time job itself. Who has time to update the customer relationship management (CRM) system amid the actual work of servicing clients?

With nearly 400,000 professionals across 700 offices in 150 countries, getting this right is high stakes for EY. “We have to make it so updating the CRM is as easy as clicking a button or responding to a notification,” says Keith Mescha, Executive Director of Tech Consulting at EY. Selling is woven into the fabric of client services at EY. “In a partner-led organization like EY, it’s hard to get them to put data in systems. We need a way to grab it from them,” explains Mescha.

“Sellers want more control and less manual work. Sales Agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot prompts them to update records, assign tasks, and keep data current—without ever opening the CRM.”

Keith Mescha, Executive Director, Tech Consulting, EY

Laying the groundwork for meaningful relationships at scale

The EY sales transformation began with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales, deploying 85,000 licenses in 18 months, with a goal of reaching 100,000. But the real transformation comes with the rollout of AI agents—specifically, Sales Agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot in Dynamics 365 Sales.

“We’re seeing a cultural shift,” says Mescha. “Sellers want more control and less manual work. Sales Agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot prompts them to update records, assign tasks, and keep data current—without ever opening the CRM.”

Sales Agent reduces friction, automates updates, and surfaces insights directly in the daily tools that EY employees use: Outlook and Microsoft Teams. For example, an EY partner might record a Teams call with a client. When the call concludes, Sales Agent summarizes the discussion and offers to update the record in Dynamics 365 Sales.

Copilot in Dynamics 365 Sales helps teams navigate, understand, and gain insights from customer data in a natural language interface inside the platform. For example, an EY partner working in Dynamics 365 Sales might ask Copilot to show top prospects by region or summarize the history of an account.

This shift isn’t just about convenience. It’s also about unlocking scale and insight. “With AI agents in sales, we’re scaling the impact we have on clients. Without Dynamics 365 Sales and Copilot insights, we’re operating in the dark,” observes Kris Kuty, Clients and Industries, Digital Engagement Product Line Lead at EY.

“With AI agents in sales, we’re scaling the impact we have on clients. Without Dynamics 365 Sales and Copilot insights, we’re operating in the dark.”

Kris Kuty, Clients and Industries, Digital Engagement Product Line Lead, EY

Redefining CRM

EY developed custom agents—EY Growth Accelerator and EY Relationship Accelerator—with Copilot Studio. “These agents track status on accounts and suggest specific actions,” explains Kuty, who leads product activation. “Growth Accelerator helps sellers move leads forward. Relationship Accelerator helps them stay connected.”

The role of CRM is being redefined. “We’re shifting from the idea that CRM is just a reporting tool. With agents, we’re making CRM a way of life. It’s something that helps partners respond faster, qualify leads better, and build stronger relationships,” says Jeremy Hallett, Clients and Industries, Demand Generation Leader at EY.

“We’re shifting from the idea that CRM is just a reporting tool. With agents, we’re making CRM a way of life. It’s something that helps partners respond faster, qualify leads better, and build stronger relationships.”

Jeremy Hallett, Clients and Industries, Demand Generation Leader, EY

Freeing sellers to focus on relationships

To support the scale and complexity of the deployment, EY worked closely with the Microsoft Industry Solutions Delivery (ISD) team on the deployment of AI transformations in CRM, laying the foundation for agentic AI at scale. As Microsoft’s consulting organization, ISD brings deep AI expertise and helps customers realize value faster from their AI investments.

EY envisions a future where CRM data is always up-to-date, effortlessly. Engagement with CRM will be handled by agents and AI assistants, freeing sellers to focus on client relationships. “Ultimately, we want AI to be so embedded in our workflows that we’re not talking about it anymore,” explains Sherry Martin, Clients and Industries, Digital Engagement Leader at EY. “It just works.”

Martin continues, “This really is the agentic frontier, and Microsoft is evolving its capabilities for AI again and again and collaborating with us to pivot. We’re figuring it out as we go, and honestly, that’s the exciting part.”

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