PwC modernizes across 136 countries via Microsoft 365 with Copilot, saves $150M

For global firms, standing still is the fastest way to fall behind. PwC, with more than 364,000 people across 136 countries, knows this firsthand. The firm’s sheer scale is a superpower, but it can also slow change, entrench silos, and make it harder to move as one. 

To remain industry-leading, PwC set out to modernize how its people work together every day: faster, simpler, and more secure across offices and time zones. It wasn’t just an IT project; it was a bet on the company’s future, one that would make it easier to collaborate, learn, and innovate together, wherever work happens.

Modernizing at scale

To meet these ambitious goals, PwC turned to Microsoft 365 with Copilot—a unified, modern productivity platform enabled by built-in AI. This solution was rolled out across the entire firm, giving every employee access to secure, intuitive tools that adapt to local needs while connecting teams globally.

The migration was massive: more than 15 petabytes of data and 500,000-plus mailboxes moved to the new platform. This is 25 times larger than the average migration. “The power of the Microsoft 365 platform is that we can meet country specific needs through configuration, not custom code. That helps make it easier to run and to keep everyone secure and compliant,” says Rob McCurdy, Global Deputy CTO at PwC. Microsoft Unified Support worked with PwC to enable a smooth, secure deployment at a global scale. 

The team treated the global migration like a relay, not a sprint. Migrations ran on weekends so people could wake up Monday and find everything where it should be. The team limited daily moves to about 20,000 users to keep things as smooth as possible. 

Support was human first: the team focused on quick, friendly help rather than long manuals. “Our ticket volume was low, and 90% were ‘How do I do this?’ not ‘This is broken,’” McCurdy says.

Making work smarter, not harder

AI came next, embedded where people work. Collaboration tools and documents now have assistants that summarize, surface answers, and help speed routine tasks. “With the full Microsoft productivity stack deployed, Copilot has tremendous visibility into our existing data, and that allows us to go faster,” says James Shira, Global and US CIO, Global CISO.

PwC also built custom agents in Microsoft Copilot Studio for common work, from research to HR and IT support. “I want to make sure those AI agents have an ecosystem they can exist and scale within so our people don’t have to think about things like compliance and security,” says Shira. “We have that in the Microsoft environment.”

For people day-to-day, the difference is tangible. “What I love most is that I don’t have to switch between apps; Copilot is just there when I need it. Because it’s connected to my files and calendar, it feels personal and intuitive, like it really understands my work and helps me move faster,” says Femke Teunissen, Tax Reporting and Strategy Associate at PwC.

Building energy for what’s next

The results are real and growing. PwC has more than 200,000 Copilot licenses enabled globally and recorded 40.8 million Copilot actions in six months. The firm has also realized $25 million in savings from consolidating platforms and $150 million in savings from Copilot use. These are not just numbers—they’re time returned to people to think, advise, and create.

“We’re evolving into an AI first organization—embedding Microsoft 365 with Copilot so our people can spend more time advising clients and less time on administrative work,” says Shira. 

This modernization is a blueprint: a single, secure, global way of working that’s easier to manage, easier to upgrade, and ready for whatever comes next. 

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