Modern Work – Catastrophic Failure

Some milestones feel just as special the second time around.

I’m incredibly grateful and honored to share that I have been renewed as a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) for another year in M365 Copilot and Microsoft Purview.

When I first received the MVP award, I saw it as both a recognition and a responsibility. A responsibility to continue learning, sharing knowledge, supporting the community, and helping others get the most value from Microsoft technologies.

Over the past year, the pace of innovation has been extraordinary. The rapid evolution of AI, the growing adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot, and the increasing importance of data security, governance, and compliance through Microsoft Purview have made this an exciting time to contribute to the community.

As I reflect on the past year, I’m grateful for every opportunity to engage with fellow professionals, exchange ideas, share experiences, create content, and learn from some of the brightest minds in the Microsoft ecosystem. The MVP community is filled with individuals who are passionate about helping others succeed, and it is a privilege to be part of it.

This renewal is not just about individual achievements. It represents the value of collaboration, community, and continuous growth. Every conversation, challenge, lesson learned, and connection made along the way has contributed to this journey.

Thank you to Microsoft for this continued recognition and trust. Thank you to the MVP Program team, my colleagues, friends, mentors, customers, and the incredible community members who inspire me every day.

Most importantly, thank you to everyone who shares their knowledge, asks thoughtful questions, provides feedback, and helps make our community stronger. Your contributions are what make this ecosystem thrive.

As I begin my second year as an MVP, I’m excited to continue exploring what’s possible with AI, M365 Copilot, and Microsoft Purview, while giving back to the community that has given me so much.

Here’s to another year of learning, sharing, growing, and making an impact together.

Thank you for being part of the journey. 💜

Joanna Vathis
Microsoft MVP | M365 Copilot | Microsoft Purview

Microsoft is rolling out an exciting update that will make life noticeably easier for anyone who works with shared or delegated inboxes in Outlook. Whether you’re an executive assistant managing a busy calendar, part of an HR or finance team working from a shared mailbox, or supporting customers from a service desk account—Copilot is about to become your new best friend.

Until now, Copilot features like summarizing threads or drafting replies were only available when you were in your own mailbox. But that’s changing. With this update, Copilot will work natively inside the shared or delegated mailboxes you already use every day, bringing AI assistance directly to the place where your work actually happens.

This enhancement is tracked under Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 554936, and it’s one of the most practical Copilot improvements so far for collaborative teams.

When is this coming?

Targeted Release: Rolling out from early April 2026 through early May 2026
General Availability: Rolling out from early May 2026 through early June 2026

In other words—it’s coming soon, and it will reach everyone within the next couple of months.

What’s changing and who benefits?

This update applies to:

People who work in shared or delegated Outlook mailboxes
Organizations where users are licensed for Microsoft 365 Copilot

Once enabled, users will be able to:

✔ Use Copilot Chat directly inside shared or delegated mailboxes

You no longer need to switch back to your primary inbox to engage Copilot.

✔ Access features like Summarize, Draft, and other Copilot prompts

These capabilities will now operate on the content of the shared mailbox itself.

✔ Skip awkward prompt wording

No more typing things like “in @domain.com…”.
You can simply ask Copilot naturally, and it understands the context of the mailbox you’re currently in.

✔ Benefit from full support for:

Full-access shared mailboxes
Shared folder permissions
Folder-level access models commonly used by support desks and admin teams

✔ Keep your Copilot history private

Even though multiple people may work in the same shared mailbox, the Copilot conversation history stays tied to your personal account, not the shared mailbox.
No cross-user visibility. No confusion.