Copilot prompts for procurement and supply chain: what to use in Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams

This guide is for buyers, planners and logistics coordinators whose company's approved AI tool is Microsoft Copilot (formerly Microsoft 365 Copilot). It's organized by app, because that's where the work happens. The prompts are plain text, so they also work in ChatGPT or other approved assistants.

What can Copilot see, and what can't it?

Signed in with a work account, Copilot runs under Microsoft's enterprise data protection. Microsoft states that "the prompts, responses, and data accessed through Microsoft Graph aren't used to train foundation models." Copilot can work with the email, files and meetings you already have access to in Microsoft 365. It doesn't see your ERP unless your IT team has connected it, so prices, inventory or open-PO figures you paste may be out of date. Your company's policy still decides what data you can use with it, and export-controlled data stays out unless that policy explicitly allows it.

Copilot in Outlook: supplier communication

Summarize a supplier thread into a status update

Fictional exampleExample Valve Co., its suppliers and every number in this example are made up for illustration. Don't paste real supplier quotes, NDA pricing, personal data or export-controlled data into an AI tool. Anonymize first and follow your company's AI policy.

A buyer at Example Valve Co. has a five-email thread with Supplier 03 about PO 55120 for 500 actuators due Oct 30. Here's the thread, condensed:

Email 1 (buyer to Supplier 03, Oct 6): Please confirm PO 55120, 500 actuators, due Oct 30.
Email 2 (Supplier 03, Oct 9): The actuator casting from our foundry is late. We can ship 200 on Oct 30 and 300 on Nov 14.
Email 3 (buyer, Oct 9): Is there an expedite option to bring the 300 forward? What would it cost?
Email 4 (Supplier 03, Oct 13): Expediting is possible for a fee; we'll confirm the amount. The Nov 14 date assumes we use a substitute casting, which needs your engineering approval.
Email 5 (buyer to engineering, Oct 13): Can you review the substitute casting? The supplier needs an answer to hold Nov 14.

Summarize this thread for my manager in 5 bullets: current status, dates promised, open decisions, who owns each, and risks. Then list the three questions I still need answered. Use only what's in the thread. If a date or quantity is unclear, write 'unclear'.

What good output looks like:

• Status: 200 of 500 actuators can ship Oct 30. The other 300 are promised for Nov 14, but only if the substitute casting is approved.
• Dates promised: Oct 30 (200 units); Nov 14 (300 units, conditional).
• Open decisions: approve the partial shipment (buyer); approve the substitute casting (engineering); accept or decline the expedite fee (buyer).
• Owners: buyer for the shipment and fee decisions; engineering for the casting.
• Risk: the Nov 14 date depends on the casting approval. Expedite fee: unclear.

Questions still open:
1. What is the expedite fee, and how much earlier would it bring the 300 units?
2. When will engineering decide on the substitute casting?
3. Does shipping in two lots add freight cost?

What to check: every date and quantity against the original emails, and that Copilot didn't treat the substitute casting as already approved. That's the most likely way a summary like this goes wrong.

Draft a late-PO follow-up

Draft a firm, polite reply to this supplier about PO [NUMBER]. Ask for the expedite fee in writing, a confirmed ship date for each lot, and what happens to the second lot if the substitute part isn't approved. Ask for a reply by [DATE/TIME]. Under 120 words. No threats or legal language.

What to check: the PO number, quantities and dates, and that the draft doesn't agree to the fee or the partial shipment before you've decided.

If your company uses Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, Microsoft documents a Procurement Agent that drafts follow-up emails for unconfirmed or late purchase orders. Microsoft labels it a "production-ready preview", so ask IT whether it's available to you.

Copilot in Word: RFQs and specs

RFQ draft from a spec

Microsoft's own adoption library includes a "Create a supplier RFP" scenario that uses Word, Teams and Outlook. A prompt for Word, with your spec file referenced:

Using [/SPEC FILE], draft an RFQ for [ITEM]: scope, quantities and delivery schedule, quality and documentation requirements, the commercial terms I want quoted ([PAYMENT TERMS, INCOTERMS, PRICE VALIDITY]), a quote table suppliers must fill in (unit price, tooling, freight, lead time, MOQ, exceptions) and a response deadline of [DATE]. Then list anything missing from the spec that a supplier would need to quote.

What to check: every requirement traces back to the spec, and nothing was invented.

Spec gap and bias check

Review [/SPEC FILE] as a sourcing lead. List requirements that are ambiguous or can't be measured, requirements that would only fit one supplier or brand without saying why, and missing information (packaging, labeling, inspection, documentation). Suggest neutral wording for each. Table format.

What to check: anything flagged as single-source might be intentional. Confirm with engineering before you change it.

Copilot in Excel: bids, forecasts and inventory

Normalize three quotes to a landed cost

In this table, add columns for total landed cost per unit at [ANNUAL VOLUME]: unit price + freight per unit + one-time costs spread over [YEARS] + any MOQ carrying cost. Show the formula used in each new column. Then highlight the lowest landed cost and list any quote with missing values.

What to check: open the formulas Copilot wrote and test one row by hand. The RFQ bid comparison example shows the full layout with fictional numbers.

Explain forecast error in plain English

Using the forecast and actual columns, calculate MAPE and bias per item for the last [N] months. Then write 4 sentences a sales or finance manager would understand: overall accuracy, whether we over- or under-forecast, the 3 items driving most of the error, and one question to ask about each.

What to check: recompute MAPE for one item yourself, and make sure items with zero actuals didn't break the calculation.

Flag SKUs below their reorder point

Add a column for inventory position = on-hand + on-order − backorders. Add a column that says ORDER where inventory position is at or below the reorder point and OK otherwise. Filter to ORDER rows and sort by days of supply, lowest first. List any rows with blank or zero lead time instead of guessing.

What to check: spot-check three SKUs by hand. Our inventory prompts guide walks through the safety stock and reorder point math.

Copilot in Teams: meetings

S&OP or supplier review recap to an action log

From this meeting, create an action log table: action, owner, due date, and the decision or discussion it came from. Then list decisions made and open questions separately. If no owner or date was stated for an action, write 'not assigned' instead of guessing.

What to check: owners and dates against your own notes. Send the log to attendees so they can correct it.

Where shouldn't Copilot decide?

• Awards: it can build the comparison, but you choose the supplier.
• Pricing commitments: never send a drafted price or concession you haven't approved.
• Compliance pass or fail: export, trade and quality decisions need a qualified person.
• HS codes as a final answer: treat any suggested classification as a starting point for your trade team.

For more prompts that also work in Copilot, see ChatGPT prompts for procurement. For real company examples, see the RFQ and sourcing events and demand forecasting use cases.