MVP Insights: Geoff Ables on Strengthening AI Adoption, Academy Classes, Summit NA Sessions

Welcome to “MVP Insights,” a podcast that explores the universe, ideas, and opportunities of the brightest stars in the Microsoft business applications ecosystem. 

In episode 68, Giuseppe Ianni, VP, Community Director, Attendees & Activations, Dynamic Communities, welcomes Geoff Ables, Managing Partner, C5 Insight, Microsoft MVP, and newly inducted Community Summit Legend. Ables shares his impressions and excitement around AI, what it requires to fully adopt the technology, and details his sessions and Academy Classes at Summit NA 2025.

Community Summit NA is the largest independent Microsoft AI & Business Applications User Conference on the planet. Register today for four days of big ideas, education, training, networking, and more to define your relevance in the AI era.

Key Takeaways

• Early career: Ables got his start with Dynamics when working in database marketing for a financial services firm. He quickly developed a passion for how “technology is used to better connect people,” which led him to the Microsoft product line, working specifically with Modern Work and CRM. Later on, he was nominated to be a Microsoft MVP for his contributions
• AI impressions: Ables highlighted the excitement around AI but cautioned that many companies are repeating old patterns of underutilization. He noted, “Instead of software, they’ve got shelfware—stuff that’s not being fully leveraged, not being fully adopted.”
• AI adoption: Many organizations rely on proven resources like Microsoft’s community sites and planning templates to guide adoption, but they often fall into a “build it and they will come” mindset. Without strong leadership, clear vision, and ongoing engagement, digital transformation efforts frequently fail (up to 70% according to industry research), prompting the creation of tools like the Microsoft shelfware calculator and events like the 365 Leadership Summit to support non-technical leaders in driving change.
• Summit NA sessions: Geoff and the C5 Insight team will be participating in a number of sessions and Academy Classes at Summit NA 2025, including:
  • “Academy: Copilot Strategies for Business and Technology Leaders: Greatest Hits from 365 Leadership Summit,” on Saturday, October 18
  • “Academy: Learning Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys and Data,” on Sunday, October 19
  • “7 Habits for AI Transformation Success,” on Monday, October 20
  • “Modern Work Makeover: Slash Time Wasters with Microsoft 365 + Copilot,” on Monday, October 20
  • “Roadmap to (Re)Launching Microsoft 365,” on Tuesday, October 21
  • “Build a Better Extranet Portal: Power Pages vs SharePoint,” on Tuesday, October 21
  • “Making Makers: Empowering Non-IT Teams with Copilot Studio and Power Platform,” on Wednesday, October 22

Stream the audio version of this episode here: