Richard Harbridge

I focus on sharing and finding better ways to work with technology: Microsoft MVP, strategist, speaker, author, and super-friendly advisor to hundreds of orgs.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

What should we value about #AI? How should we shape the #FutureOfAI together with our #PositiveIntent? | @TEDxOshawa video is now up https://t.co/p16ewlsdiV

#TEDx #TEDxTalks @TEDx #GenerativeAI #Innovation #ArtificialIntelligence #DigitalAssistants #TechTrends
#TechTalks #GenAI

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Not all AI risks are equal.

Some relate to individual privacy.
Some relate to customer trust.
Some relate to intellectual property.

Categorising them helps you respond appropriately.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

A lot of Microsoft 365 oversharing starts as a reasonable collaboration need.

“Can we share this with more internal people?”

Then someone uses “Everyone except external users” at the site level.

The intent was narrow.

Permission inheritance made it broad.

That is the governance mismatch.

In the AI era, buried oversharing becomes much easier to discover.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Microsoft 365 sprawl is not just too many Teams or SharePoint sites.

It can be permissions, sharing, configuration, apps, automations, agents, change, licensing, content, devices, and workspaces.

AI readiness touches all of it.

https://t.co/WoKhU4NDDt

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Sometimes the most strategic AI decision is about scope.

You may choose to focus on one business unit, one geography, or one set of processes first.

Depth beats thin coverage across everything.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Some of the best AI use cases start as “personal hacks” that people build for themselves.

The opportunity is to spot the good ones and scale them carefully across the team.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Governance is a team sport.

Without roles and playbooks, everyone chases the ball.

With the right structure, talented people can move faster together.

That is how I think about Microsoft 365 governance in the AI era.

https://t.co/WoKhU4NDDt

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

A useful AI audit question:

“Where are we using AI today that is not officially documented anywhere?”

The answers can surface shadow AI in teams and tools you did not expect.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

The credit card analogy for AI governance is useful:

Sprawl is the balance.

AI changes the interest rate.

Agents may add new charges.

At some point, the minimum payment approach to Microsoft 365 governance stops working.

https://t.co/WoKhU4NDDt

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Sometimes the bravest thing a leader can say in an AI meeting is “I do not know yet.”

Leaders often underestimate how powerful it is to say, “I am learning this too.”

That sentence can remove a lot of pressure from teams trying to figure out AI, Copilot, and agents in real time.

The key is when we share "I do not know yet." to follow it with “Here is how we will find out.”

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

AI and automation can create new blind spots.

If you automate a step, it can quietly disappear from people’s mental model of the process.

Make sure someone still understands what the agent is doing and why.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Not everything should be migrated first.

Sometimes the smarter move is to connect first.

The real question is not just “how much data?”
It is “how entangled is the ecosystem around it?”

#Microsoft365 #M365Migration #Microsoft365Copilot #Copilot

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Governance used to be treated like the brakes.

In the AI era, I think it is becoming more like traction control.

Not there to stop the car.

There to help you move faster without losing control.

Discussed this on The Enterprise AI Show.
https://t.co/WoKhU4NDDt

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Microsoft 365 already contains a huge amount of organizational memory.

AI just makes it easier to surface.

If that memory is outdated, duplicated, or wrong, Copilot will faithfully repeat it.
Cleaning up knowledge is not optional anymore.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Governance used to be framed as the tax on IT.

In the AI era, it is increasingly the unlock on the investment conversation.

If leaders do not trust the data, permissions, ownership, or controls, they will not trust AI at scale.

A point I shared at #ECS2026.

#AIGovernance #Microsoft365 #CopilotReadiness

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

The organizations that will get the most from AI are rarely the ones with the most features.

They are the ones with the clearest values, the most disciplined data practices, and the healthiest feedback loops.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

One visible difference between healthy AI adoption and unhealthy adoption:

In healthy adoption, people feel confident saying “I do not understand this yet.”

In unhealthy adoption, they pretend they understand - and mistakes accumulate quietly.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

One of my stronger beliefs right now:

In the AI era, governance is increasingly part of productivity.

Not because it slows work down.
Because it helps the right work move with less confusion.

AI can increase motion.
Good governance helps turn that motion into progress.

That is a core theme in my recent article.

https://t.co/aivrcmExNk

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

Microsoft 365 admins carry a lot of invisible responsibility.

As AI and agents grow, they will need more support, more automation, and more recognition - not just more tickets.

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

AI does not create oversharing.

It exposes it at speed and scale.

That is why so many “AI issues” are really governance issues:
permissions, stale links, unclear ownership, weak lifecycle controls.

A key point from my #ECS2026 session.

#Microsoft365 #AIGovernance #CopilotReadiness

[Richard Harbridge @RHarbridge]

If employees only ever hear about AI in the context of cost savings, they will draw their own conclusions about what matters most.

Balance the conversation with stories about quality, safety, and human wellbeing.