Dow Achieves Productivity and Cost Saving Benefits with Microsoft 365 Copilot
Dow harnesses AI-driven insights that identified millions in potential savings, particularly in logistics and procurement, by analyzing data and automating repetitive tasks.
As Microsoft documents in this case study Dow faced challenges in cost management and operational efficiency within its supply chain.
With millions at stake in logistics spending, the company sought a solution to improve billing accuracy, streamline processes, and reduce costly overcharges.
Dow adopted Microsoft 365 Copilot to empower employees with AI-driven insights and automate tasks across departments. Copilot supports logistics by reviewing freight rates, flagging billing discrepancies, and optimizing workflows for efficiency.
With Copilot, Dow anticipates it will achieve millions of dollars of cost reduction on shipping operations in the first year. Employees report time savings, streamlined processes, and greater productivity, marking a shift toward operational efficiency and sustainability.
Challenges
Facing challenges in cost management and operational efficiency, particularly with a multibillion-dollar annual logistics spend, Dow sought to improve billing accuracy, streamline processes, and reduce overcharges. The company adopted Microsoft 365 Copilot, an AI-powered tool, to provide employees with data-driven insights and automate tasks across departments.
Initially implemented with a few hundred employees, Copilot’s success led to its expansion to 20% of Dow’s workforce. In logistics, it reviews freight rates, flags discrepancies, and optimizes workflows, projecting millions of dollars in shipping cost reductions within the first year.
Employees report significant time savings and improved productivity, aligning with Dow’s goals of operational efficiency and sustainability. For example, Copilot automates invoice reviews, identifies overcharges, and supports an autonomous, sustainable supply chain by connecting agents through Copilot Studio.
Dow’s leadership, including Melanie Kalmar (Chief Information Officer) and Jeff Tazelaar (Global ISC Innovation Director), emphasize that Copilot not only enhances efficiency but also advances digital literacy and aligns with broader cost and sustainability objectives. The tool’s integration into daily workflows has transformed how Dow operates, positioning it as a key component of the company’s “Digital Dow” strategy.
Cost savings
AI-driven cost savings refer to the financial benefits a company achieves by leveraging artificial intelligence to optimize processes, reduce inefficiencies, and eliminate unnecessary expenses. Dow demonstrates how Copilot AI delivers cost savings through several key mechanisms:
- Automation of Repetitive Tasks: AI tools like Copilot can handle time-consuming, manual tasks such as reviewing invoices, checking freight rates, or analyzing procurement data. By automating these processes, Dow reduces the need for extensive human labor, lowering operational costs and freeing employees to focus on higher-value work. For example, Copilot flags billing discrepancies or overcharges in logistics, which previously required significant manual effort to identify.
- Error Reduction: Human errors in tasks like data entry or invoice processing can lead to costly mistakes, such as overpayments or missed savings opportunities. AI’s ability to analyze large datasets with precision minimizes these errors. At Dow, Copilot’s review of shipping rates and invoices ensures accuracy, directly translating to savings by avoiding unnecessary expenses.
- Data-Driven Insights: AI processes vast amounts of data quickly to uncover patterns and opportunities that might go unnoticed by humans. In Dow’s case, Copilot identifies inefficiencies in the supply chain—like suboptimal freight rates or hidden overcharges—projecting millions of dollars in savings within the first year. These insights enable proactive cost management rather than reactive fixes.
- Process Optimization: Beyond individual tasks, AI streamlines entire workflows. For Dow, Copilot integrates across departments, connecting agents through tools like Copilot Studio to create a more efficient, autonomous supply chain. This reduces delays, redundancies, and resource waste, cutting costs while improving overall productivity.
- Scalability and Speed: AI scales effortlessly as a company grows, handling increased workloads without proportional increases in staffing or resources. Dow expanded Copilot from a few hundred users to 20% of its workforce, amplifying savings without significant additional investment. The speed of AI also accelerates decision-making, such as in procurement or logistics, preventing cost overruns tied to delays.
In practical terms, Dow’s experience shows AI identifying “millions in cost savings” by targeting logistics—a multibillion-dollar expense area.
For instance, catching a single overcharge on a shipping invoice might save thousands, and when multiplied across thousands of transactions, the savings become substantial. Additionally, employee time savings (e.g., hours reclaimed from manual reviews) indirectly reduce labor costs, enhancing profitability.
Overall, AI cost savings combine immediate financial wins—like reduced shipping expenses—with long-term efficiencies, positioning companies like Dow to operate leaner and more competitively. This dual impact underscores why Dow views Copilot as a cornerstone of its broader digital transformation strategy.
Dow views this as the beginning of a broader transformation, aiming to further reshape its supply chain and business processes with AI-driven innovation.
Together, the articles showcase Copilot as a transformative tool, not only cutting costs but also positioning Dow for long-term innovation in supply chain management and beyond. Dow sees this as a foundational step in a broader AI-driven transformation of its business operations.
