Use Outlook Copilot for Close Week Communications

What This Does

Outlook Copilot can draft email responses, summarize long email threads, and generate follow-up emails during high-volume close periods, so you spend less time writing email and more time on accounting work. During month-end close when email volume spikes and every communication matters, this is particularly valuable for a Controller managing team coordination and stakeholder expectations.

Before You Start

• You have Microsoft 365 (Business or Enterprise plan with Copilot enabled)
• You use Outlook for email (desktop app or web)
• You're signed into your Microsoft account

Steps

1. Find Copilot in Outlook

Open Outlook. When composing a new email, look for the Copilot button in the compose toolbar (appears above the message body). For reading/responding, look for the Copilot icon in the reading pane.

What you should see: A Copilot icon in the compose toolbar, and/or a Copilot sidebar for reading threads. Troubleshooting: Copilot in Outlook requires Microsoft 365 Copilot license. If not available, Gmail's Help Me Write feature offers similar functionality.

2. Draft a close status update email

When composing an email update to your CFO or executive team during close:

1. Click New Email
2. Click the Copilot button in the compose toolbar
3. In the Copilot panel, describe what you want:

Draft an email to the CFO providing a close status update for day 3. Key points:
- Revenue accruals are complete
- AP cutoff is done except for 3 invoices from the largest vendor (arriving today)
- Payroll journal entry will be posted by 3pm
- We're on track for the day 5 close deadline
- One open item: depreciation schedules need CFO sign-off on the new equipment lease
Tone: professional, concise, confident.

1. Click Generate and review the draft before sending

What you should see: A clean, organized status update email that covers all your bullet points in 150–200 words.

3. Summarize a long email thread

When an important email chain has grown to 15+ replies:

1. Open the thread in Outlook
2. Click the Copilot icon in the reading pane (or look for "Summarize" option)
3. Copilot summarizes the thread into 3–5 bullet points covering key decisions, open questions, and current status

What you should see: A brief summary that lets you catch up on a long thread in 30 seconds instead of re-reading every reply.

4. Draft a tactful follow-up email

For following up on overdue close items from team members:

1. Start composing a new email
2. Use Copilot: "Draft a follow-up email to [name] about the outstanding [item] that was due yesterday. Tone: firm but professional. Remind them of the deadline impact without being accusatory."

What you should see: A diplomatically worded follow-up that gets the point across without creating friction.

Real Example

Scenario: It's close day 4, 5pm. You have 6 items still open and need to send your CFO a status update, follow up with two team members on outstanding recs, and respond to a vendor's invoice question, all before you can leave for the day.

What you do:

1. CFO update: Use Copilot to draft in 90 seconds from your status bullet points
2. Team follow-ups: Use Copilot to draft firm-but-professional reminders for each person
3. Vendor inquiry: Open the vendor email, use "Summarize thread" to refresh context, then use Copilot to draft a concise response

Total time: 8 minutes instead of 25.

Tips

• Review all Copilot-drafted emails before sending, particularly those to external parties (auditors, bankers)
• For sensitive communications (audit findings, compliance issues), draft manually and use Copilot only to refine tone or length
• The thread summarization feature is most valuable for long vendor disputes or back-and-forth with external auditors where context gets buried in replies

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