Back in the (Intra) Zone – Mark Kashman and the M365 Community Conference

If you missed the Microsoft 365 Community Conference in Orlando this April, the latest episode of Polaris has you covered. In a special reunion edition, Synozur CTO Chris McNulty welcomes back longtime colleague and former Intrazone podcast cohost Mark Kashman from Sympraxis to break down the biggest announcements and trends from the event—and what they mean for your organization. 

Before diving into conference news, the conversation opens with a reality check on AI adoption. You may have seen the headline figures: industry research puts AI workplace adoption at 91%, and the ActivTrak "2026 State of the Workplace" report—which analyzed 443 million work hours across 1,111 companies—found that 80% of employees now use AI tools, up from 53% just two years ago. Those numbers sound impressive.

But as Chris discovered at the recent AIIM AI+IM Global Summit in Baltimore, when a room of roughly 50 information professionals was asked who uses AI daily, only one hand went up—his. Mark puts it plainly: enterprise adoption takes time because "you've got to clean house and organize" your data and content first. If you're feeling behind, the message is clear: focus on readiness over speed. 

SharePoint Skills: Teach AI How Your Business Works 

One of the most significant announcements at the conference was SharePoint Skills, now in public preview and included in your existing Microsoft 365 or Copilot license. Skills let you define how AI should behave on a per-site basis—tone, terminology, processes, templates—using simple Markdown files stored right in SharePoint. Mark calls them "the next level of how you make AI more usable for what you're trying to do".

Chris adds that Copilot CoWork—powered by Anthropic's Claude—offers a similar personal skill-building experience stored in OneDrive. The two streams need to converge so that a skill you've perfected individually can be shared across your team. If you want a hands-on walkthrough, both hosts recommend Vlad Catrinescu's comprehensive Skills 101 video and Zach Rosenfield's YouTube channel for demo-driven content. 

Governing AI: Agent 365 and Purview 

Your organization probably has more AI agents running than you realize. Microsoft itself manages over 500,000 agents internally across roughly 228,000 employees. Agent 365, which went GA on May 1 at $15 per user per month (or included in E7), gives IT a single dashboard to register and control agents—whether built in Copilot Studio, SharePoint, Visual Studio Code, Foundry, or even external platforms. Mark describes it as managing agents "kind of like you would manage people and sites". 

On the compliance side, Microsoft Purview is merging classic data security posture management (DSPM) with DSPM for AI into a unified engine. A practical example: you can set policies so that if someone asks Copilot for a list of employee salaries, Purview blocks the query before it ever runs—even if the underlying data is technically accessible. If you're responsible for AI governance, these capabilities deserve your attention now. 

From Viva Connections to "SharePoint" — and Why Names Matter 

In a move that may feel overdue, Microsoft is rebranding Viva Connections back to SharePoint—specifically the "SharePoint" app in Teams. Mark's take: "Brand aside, does it need a brand? Absolutely not. SharePoint isn't going away". Chris frames it as a shift in mindset: "It's not that you go to OneDrive—it's that OneDrive comes to you". For your teams, focus less on which app name appears in the header and more on the outcome the technology delivers. 

25 Years of SharePoint and the Community That Built It 

2026 marks SharePoint's 25th anniversary, celebrated with a short film called featuring community voices including Mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWEddU_x0zI

As Mark puts it: "25 years later, it really is stronger and more connected than ever". And as Chris points out, the pattern of opening a browser, uploading a document, and collaborating on it has endured since SharePoint 2001—"It just works. It brings so many people together".

Whether you're attending a global conference, a local CollabDays New England, or following experts online, investing in community keeps your team current, connected, and ahead of the curve. 

If you want the full conversation—including Mark's take on Project Hail Mary, a rundown of upcoming M365 events, and what's next for Polaris—listen to the episode and check out the Polaris show notes.

As always, send questions and feedback to polaris@synozur.com.

Polaris is available on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube or wherever you get your favorite podcasts. Thanks.

Show Notes

Polaris is a production of Synozur – the transformation company. Synozur reimagines business for our clients, navigating the complexities of transformation and strategy with ease.

Takeaways

• AI adoption vs. readiness gap. Chris cites industry research showing 91% of organizations now use at least one AI technology and an average of 5.4 hours saved per employee, drawn from a study of 443 million work hours across over 1,000 companies. Yet at the recent AIIM Summit in Baltimore, Chris polled a room of roughly 50 professionals on daily AI use—and was the only hand up. The ActivTrak "2026 State of the Workplace" report confirms that while 80% of employees now use AI tools (up from 53% two years ago), only 3% spend the optimal 7–10% of their work hours in AI, and 57% spend less than 1%. Leaders should focus on practical readiness—not headline adoption numbers. 

• Content structure is critical for AI. Modern enterprise content management platforms now use AI for auto-classification, document summarization, and contextual Q&A. But Mark stresses that the underlying metadata, lifecycle management, and information structure must be sound first: "If the form that nobody ever filled out gets filled out and is valid and truthful…you will have a system that works better". Organizations should prioritize content readiness before scaling AI. 

• SharePoint Skills — no-code AI instructions. Microsoft unveiled SharePoint Skills in public preview, allowing teams to encode best practices and process rules as Markdown (.md) files stored within SharePoint sites. These skills give Copilot and AI in SharePoint persistent context—tone guidelines, product terminology, workflow steps—so results are on-brand and site-specific without any coding. According to the buckleyPLANET conference recap, Skills are included in existing Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Copilot licensing with no additional procurement step. 

• Copilot CoWork and Skills convergence. Chris explains that Copilot CoWork, based on Anthropic technology, lets individual users build personal AI skills stored as Markdown files in OneDrive. Meanwhile, SharePoint Skills operate at the site/group level. The expectation is that these two streams will converge, allowing a skill perfected by one person to be shared organization-wide. 

• Agent 365 & governance at scale. Microsoft's Agent 365 gives organizations a single pane of glass to manage AI agents—whether built in Copilot Studio, SharePoint, Visual Studio Code, or Foundry—across the entire tenant. Mark describes agents as "kind of being a little bit more like people…an entity that you can assign things to". The buckleyPLANET recap notes Agent 365 went GA on May 1 at $15 per user per month, and that Microsoft internally manages over 500,000 agents across roughly 228,000 employees. 

• Purview's evolving AI oversight. Purview is consolidating classic DSPM and DSPM for AI into a unified engine that monitors how people interact with content and AI. Chris gives a practical example: Purview can now block queries like "tell me the top 10 salaries" from reaching Copilot, even if the underlying content is unprotected. For leaders, this signals that security, compliance, and AI governance are converging into a single policy surface. 

• Community as a leadership accelerator. As SharePoint marks its 25th anniversary, both hosts reflect on the enduring importance of the Microsoft 365 community. Mark notes the product "really is stronger and more connected than ever", while Chris sees the community as "an opportunity to meet and reconnect with people from all over the world". Getting your team engaged in industry communities—whether global conferences or local CollabDays—keeps them educated, connected, and ahead of the curve.

Sound Bites

Mark Kashman

• "Has SharePoint died? Twenty-five years later, it's stronger and more connected than ever.

• "Technology at scale, especially in the enterprise, still takes a while. You've got to clean house and organize before AI can really deliver."

• "Does it always need another brand name to tell you what it is? A lot of people would argue no."

• "SharePoint Skills are a ‘very particular set of skills’ - the next level of how you make AI more usable for what you're trying to do."

References

Spotlight

Mark Kashman — Sympraxis Consulting (Principal Microsoft 365 Consultant, ex-Microsoft). Sympraxis Consulting | LinkedIn profile | Kashbox on Substack 

Microsoft 365 Community Conference (Apr 21–23, 2026, Orlando, FL) — The premier community-driven Microsoft 365 event, with keynotes from Jeff Teper and Ryan Cunningham and over 200 sessions on Copilot, SharePoint, Teams, security, and agentic AI. Approximately 3,000 attendees gathered at the Loews Sapphire Falls and Royal Pacific Resorts. Conference website | Microsoft guide to the conference 

AIIM AI+IM Global Summit 2026 (Apr 28–30, 2026, Baltimore, MD) — Information management conference hosted by AIIM (the Association for Intelligent Information Management), focusing on AI readiness, content governance, and digital transformation. Chris attended as a cohort team lead and shared observations about the gap between AI hype and real-world adoption. AIIM AI+IM Global Summit 2026 

People

Jeff Teper — President, Microsoft 365 Collaborative Apps & Platforms, who delivered the opening conference keynote on AI skills, Copilot, and the intelligent intranet. LinkedIn profile 

Zach Rosenfield — Microsoft engineer known for SharePoint and OneDrive back-end systems, now building a growing YouTube channel with demos of SharePoint AI features including Skills. Mark notes, "His demos are not only really good, but they're in numbers and growing." YouTube channel 

Vlad Catrinescu — "How to Build SharePoint Skills" (Vlad Talks Tech) — Microsoft MVP Vlad Catrinescu published a comprehensive 60-minute walkthrough on SharePoint Skills, covering skill file structure, best practices, Anthropic's guidance, and live demos. Both Chris and Mark recommend it. YouTube walkthrough | Vlad Talks Tech 

Paul Thurrott — Technology journalist known for Windows commentary. Mark references Thurrott's stance on Notepad: "He always says, I just want Notepad to be dumb." Mentioned in the context of Markdown support expanding in Notepad. Thurrott.com 

Joanne Klein — Microsoft governance and Purview expert. Mark credits Klein as a key source for Purview insights: "I only kind of get what I know about Purview from our friend Joanne Klein." 

Media

The Intrazone Podcast — A Microsoft 365 intelligent intranet podcast (2017–2025) co-hosted by Mark Kashman and Chris McNulty during their Microsoft careers, featuring expert interviews and product news across over 220 episodes. All episodes remain available. Podcast archive 

"More Than Code" — SharePoint 25th Anniversary Short Film — Released April 2026, this short film celebrates 25 years of SharePoint through community voices including Mark Kashman. Available at aka.ms/SPat25/MoreThanCode. SharePoint anniversary page | YouTube video 

News and Data Points

ActivTrak "2026 State of the Workplace" Report — ActivTrak's 5th annual study analyzing behavioral data from 443 million work hours across 1,111 companies and 163,638 employees. Key findings: 80% AI tool adoption (up from 53% two years prior), 92% monthly usage retention, and a "sweet spot" of 7–10% AI time yielding the highest productivity (95%), though only 3% of employees fall in that range. ActivTrak report 

AI Workplace Adoption Statistics (91%, 75%) — Chris referenced a figure of 91% of organizations using at least one AI technology. Industry compilations such as Azumo's "AI in the Workplace Statistics 2026" cite this statistic, attributing it to broad survey data. The same compilation references the World Economic Forum projection that approximately 75% of companies globally will adopt AI by 2027. 

Technology

Microsoft Viva Connections → SharePoint Rebrand — Microsoft announced that Viva Connections is being rebranded as the "SharePoint" app in Teams, fully leveraging SharePoint Home Sites. Viva Amplify is also returning under the SharePoint brand. Conference highlights on buckleyPLANET 

Agent 365 — Microsoft centralized agent management tool (GA May 1, 2026; $15/user/month standalone or included in M365 E7). Provides governance, registration, and policy enforcement for AI agents across first-party and third-party platforms. Conference highlights on buckleyPLANET 

Microsoft Purview — Microsoft's unified data governance and compliance platform. Recent updates merge classic DSPM and DSPM for AI into one engine, adding AI interaction safeguards such as blocking sensitive queries and monitoring data flows through Copilot. Roberto Yglesias delivered the Purview session at the conference. 

SharePoint 25th Anniversary — SharePoint was first released in 2001. Microsoft celebrated the milestone with a live event on March 2, 2026, announcing new features and community initiatives. Chris notes, "If you go back to SharePoint 2001…you have a browser where someone can upload a document for collaboration—that's an enduring pattern." SharePoint anniversary page 

Pop Culture

"Taken" (2008 film) — Action thriller starring Liam Neeson, famous for the "I have a very particular set of skills" monologue. Referenced by Mark when introducing SharePoint Skills: "To put the joke in there that everybody hopefully is already thinking about, these are a very particular set of skills." IMDb page 

"Project Hail Mary" — 2021 sci-fi novel by Andy Weir and 2026 film adaptation (released March 20, 2026) starring Ryan Gosling, directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. The film has grossed $641.4 million worldwide. Mark recommends both the book and the film: "Book was great. Movie was great." Film overview 

"Catterslug" and Other Children's Books — Mark Kashman is a recognized children's book author. Chris introduces this during the episode: "Mark is a recognized children's book author, creating works like Catterslug and many others." 

"The Wizard of Oz" Reference — Mark closes the episode with a playful allusion: "Click your heels three times and say SharePoint, SharePoint, SharePoint, and I'll be there." 

Events

European Collaboration Summit (ECS 2026) — May 5–7, 2026 at Confex Cologne, Germany. Europe's largest Microsoft partner event, with approximately 3,000 attendees, three keynotes, and hundreds of speakers. Mark notes he is "literally days away from hopping on a plane." Event website

TechCon 365 Chicago 2026 — June 15–19, 2026 at McCormick Place, Chicago, IL. Microsoft 365, Power Platform & AI conference with 130+ sessions. Synozur, Sympraxis, and Microsoft will attend. Event website 

TechCon 365 Seattle 2026 — August 24–28, 2026 at the Seattle Convention Center. Co-located with PWRCON & DATACON, covering Microsoft 365, Power Platform, data, and AI topics. Event website 

CollabDays New England 2026 — October 16, 2026 at the Microsoft Technology Center, Burlington, MA. Community-run M365 event organized by Sympraxis Consulting, offering free sessions and networking during peak New England foliage season. Event website 

Production

Polaris is produced with help from Riverside.fm. Our theme song, “Alternative Dream” is provided courtesy of Adobe.  Additional music and sound provided by IndieGuy Records. Graphic design by Josh Brantley.

Polaris is available on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube or wherever you get your favorite podcasts. Thanks.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the Microsoft 365 Community Conference

02:38 Reflections on the Intrazone Podcast

05:53 The Rise of AI in Enterprise Content Management

08:01 AI Workplace Adoption and Its Implications

11:57 Insights from the Microsoft 365 Community Conference

18:17 Skills and AI Integration in SharePoint

21:05 Integrating Copilot and Co-work

25:02 The Evolution of SharePoint Branding

28:37 Understanding Agent 365 and Its Implications

31:26 The Role of Purview in AI Governance

35:01 Celebrating 25 Years of SharePoint and Community Engagement

38:40 Mark's Pop Culture Moment

42:08 Next on Polaris

42:35 Thanks and Closing