Accenture (NYSE: ACN) and Avanade have launched new offerings applying Microsoft Fabric to help organizations accelerate data readiness, make insights more accessible, and create a foundation for AI – all powered by a practice of 4,000 Fabric-certified professionals. Building on their recently announced collaboration around generative AI, the companies are also delivering new capabilities to help clients customize and extend Microsoft Copilot solutions to reimagine work with generative AI.

“Data, as part of a strong digital core on cloud, has become a critical driver of total enterprise reinvention and is the precursor to achieving exponential value through AI,” said Chris Howarth, senior managing director and Accenture Microsoft Business Group lead. “Together with Avanade, we are helping our clients harness the transformative power of data and AI – from enhancing data readiness with Microsoft Fabric, to accelerating generative AI adoption with Microsoft Copilots.”

In 2024, 75% of C-level leaders plan to increase their spending on data and AI, compared to 50% that increased spending in 2023, according to new research from Accenture.

“Our clients are accelerating data transformation to meet the AI moment,” said Craig Gorsline, Avanade’s Chief Growth Officer and Global Technology Business Group Lead. “Having worked with Microsoft Fabric for a long time, Avanade is uniquely positioned to deliver the value from data, analytics and AI that our clients need. Alongside Accenture, we have a cohesive suite of Microsoft Fabric offerings, experience, and commitments, helping our clients build the data foundations that power AI innovation.”

Enhancing Data Readiness with Microsoft Fabric
As part of Accenture’s $3B investment in data and AI, Accenture and Avanade are building a practice of certified professionals to help organizations plan, architect, develop, pilot, and deploy Microsoft Fabric, which can bring together data from thousands of sources across the enterprise.

New Microsoft Fabric accelerators and assets include a security readiness assessment; a migration approach to help companies speed the modernization of their data platforms; and industry and functional accelerators for finance, customer sales and service, supply chain, manufacturing, retail and consumer packaged goods. The companies have also launched a specialized Microsoft Fabric training program, as part of Accenture's AI academy, to help cultivate future-ready talent and accelerate transformation with Fabric.

Accenture and Avanade are collaborating with Microsoft to help its people access, manage, and act on data and insights across its product organization. The companies are helping Microsoft use Microsoft Fabric to provide self-service analytics capabilities that unlock the power of its data and help its people innovate faster. With a simplified, integrated platform, Microsoft has the data foundation needed to accelerate the adoption of AI.

The companies are also working with a global food business to help transform how its employees access information and gain better insights across its operations. As an early adopter of Microsoft Fabric, the company has a flexible, modern data platform that supports AI-driven analytics, unleashing its data to help improve employee productivity and satisfaction.

Accenture is using Microsoft Fabric to help transform the digital user experience for its 733,000 people by providing new insights about the employee experience. For Avanade, Fabric is simplifying last-mile data provisioning, widening access to enterprise data for more employees, and accelerating time-to-insights. The companies are applying their experience and learnings to client projects.

Accelerating Generative AI with Microsoft 
Accenture and Avanade will support organizations with the development of custom generative AI applications leveraging Microsoft Copilots – including Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot for Sales and Copilot Studio – Azure OpenAI, Azure Machine Learning, and the Microsoft platform. Tapping into the Accenture Center for Advanced AI, the companies can help clients select and fine tune large language models (LLMs) and build new generative AI capabilities.

Accenture and Avanade are working with Repsol, a global multi-energy company based in Madrid with operations in 24 countries and a commercial presence in more than 90 countries, on the adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot. Through Repsol’s Generative AI Competence Center, the companies have assessed its readiness for generative AI, established a governance model, and are training its people to make the most of the technology. For another client, Ferrovial, a large global infrastructure company, the companies are helping to maximize the value of its Copilot program by sharing learnings and best practices across use cases, training trial participants, and helping them build the business case for broader adoption.

New Copilot assets help to accelerate adoption with functional, industry and role-specific capabilities, across areas including supply chain, finance, HR, IT, retail, banking, insurance and oil and gas. The assets and accelerators leverage Accenture and Avanade security best practices to help organizations address their security and compliance requirements.

Together, Accenture and Avanade have thousands of dedicated Microsoft generative AI professionals, equipped with skills via a comprehensive training initiative. Combined, Avanade and Accenture now have more than 240,000 Microsoft-skilled people, including 65,000 professionals dedicated to delivering Microsoft technologies.