AI in the office: 15 use cases for everyday life

In everyday office life, AI saves time, especially when it comes to texts, summaries, e-mails, research, spreadsheets and minutes – for example, when drafting a customer response, summarizing a long document or explaining an Excel formula. It is important not to enter sensitive data into tools that have not been approved and to always check results.

Many employees know that AI could help, but they don't, exactly. The following 15 use cases are deliberately chosen for everyday use. Each has an example instruction that can be tried out directly.

Texts and e-mails

#	Use case	Example Statement
1	Designing a response to a customer email	"Formulate a friendly answer that calls the new date Thursday."
2	Shorten text	"Shorten this text in half without losing facts."
3	Adjust sound	"Phrase that more politely and less technically."
4	Design a job ad	"Write an ad for a part-time office worker, sound direct."
5	Translate text	"Translate this mail into English, business tone."

Summarizing and structuring

#	Use case	Example Statement
6	Summarize Long Document	"Summarize in five bullet points what is important for our business."
7	Protocol from notes	"Turn these notes into a protocol with tasks, responsible persons, deadlines."
8	Organize long email histories	"What has been decided in this process, what is still open?"
9	Create a checklist	"Create a checklist for onboarding new employees."

Tables and figures

#	Use case	Example Statement
10	Explain Excel Formula	"Explain this formula step by step."
11	Suggest a formula	"How do I calculate the sum of all invoices over €500 per month?"
12	Clean up data	"Unify this list of company names and spellings."

Research and preparation

#	Use case	Example Statement
13	Preparation for the interview	"What questions should I ask about delivery times during a supplier meeting?"
14	Explain terms	"Explain the term order processing in two sentences."
15	Brainstorm	"Give me ten ideas for a thank you to long-time customers."

Three rules that always apply

No sensitive data in non-released tools: no customer, patient or personnel data, no contracts. More on this in the article Using ChatGPT in compliance with data protection regulations.
Check results, especially numbers, names, and legal questions – see Check AI answers.
Responsibility remains with people: What leaves the house has been read by someone.

Better results with better instructions

The example instructions above are deliberately short. With a little more context – who writes, to whom, in what tone – the results will be much better. The article Learning to write prompts shows how to do this.

Which tool?

ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot (see Rolling out Microsoft Copilot) or your own AI chat such as Open WebUI, which is operated in Germany, are suitable for these tasks. What is important is not so much the tool as the rule of which tool is released for which data.

Learning as a team

Teams learn fastest when each person brings their own tasks and is tried out together. This is how we work in our AI training for companies – half-day, on-site or online, with a certificate of participation.

Regarding funding: Pure training is usually not subsidized by INQA coaching, because the program promotes consulting. If the AI introduction is accompanied as INQA coaching as a whole, the federal government will cover 80% of the consulting costs. The funding check shows which programs are eligible.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can AI be used for in the office?

Especially for emails and texts, summaries, minutes, checklists, translations, Excel formulas, data cleansing, conversation preparation and idea collection.

Can I enter customer data in ChatGPT?

Only in tools that your company has approved for this purpose, with a data processing agreement. Personal or non-shared accounts do not contain personal data.

How much time does AI save in the office?

That depends on the tasks. Especially with recurring texts, long documents and minutes. Measure it yourself: write down for a week how long tasks take with and without AI.

Do employees need training to use AI in the office?

A short training course helps a lot: It shows how to write good instructions, check results and protect data. In addition, Art. 4 EU AI Act requires measures on AI competence.