This blog post provides a comprehensive guide on how to construct a private corporate chatbot powered by SharePoint and OpenAI’s GPT-3 technology. This AI-powered assistant can answer employee inquiries regarding company policies, benefits, and procedures directly from your SharePoint documents.
Step-by-Step Guide
- Prepare your SharePoint documents. Upload a collection of relevant documents (policies, procedures, standards, etc.) to a SharePoint document library (between 50-200 documents are recommended).
- Set up Azure App Registration and OpenAI Service.
- An Azure app registration is required. Follow the instructions in the video description to create one.
- You’ll also need to create an OpenAI service and a new model (GPT 3.5 turbo 16k was the best model available at the time of this video’s creation).
- Configure an Azure Cognitive Search service. This service will be used to crawl and index the uploaded SharePoint documents. You’ll need to obtain the admin API key for this service.
- Connect OpenAI and Azure Cognitive Search.
- This step involves configuring the connection through the chat playground website.
- Map the content from your SharePoint documents to corresponding fields within the OpenAI service. Here’s a breakdown of the mapping:
- Content – File name
- Content file name – SPO item name
- Title – Title
- URL – SPO item path
- Deploy the Chatbot. Deploy your AI model to a private Azure website. A tenant administrator will need to grant consent to the application.
Additional Considerations
- System Message. You can provide a system message to introduce the chatbot to users. For instance, you can introduce the chatbot as an AI assistant designed to help employees find information within the organization.
- More Detailed Guide. The video mentions a longer version hosted by the Toronto SharePoint User Group that provides a more comprehensive walkthrough.
Benefits of a Corporate Chatbot
- Improved Accessibility. Employees can access company information anytime, anywhere through the chatbot, eliminating the need to search through multiple documents or contact different departments.
- Increased Efficiency. Chatbots can handle routine inquiries, freeing up HR and IT staff to focus on more complex issues. This streamlines internal processes and improves response times.
- Enhanced Employee Satisfaction. By providing quick and easy access to information, chatbots enhance the employee experience, boosting morale and productivity.
- Consistent Information. The chatbot ensures consistent responses based on the information in your SharePoint documents, reducing the risk of misinformation or outdated responses.
- Scalability. As your organization grows, the chatbot can easily scale to accommodate the increased demand for information.
- Cost Savings. Over time, a chatbot can lead to significant cost savings by reducing the workload of HR and IT personnel.
By implementing a corporate chatbot powered by SharePoint and OpenAI, your organization can unlock a new level of efficiency, empower employees, and improve overall communication. The initial setup might require some technical expertise, but the long-term benefits are well worth the investment.
