Case Study: AI & Automation at Microsoft FastTrack

A detailed look at how I scoped and deployed lightweight AI and automation to solve high-friction challenges, demonstrating measurable ROI without heavy infrastructure investment.

By Joseph Arnold6 min read

I led the design and scoping of lightweight AI features to reduce manual lift, eliminate duplication, and improve UX efficiency across Microsoft FastTrack’s onboarding and feedback systems. I designed these initiatives to accelerate productivity without requiring heavy back-end AI investment.

Core Problem

1

Identified Manual Research Overhead

I identified that manual research during onboarding planning was creating significant time waste, consuming 20-30 minutes per case and slowing down operations.

2

Diagnosed Feedback Signal Noise

I diagnosed that a lack of deduplication for user feedback was introducing signal noise into internal systems, making it difficult to prioritize engineering work.

3

Mapped Fragmented User Workflows

I mapped the user journey and found that users had to switch between multiple tools for research, feedback, and documentation, creating a disjointed and inefficient experience.

Strategic Objectives

Deliver Targeted Automation
  • My goal was to deliver meaningful automation without overbuilding or creating heavy infrastructure dependencies.
  • I aimed to reduce redundant manual labor and clean up feedback signal noise to reinforce trust in internal tooling.
  • I scoped AI pilots that demonstrated a clear time-saved ROI, enabling me to earn prioritization without executive escalation.

Key Initiatives

Prompt-Assisted Research (D365)
  • I scoped lightweight AI workflows directly within Dynamics 365 to automate onboarding research.
  • I designed simple prompt templates that accelerated case preparation by 20-30 minutes.
  • My focus was on a low-complexity solution to avoid backend infrastructure changes.
Feedback Deduplication (D365)
  • I proposed a low-lift system with a '+1' interaction pattern to cluster duplicate feedback items.
  • I designed it to clean up backlog signal quality and save hours in weekly triage time.
  • This solution provides clearer prioritization signals for product and engineering teams.

Executive Summary

I created a flexible, low-code blueprint for advisory automation. By partnering directly with developers and framing ambiguous friction points as user stories with measurable ROI, I enabled non-technical testers to engage with AI models in a structured, safe, and consistent format without manual copy/paste or formatting between tools.

  • Enabled a single-form UX for high-trust document output.
  • Secured engineering commitment by tying pilots to operational efficiency outcomes.
  • Designed for enterprise extensibility with a unified delivery layer and modular prompt adaptation.