Implementing a Center of Excellence for Generative AI

In this episode of the Azure Essentials Show, Thomas is joined by Ben Brauer from Azure Marketing for a discussion of the growing importance of establishing an AI Center of Excellence. As organizations increasingly look to scale their AI initiatives, this discussion provides practical insights into how a dedicated team can drive responsible, effective, and organization-wide AI adoption. Three Things You Will Learn • The core functions and structure of an AI Center of Excellence, including key roles and governance considerations. • How to align business and technical strategies for successful, ethical, and scalable AI implementation. • Recommended resources and frameworks from Microsoft to help organizations get started and continuously improve their AI capabilities. Resources • Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure https://aka.ms/CAF • Azure Well-Architected Framework https://aka.ms/WAF • Implementing an AI Center of Excellence https://aka.ms/GenAICoE_eBook • AI Center of Excellence https://aka.ms/LearnAICoE • Explore essential resources! https://azure.com/AzureEssentials • Read Thomas' blog https://www.thomasmaurer.ch/2025/08/implementing-a-center-of-excellence-for-generative-ai Related episodes • AI Adoption with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure https://aka.ms/AzEssentials/196 • What’s new in the Well-Architected Framework https://aka.ms/azenable/143 Chapters 0:23 Introduction to AI Center of Excellence 1:44 Defining the AI Center of Excellence 4:56 Core Focus Areas and Team Structure 6:10 Structuring the Center of Excellence 7:19 Implementing Strategy and Continuous Improvement 9:09 Resources and Learning Paths Connect • Thomas Maurer https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasmaurer2 • Ben Brauer https://www.linkedin.com/in/benbrauer