Empathy at Ramadan with Copilot

I’m of Jewish heritage. I don’t practise Judaism, but it is who I am — me and my family are British in the UK. I have no connection to Israel, Palestine, or Zionism, and I’m mentioning this only to clarify that my heritage isn’t political or geo-political.

When I was asked to design a Copilot campaign for Ramadan, my first reaction was: really, me? And what it means to be asked to represent a very important and sacred tradition you know anything about. I was genuinely concerned I might unintentionally offend Muslim colleagues and the customer. I felt outside my comfort zone!

However, I am an internal communications expert, and good communication starts with listening, learning, and respecting context, especially in situations where you have to learn fast and act thoughtfully e.g., responding to Crisis Comms, often on a unique subject you know nothing about, but you need to share facts, fast!

So, I leaned into Copilot to better understand Ramadan – its rhythm, sacred meaning, and the practical impact it can have on energy, focus, and daily routines. What began as hesitation quickly turned into genuine fascination. I managed to position Copilot as a supportive, always‑available companion, “Copilot never sleeps” — helping reduce brain fog and enabling people to work more thoughtfully during the month. See end of blog for more details.

I introduced Ramadan image generation as part of a Copilot training session, inviting participants to create Ramadan‑themed visuals for internal use. I shared a few examples up front to guide brand, tone, and intent — and it landed far better than I expected.

Participants quickly started creating and sharing their own images, many of them stunning and some unexpectedly amusing. What stood out was how willingly they shared the images. HR usually shares guidance during Ramadan, but this was made by the staff. The customer then picked these up and shared them across internal channels, which made the campaign feel more inclusive, human, and authentic — because it was created by employees themselves.

A good example of Adoption & Change Management – taking people on a change journey while giving them ownership, so the change feels led by them, not imposed on them, and my colleague agreed.

Copilot didn’t just support the communications campaign; it became the training activity. Participants learned how to generate high‑quality images using complex prompts, then shared both the image and the prompt directly in the meeting chat. That simple step made the session fun and engaging and showed how quickly Copilot can be used creatively and confidently in everyday work demonstrating perfectly creativity, courage and collaboration!

Several colleagues joined in the campaign generating stunning content for comms, and more ideas. The result was a campaign the customer genuinely LOVED. And so did Microsoft, who shared the campaign idea with other customers in the region in various formats.

Working globally means you will sometimes step into spaces that aren’t your own. The question isn’t whether that feels uncomfortable, it’s how you respond.
In this case, Copilot helped us build understanding very thoughtfully and with great care.

“Copilot Never Sleep Campaign” timetable:

• Week 1: Leadership – Start of Ramadan Message​
• Week 1: Scheduled prompt – Prayers & Fasting Times​
• Week 2: Staff generated Ramadan images & tips​
• Week 3: Beyond work with helpful Ramadan personal prompts​
• Week 4: Leadership – End of Ramadan Message, we wish you a peaceful and joyful Eid.