AI and internal comms – what I know right now… in 90 seconds
from a Client Director at a small but powerful internal comms agency
Since AI hit the mainstream in 2022, we’ve been testing, exploring, trialling, and erroring… a lot. Reactions range from awe to horror at how awful some outputs can be. The biggest thing I have learnt, though, is that it’s not about the tool (it’s never about the tool), it’s about what you give the tool, and how you take what it gives you.
Here’s what stands out to me right now - in November 2025 (in an approximately 90 second read):
Speedy pattern spotting
On a project with 50+ interviews and 100+ survey responses in the Microsoft ecosystem, Copilot helped spot patterns, trends, and themes. Amazing when you’ve got more data than you can shake a stick at.
Test the water
Want to get some quick and challenging feedback quickly? Prompt AI to respond as a cynical employee, stress-test ideas, or explore a new idea. It challenges thinking and sharpens judgement without replacing it. It can’t replace genuine employee feedback, but it can give you a sense of what might be and equip you to think more broadly.
Clarity is more important than ever
The more precise you are about audience, tone, and purpose, the better the output. This is the same discipline that’s always mattered in effective comms. Give it the best chance of success, just like you would if you were briefing a human.
Practical, ‘how could this work’ or ‘how could I do that’?
Need to turn handwriting into a font? Need a personalised gift for someone who loves VW Campervans and lives in South Africa? AI can suggest tools, resources, and approaches for how to get things done. This comes with a massive caveat - humans still make the creative decisions. But it can take the heavy lifting out of research and give you more time to think creatively. If you just want it to do it for you, you’re going to struggle.
It’s people, not AI, that get criticised - poor outputs come from lazy prompts or outsourcing thinking, not from the tool. The phrase “AI slop” (which I genuinely can’t stand for so many reasons) is a reminder that human judgement, effort and empathy are 100% still required and quality comms can’t be delivered without them.
AI is incredible at amplifying what we do as communicators. Use it wisely my dear comms pros, there’s lots of fun to be had, lots of doors to open and lots of opportunity to exercise judgement, empathy and creativity. And I for one am only just scratching the surface.
