Newsletter - Microsoft Global Community Initiative - November 2025
Microsoft Global Community Initiative Newsletter November 2025 đHello MGCI Members around the world, Welcome to this monthâs newsletter sharing insights on whatâs happening in communities around you. Microsoft Ignite, Nov 17-21 in San Francisco Itâs November! Which means, Microsoft Ignite is right around the corner and behind the scenes we are preparing theater sessions and connections pods for our community. Check out the schedule for all community-focused sessions and make sure you donât miss out on session such as: Tue, Nov 18: Community Connection Pod: Microsoft Global Community Initiative: Connecting People, Powering Impact Speakers: Heather Cook (Microsoft) & Isidora Katanic (Experts Inside) This session introduces the Microsoft Global Community Initiative and how it empowers individuals to share knowledge, collaborate, and drive change worldwide. Join us to learn how you can participate, lead, and amplify your voice in this global movement. Wed, Nov 19: Community Theater: Women in Tech & Allies: Turning Allyship into Action Speakers: Heather Cook (Microsoft), Karuana Gatimu (Microsoft), Danielle Moon (Microsoft), Isidora Katanic (Experts Inside), Femke Cornelissen (Wortell) Allyship isnât a buzzwordâitâs a commitment to creating workplaces where everyone can thrive. Join this interactive Community Forum to explore what authentic allyship looks like and why it matters. Weâll share real-world scenarios, practical strategies, and personal stories that highlight how allies can advocate, amplify, and act. Whether you identify as an ally or want to engage allies in your journey, youâll leave with actionable steps to foster inclusion, challenge bias, and build a culture of equity in tech. Thu, Nov 20: Community Connection Pod: Engage, Connect, Grow: Your Path in the Microsoft Community Speakers: Heather Cook (Microsoft), Jonathan Jones (Microsoft), Shari L. Oswald (PowerUP!Learning), Eric Overfield The Microsoft community is a powerful network of professionals, advocates, and innovatorsâbut where do you start? This interactive session will show you how to get involved, share your expertise, and build your personal brand. Learn best practices from experienced community leaders and discover opportunities to contribute meaningfully. Whether youâre a newcomer or a seasoned participant, youâll leave inspired and equipped to take your next step. Next General Session â November 18 th Donât miss out on the next General Session taking place on November 18th. Mark your calendars and join us LIVE for the AM or PM session broadcasted on the Microsoft Tech Community. With updates directly from Ignite and other cool community topics, we are looking forward to welcoming you in this monthâs general session with: Topic: Running Events & Building Community in Tough Environments Host: Heather Cook, Principal PM, Microsoft Customer Advocacy Group, Microsoft Guest Speakers: Augustine Correa, Biz Talk Lead at CompuCom and Oluwaseyi Oluwawumiju, Management Executive at Convenant Technologies In this session, we explore strategies for executing impactful events in challenging or resource-constrained environments. Speakers will share insights on fostering community resilience and engagement when external conditions are less than ideal. Attendees will leave with practical tools and inspiration to build meaningful connections through events, regardless of circumstance. đ November 18 â° 8:10 AM PT - https://aka.ms/MGCIMtgAM đ November 18 â° 5:10 PM PT - https://aka.ms/MGCIMtgPM Community Spotlight: #CommunityLuv Celebrating 3 years of communitydays.org we would like to shine a light on one of our Board Members Tom Dalyâs LinkedIn post. What started as a small idea, turned out to be THE one-stop-shop featuring hundreds of Microsoft tech community events around the world. You can like, share or comment on the post here on LinkedIn. Congratulations, November MVPs! On November 1 st , Microsoft welcomed a selected group of newly awarded Microsoft Most Valuable Professionals (MVP) into the MVP Program. We love to see this community growing, which is a proof of the commitment out there to communities worldwide. A big congratulations to the newly awarded MVPs! ESPC, Dec 1-4, Dublin here we come! Our MGCI (Board) Members and Microsoft leaders are heading over to Dublin to attend, speak, or staff their sponsor booths at ESPC in Dublin. The conference covers topics around Microsoft 365 & AI technologies and you can still register to attend. More than 3000+ IT enthusiasts will gather together to learn and achieve more with Microsoft 365 & AI. Come join us! MGCI in December âď¸ Join in with a cup of hot chocolate, as our monthly general session will take place on December 16th, right before the winter break starts. Stay tuned as more details will follow in next month's newsletter. Upcoming Events Upcoming Community Led Events Community Days | Fabric Data Days | Nov 4-11 | Hybrid Community Days | Vancouver Microsoft 365 Summit | November 6 | Vancouver, BC, Canada Community Days | MN M365 15TH BI-ANNUAL FALL WORKSHOP DAY | November 7 | Edina, Minnesota Community Days | AI COMMUNITY DAYS - TUNIS | November 8 | Tunis, Tunisia Community Days | COLLABDAYS GREECE 2025 | November 8 | Virtual Community Days | Experts Live Emirates 2025 | November 10-11 | Dubai, UAE Community Days | Viva Engage Festival - APAC | November 12 | APAC Virtual Community Days | Viva Engage Festival - EMEA | November 12 | EMEA Virtual Community Days | Update Conference Prague 2025 | November 13-14 | Prague, Czechia Community Days | Microsoft Ignite 2025 NYC Community Summit | November 17-18 | New York City, NY Community Days | M365 Community Days DC - Microsoft Ignite 2025 Watch Party + Unconference | November 18 | Washington DC Community Days | SmartCloud 365 - 2025 | November 25 | Germany Virtual Community Days | Shift Enter Summit 2025 | November 26 | MixĂĄt, Budapest Microsoft Global Community Initiative Resources Weâve made it easy for you to find all the MGCI resources you need at your fingertips. This space features the PowerPoint decks from our Monthly General Sessions and Event Training Sessions & Office Hours as well all MGCI Event Producer playbooks, checklists and templates. Check it out! Missed last month's events? In case you missed our October events, you can check out the recordings of the General Sessions here: AM General Session PM General Session And the recording of the Event Organizer training here: MGCI Event Organizer Training Sincerely, Your Board Officers Microsoft Global Community InitiativeCelebrating Three Years of CommunityDays.org
Happy Anniversary Communitydays.org CommunityDays.orgâA Brief History In Autumn 2021, the tech community faced a moment of uncertainty. The beloved SPSEvents.org, a community run non-profit and a cornerstone for SharePoint Saturdays and Microsoft community events, announced its closure. For many, this felt like the end of an era. But for Thomas Daly, a longtime Microsoft MVP and community organizer, it was a call to action. Recognizing the void left behind, the SharePoint Community began talking - event organizers trading ideas in virtual spaces about how to reconnect with audiences. Many were struggling to reach people, setting up their own websites and relying almost entirely on word of mouth to spread the word about events. Those conversations werenât just reflectionsâthey became a spark for something new. At the time all in-person events and user groups had gone virtual or were on hiatus as the Covid-19 Pandemic had forced everyone to embrace digital events for the unforeseeable future. Here is a throwback to the SPSEvents.org site that many remember and love. Recognizing the vital role that community-driven events played in technical learning and networking, Thomas Daly talked with Jason Rivera and Manpreet Singh other Microsoft MVPs & leaders in the Tri-State Microsoft community - came together and stepped up to create a new home for these gatherings. Their vision was clear: empower organizers and attendees worldwide to connect, learn, and grow through free, inclusive technical events. Tom shared his idea with me and Karuana Gatimu: to have the site led and administered by the community. We jumped at the chance to collaborate with the team and support his effort. We proposed that Microsoft contribute by providing the siteâs infrastructure and launching a new initiative: the Microsoft Global Community Initiative, to support local, volunteer event producers. The Launch of CommunityDays.org By October 13, 2022, CommunityDays.org was officially launched by Tom Daly, sponsored by SoHo Dragon and Microsoft. The launch was announced by Jeff Teper at Microsoft Ignite and accompanied by a blog post from Karuana Gatimu. The first events followed swiftly, setting the tone for a platform that would champion inclusivity, accessibility, and community-driven events in the Microsoft ecosystem. Collab Days Belgium (October 15, 2022) M365 Friday Cincinnati (October 21, 2022) CollabDays New England (October 22, 2022) AMS Kuala Lumpur, (October 28, 2022) AMS Sao Paolo (October 28-29, 2022) AMS Singapore (October 29, 2022) Global AI Developer Community Days, Mumbai, India (October 29, 2022) Global AI Developers Days â Tri-State (October 29, 2022) Community Days Mexico City (November 3, 2022) Rooted in the groundbreaking spirit of SharePoint Saturday Events, Community Days expanded beyond SharePoint to embrace the full Microsoft ecosystemâMicrosoft 365, Power Platform, Azure, and more. From small workshops to global conferences, the platform has become a trusted hub for discovering and hosting events that democratize access to technical education. Over the past three years there have 394 events listed on communitydays.org and the momentum grows weekly for organizers listing events on the site. The Role of MGCI (Microsoft Global Community Initiative) CommunityDays.org is community led through the work of Tom and a small team who manages the site and via the support of the board and regional leaders of the Microsoft Global Community Initiative (MGCI). MGCI provides resources like event amplification, production training, networking opportunities, and best practicesâensuring community leaders have what they need to succeed. Importantly, MGCI is community-led, with Microsoft offering tools and guidance while the strategy remains in the hands of passionate volunteers. https://aka.ms/MGCI Partnerships & Connections CommunityDays.org partners with Sessionize and Run.events, leveraging their APIs to automatically pull event information directly into the platform. This seamless integration ensures that event listings are always up to date and makes it easier for organizers to manage their events efficiently. Additionally, SoHo Dragon has been a valued sponsor since the inception of CommunityDays.org, providing crucial support that has helped the platform grow and thrive alongside the Microsoft community. Event organizers can list their events for free, use the call for sponsorship area to manage dealing with sponsors, there are listings of monthly and weekly technical learning community calls, and there is a Speakerboard that shares speaker stats from free community events. Tom leads the administration of the site and shares updates on new features and functionality of the site on the monthly MCGI General Session Meetings. A big thank you to all who have helped with testing and Q&A. Apologies if we missed you, shout out and weâll add you in. đ Augustine Correa Bryan Hart Carl Karawani Daniel Glenn David Leveille David Patrick Emily Mancini Haniel Croitoru Jamel Abed Jamie Willis-Rose Jason Rivera Jonathan Weaver Manpreet Singh Mark Rahn Martin RĂśvekamp Michal Ziemba Mike Maadarani Oluwaseyi Oluwawumiju Pat McGown Rachel Irabor Rob Windsor Russ Onizuka Ryan Schouten Samir Makwana Shari Oswald Sharon Weaver Thomas Daly Wes Preston With Gratitude This success story belongs to youâthe organizers, speakers, volunteers, and attendees who make these events possible. Your dedication to sharing knowledge and fostering connections has created a global network of learning and collaboration. Special thanks to: Founders and early champions: Thomas Daly, Jason Rivera, and Manpreet Singh, Community organizers worldwide who give countless hours to host free-to-attend events. MGCI Advisory Board - (Board Members and Regional Leaders) for operational support, and volunteering time for quality testing and amplification of the events. Thank you to Shortcut Shari (Shari Oswald) who create the 3 rd Anniversary sticker It was super fun to celebrate this milestone during the Experts Live US event in New York City with all the attendees and organizer and Community.days.org founder Tom Daly. (photo of Experts Lives speakers, volunteers, and sponsors) Looking Ahead As we celebrate three years, we look forward to continuing this journey togetherâexpanding opportunities, embracing new technologies, and strengthening the bonds that make our community extraordinary. Hereâs to many more years of learning, sharing, and growingâtogether! Visit CommunityDays.org and Microsoft Global Community Initiative to get involved.Share Your Community Story via Video
We are creating some new fun videos to be shared on our Microsoft Community Learning YouTube channel and during some MGCI Community Produced and Community Led Events. Microsoft 50th Anniversary is all year long and the big 25 is coming for SharePoint next year! If you would like to participate all you need to do is answer the following questions regarding being a part of the Best Community in Tech. Can you introduce yourself and tell us how you got involved in the MICROSOFT 365 community? What motivated you to join this community, and what keeps you engaged? How did joining the MICROSOFT 365 community help you achieve your personal or professional goals? How has the community helped you in your personal or professional development? Have you been to many MICROSOFT 365 events? Can you share a memorable experience? Why do you think MICROSOFT 365 is called the âbest community in techâ? How do feel about SharePoint celebrating 24 years and Microsoft celebrating 50 years? What has the MICROSOFT 365 community meant to you? Feel free to record in English or your native language if other than English as we are a global community. Other tips: 1) Please answer in complete sentences, i.e. âMICROSOFT 365 helped me become aâŚâ or âthis community has really helped me to findâŚâ, etc. 2) Pause between each answer, look at the camera, smile before you start each answer. Keep looking into the camera at the end of each answer. Once completed, please upload your videos here:âŻMICROSOFT 365_videos - we are accepting videos until Friday April 11th. Excited to have you all participate!! Questions, let me know.⯠Getting ready to be on-camera! A few things to keep in mind when filming with a smartphone: It needs to be shot with the phone horizontal, not vertical. Confirm your setting is to 1080p at 30fps. Frame the shot nicely and make sure the lighting is bright (and that you are not backlit or in a shadow). Use a microphone if possible! We also recommend using a tripod or a smartphone stand. Prop the phone up so the shot is stationary and steady. Consider your environment and location. Be in a quiet area and with little clutter behind you. If possible, please record the content twice and send us two videos so we have 2 takes to choose from. Recording with an iPhone Use Camera⯠âŻto record videos on your iPhone⯠Choose Video mode. Tap the Record button or press either volume button to start recording. While recording, you can do the following: Pinch the screen to zoom in and out. For a more precise zoom onâŻmodels with Dual and Triple camera systems, touch and hold 1x, then drag the slider to the left. Tap the Record button or press either volume button to stop recording. Anything captured automatically saves to your deviceâs Photo Library. By default, video records at 30 frames per second (fps). Depending on your model, you can choose other frame rates and video resolution settings in Settings⯠âŻ> CameraâŻ> Record Video. Faster frame rates and higher resolutions result in larger video files. Confirm your setting is to 1080p at 30fps. To display quick toggles on iPhoneâŻX and earlier, go to Settings⯠âŻ> CameraâŻ> Record Video, then turn on Video Format Control. Adjust Auto FPS settings: On iPhoneâŻXS, iPhoneâŻXR, and later, iPhone can improve the video quality in low-light situations by automatically reducing the frame rate to 24 fps. Go to Settings⯠âŻ> CameraâŻ> Record Video, then do one of the following: On iPhoneâŻ12 models, tap Auto FPS, then apply Auto FPS to only 30-fps video or to both 30- and 60-fps video. On iPhoneâŻXS, iPhoneâŻXR, iPhoneâŻSE (2nd generation), and iPhoneâŻ11 models, turn on Auto Low Light FPS. Record a video on your Android phone You can record real time videos on your phone. You can also record time-lapse videos that speed up when you play them. Important:âŻSome of these steps work only on Android 10 and up.âŻLearn how to check your Android version. Record a video Important: When you take a video, your phone silences notification sounds to avoid an interruption. To quickly record a video, open your Google Camera app, then touch and hold CaptureâŻ. Open your Camera App⯠.âŻLearn how. To switch to video mode, tapâŻVideo. To start recording, tap Record. To put a cut in your video, tap Pause⯠.âŻTo start recording again, tap Record. To take a high-resolution photo while recording a video, tap Capture. To stop recording, tap Stop. Tip:âŻYou can change your camera settings to use features like gridlines or a flash.âŻLearn how toâŻadjust how your camera records. Wardrobe Guidelines Avoid wearing solid white, black, or red shirts Pastel and jewel colors work well, as do blues and earth tones. Avoid small prints, stripes, plaid or intricate patterns (e.g. Herringbone, tweed, etc.) -âŻthese can vibrate on camera. Or wear shirts with logos showcasing MICROSOFT 365 or other product or tech fun. Cheers and thank you for submitting your community story!
