Posts Tagged "communities of practice"

Are the new “web 2.0″ technologies relevant? Technology has always been relevant to communities to help members connect across time and space and share relevant resources. Web 2.0 technologies are often associated with new, more “horizontal” ways to connect and share information, networked thinking, and new forms of representation—all uses of technology that are very much aligned with the peer-to-peer learning typical of communities of practice. There are many different tools and for each tool, many different realizations; and there is also a great variety in the ways people and communities use these tools. Yet practically, it is useful to review briefly the potential that these new technologies hold for the learning of communities of practice....

Do communities use tools like “Second Life” for their activities? Avatar-based web worlds (e.g., Second Life). Some communities have meeting areas on avatar-based sites. It allows them to have more of a sense of shared space even when they cannot be together in physical space. For instance, the ability to see who is there, even as an avatar, can help members get a more concrete sense of community togetherness than in a teleconference call. The full potential of these types of sites has yet to be fully explored.   >...

What use are media-sharing sites for communities? Some communities open accounts on media-sharing sites, such as Flickr for sharing photos, so that members can share photos, videos, and maps. This provides a simple way to document community events or to collect resources relevant to members. In other communities members use their own individual accounts and a common tag to share memories or resources. Sharing through a common tag means that individuals can share their photos, videos etc. across multiple communities.   >...

Are Facebook, Linked-In, or Goggle+ tools for communities? Networking websites, such as Facebook, Linked-In, or Google+, offer quick, simple, and cheap ways for communities to open spaces for interaction. While the sites may not offer all the features that communities of practice need, they present the advantage of being located where people already have accounts, profiles, and personal networks.   >...

Should a community be “tweeting”? Micro-blogging, using a tool such as Twitter or Yammer, has become a very popular way for some communities to stay connected. It is used in a variety of different ways, including to: Stay connected. Micro-blogging allows members of a community to be in very close contact on an ongoing basis as they subscribe to each other’s “tweet” feeds. It is way to follow what members are up to through the website or through a desktop or mobile application. Leverage the network. Community members can also use these “tweet” messages to get just-in-time help, instant responses to a request for information, or quick feedback on a thought or new idea. Filter multiple sources. “Following” people you trust who share...

Why are analytics important for a community? Analytics, such as Google Analytics, enable community leaders to collect, analyze, and act on data they receive about how people are connecting to their website. Data is easily collected and represented in many different ways. A community leader can see which pages are being read by whom, from where, and through which browser or media. As well as enabling community leader to observe which content is popular it helps them to know who to reach out to and provides information for making decisions about which tools to use for which members of the community.   >...

How do communities use tagging? Communities can use a set of tags as communal keywords, thus creating shared set of pointers to resources relevant to members. A “tag cloud” (the set of tags that a community uses sized according to frequency of use) can be a way to represent dynamically what a community is interested in and where its learning is focusing. It can be interesting for members to visualize their membership by comparing their own tag cloud that of their community. A tag can also have its own “feed”. This means that members can stay subscribed to a tag, being notified when content tagged with a specific term is used.   >...

  Communities of practice usually involve multiple levels of participation. Because involvement can produce learning in multiple ways and the domain has different levels of relevance to different people, the boundaries of a community of practice are more flexible than those of organizational units or teams. Typical categories of membership and participation include: Core group: a relatively small group of people whose passion and engagement energize and nurture the community Active participants: members who are recognized as practitioners and define the community (though they may not be of one mind as to what the community is about) Occasional participants: members who only participate when the topic is of special interest, when they have some...

What use are feeds for a community? Feeds, such as RSS feeds, are used in two ways. They enable communities to: Distribute content beyond the people who visit their website. Members and non-members can subscribe to feeds through an aggregator so they are automatically updated through a web portal, news reader or email whenever new content is published to a site.   Combine content through bundling feeds into “widgets”, “gadgets” or mobile devises that make it possible to display blogs, videos, slideshows, news headlines etc. into another website. This means that communities can combine and integrate the content from different tools in different ways onto their website. As the number of communities increases, feeds enable people to manage their...

How do communities use blogs? Communities use blogs, such as Blogger or WordPress, in two ways: individual blogs and collective blogs. Individual blogs give people a personal voice as contributors to a community. Some communities offer individual blogs inside the community space for specific purposes, such as telling personal stories of practice. Some communities also point to the personal blogs of their members outside the community space, for instance by including member’s blogs on their “blog roll” (links to associated sites). Informal communities also develop as conversations connect related blogs through postings and comments that point to each other across blogs. Collective blogs are also used by communities as shared chronological spaces for...

How do communities of practice use wikis? Wikis, such as MediaWiki used by Wikipedia and Wikispaces which is popular for Educators, are used by communities of practice to create and publish collective, co-authored documents, including web pages. They also use wikis as interactive workspaces for conducting projects or for creating a shared memory of events. The use of wikis range from mere accumulations of resources to full co-authoring of text. Accumulation. For communities, the easiest way to use a wiki is as a repository to which everyone can contribute in order to accumulate text, images, and other resources–for instance bibliographies, lists of pointers of interest, descriptions of tools, etc. In such cases, the advantage of wikis is that it is...

Do we need to change our organizational culture first? Organizational culture can work against communities of practice, if it is individualistic, competitive, and focused on the short term. Changing organizational culture is very difficult. Change initiatives to address cultural issues have had mixed results at best. One of the problems of these change initiatives lies in their scale: they have to happen in lockstep across the organization. As a result they remain for the most part distant from people’s daily concerns. Communities of practice are very sensitive to culture because of their voluntary nature and their basis in identity. But for the same reason they are also a locus for the creation of culture. Each community inherits the culture of the...

If knowledge is power, why would anyone want to share it? Knowledge is indeed a source of power; but hoarding knowledge is not necessarily the best way to benefit from its power, especially in the context of communities of practice. Generalized reciprocity. In a community of practice, sharing knowledge is neither one-way nor merely a transaction. It is a mutual engagement in learning among peers. An improved practice benefits the whole community. Even experts benefit from having more knowledgeable colleagues. Contributing one’s knowledge is an investment in the stock of the community. In this context, the distinction between self-interest and generosity is not so clear. Reputation platform. A community of practice acts as a platform for building a...

What about power? Wouldn’t communities become a threat to the organizational hierarchy? Existing across an organization’s formal structures, communities of practice rarely derive much power directly from positions in formal hierarchies. But communities do not usually seek positional power, with its control over resources and accountability for investments—tasks for which communities are not well suited. They do seek the power of voice, however: the power to be heard, to make a difference, and to have their practice-based perspective matter. In the knowledge economy, the power of voice becomes just as important as the power of position. In an organization where the power of voice is acknowledged, managers would routinely ask: “Have you checked with your...

Should communities of practice attempt to assess or measure the value they create? The issue of measurement and assessment is a controversial one when it comes to communities. Some see measurements as community killers and some see them as the only way communities can survive in organizations. The reality of most communities is more nuanced. While it is true that red tape can harm a community, some awareness of the value created can also inspire members and legitimize their participation and personal investment. And while demonstrating value to an organization is important to ensure support and sponsorship, trying to measure everything is not always the best way to make the value of a community understandable. This calls for a very pragmatic attitude. Communities...

What about tasks and expectations for communities of practice? Communities of practice that have high expectations about what they can achieve tend to be energized. And yet misplaced tasks and expectations can also make the community feel like just another job to do. So the question tasks and expectations hinges on a key distinction between energizing and de-energizing tasks and expectations: Energizing tasks and expectations. They usually allow practitioners to make a difference with their expertise; they help them connect with each other around their desire to perfect their craft; they have visibility in the organization (or at least with the people who can appreciate the results). Typical examples include solving hard problems, debating a hot issue, or...

Should organizations institutionalize communities of practice? Because of this tension between vertical and horizontal processes, integrating communities of practice in an organization is an exercise in paradox. Organizations tend to pay attention to structures or issues by institutionalizing them but it is a delicate task to integrate communities of practice into the organization without squelching the very self-organizing principle that makes them thrive. When it comes to communities of practice, organizations have varying degrees of institutionalization, which even vary from community to community. It is useful to distinguish between two kinds of institutionalization: institutionalizing communities of practice themselves, and institutionalizing their existence...

What should an organization put in place to cultivate communities of practice systematically? If organizations are going to cultivate communities, in their midst or across their boundaries, they have a responsibility to create a context in which these communities can thrive. Large numbers of communities of practice today live inside or across organizations that influence them in many ways. And most of the failures of these communities are at least in part due to a lack of organizational support or understanding. So the organizational side of the cultivating equation is a critical success factor. Organizations are only beginning to learn how to integrate communities of practice. The point is not to institutionalize them and shape them into the image of the formal...

What are three key success factors for communities of practice? Communities of practice are complex social structures, whose voluntary and self-governing nature makes them quite sensitive to subtle dynamics. As a result a host of factors potentially contribute to their success (and to their failure). Any of them can become critical in some circumstances, but if we are asked to name my top three, we generally mention the following: Identification: Communities of practice thrive on social energy, which both derives from and creates identification. Passion for the domain is key. This makes the negotiation of the domain a critical success factor. Leadership: A key success factor is the dedication and skill of people who take the initiative to nurture the...

Should participation be voluntary or compulsory? In general, it is much better to let participation be voluntary. This way, communities of practice live on because they create value for members, not because of an edict or a box to check. It does not mean that one cannot strongly encourage participation or even request that someone run an idea by the relevant community. But making participation compulsory more generally runs the risk that communities become just another meeting to go to and survive. This is likely to deflate the very social energy that makes healthy communities of practice places of meaningful learning.   >...