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Executive Perspectives on How the Way the World Works is Changing

October 16, 2020 By Rachel Happe

The State of Community Management 2020: Changing the way the World Works

Every year members of TheCR Network, who are among the world’s most innovative practitioners in helping organizations transform their culture and communication practices, convene for TheCR Connect. This year, that looks a little different – and we’ve staggered sessions throughout the month of October – and included a Technology Track and is open and free to the public.

While there is nothing like the intimacy and fun of year’s past when we assembled in Boston, the digital channel has given us opportunities to rethink the goals of our annual event – and get creative about how to replicate those objectives with virtual experiences. It changed how we work, which is just what online communities are doing for organizations across the globe.

In fielding the 2020 State of Community Management research, we saw exciting shifts in the strategic impact and influence of many community programs on organizations. And then COVID-19 hit like a train bursting out of a tunnel. Overnight, organizations went virtual and everyone got comfortable with video calls – even if they might still need a ‘You’re on mute’ sign now and again. Untethered from offices, executives started to understand the purpose of online networks in which employees could socialize, run into each other serendipitously, and collaborate in new ways. Everyone understands, suddenly and viscerally, that ‘The Office’ was never about the building but about the community of people it enabled to connect, discuss, meet, and collaborate.

Community. In the physical world, we take our communities for granted. Communities seem to develop magically – in part because they are complex adaptive systems that we cannot possibly see in aggregate. In reality, communities develop because of a million little behaviors of each member; saying hello or ignoring each other in the morning, bringing in leftover chocolate cake to share, stopping in the hall to chat, seeing the frustration on someone’s face, and asking how they feel, cc’ing executives on emails to deflect accountability, and validating (or invalidating) co-workers in meetings. These little behaviors – or fractals – of the complex system of culture determine whether cultures are healthy and positive or destructive and toxic. In online communities, we can see it all – including how the aggregate of those little behaviors impacts the trajectory of the community culture as a whole, which we categorize in the Community Engagement Framework as a way to measure them and with it, the culture of a group, community, or organization.

engagement behaviors - How the Way the World Works is Changing


Online communities have made what was once implicit, explicit. In doing so we can understand the behaviors that contribute to generating value – and those that destroy trust and value. It has given rise to an entirely new profession – that of community management.

Last week for TheCR Connect, I had the pleasure of inviting three pioneers – Eric Meyers, Céline Schillinger, and Michael Merk – to share what they have learned over the past decade about building communities inside global organizations. These pioneers discovered how online communities could address some of the most pressing communications, leadership, and strategic challenges their organizations faced. Each of them worked at organizations that were straining under the weight and pace of old communications tools and habits while trying to innovate; BASF, Steelcase, Hilti, and Sanofi. Each learned unique and valuable lessons as they navigated this emerging world of digital communities – and each championed and executed innovative approaches.

We touched on the power of online communities to create transparency and trust, accelerate performance, build relationships and culture, and ensure accurate information is available to all. We also touched on many of the challenges; helping break cultures dependency and protection by giving everyone an avenue to lead, helping executives wade in and around the personal and leadership landmines of transparency, and most of all how to help people understand the way power is transformed from something that is risky to share into something that combusts when shared – in ways that propel everyone forward and catalyze collective energy.

Have a listen:


Connect 2020 – Changing the Way the World Works

October 1, 2020 By Jim Storer

Our 6th annual community conference, TheCR Connect kicks off today.

It is not the event I thought it would be, or wanted it to be. At The Community Roundtable we each try to find the work that energizes us, and for me it’s always been Connect. I love the planning, fitting all the puzzle pieces together, designing meaningful experiences, helping the right people find each other, creating a safe and dynamic space for our members and participants. I love watching everyone come together, watching first-time participants light up when they realize they’ve found their people, looking around as a speaker sparks dozens of ah-has in the audience.

But, this spring it became clear that Connect would not happen this year the way it had in the past. Scrapped were my plans for elaborate 20/20 vision-themed puns. So, no this event is not the event I thought it would be, or wanted it to be. As it turns out, it’s more.

Without the constraints of times zones or trying to jam everything we wanted to do into three days, new possibilities opened up. We could connect speakers from around the world on one panel; members who couldn’t even attend before due to time or budget constraints could take on active roles. Finally, we could explore multiple tracks and more specialized content.

Welcome to Connect 2020

Just a few of the 74 Connect 2020 sessions. View all sessions.

Over the next month, we’ll host 74 sessions on 17 days. We’ll feature 101 speakers from around the world, from New Zealand to New York, Boston, Austin, and so many places in between. Our nine tracks range from inspiration to wellness to technology – encompassing the whole person a community manager is, not just their job.

We’ll host virtual chocolate tastings (though trust me, the chocolate will be real), live demos from technology partners, internal and external community strategy sessions, fundamental, advanced, and executive case studies from community experts, keynotes from thought-provoking leaders like Mia Birdsong and Priya Parker – all anchored by an interactive event community filled with AMAs, discussion threads, a wellness challenge, and yes – a pet thread.

And the secret ingredient? Our incredible members, clients, and partners, who trusted us enough to make this major pivot with us. We could not have done this alone. We built a framework, planted the seeds, and I am so excited to see what grows this month.

A year ago when we started planning Connect 2020 I could not have imagined the event we have created and we are just getting started. I hope you will join us for this month-long adventure. More than ever we need to connect – I hope to see you there.

Connect 2020 Keynote: Mia Birdsong on Accountability and Connectedness

August 11, 2020 By Kelly Schott

I am incredibly excited to announce another keynote for Connect 2020: Mia Birdsong!

Mia Birdsong is a pathfinder, community curator, and storyteller who steadily engages the leadership and wisdom of people experiencing injustice to chart new visions of American life. She has a gift for making visible and leveraging the brilliance of everyday people so that our collective gifts reach larger spheres of influence, evoke cultural and political change, and create wellbeing for everyone. Her approach marks a departure from traditional, institutionalized change work which seeks solutions from select “experts”, people often removed from the problems they’re charged to solve.

Let me back up a little bit: we have a quarterly book club inside TheCR Network, and our Q3 read was Mia Birdsong’s “How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship, and Community.”

I was immediately drawn to the book’s focus on humanity’s inherent connectedness where we find strength, safety, and support in vulnerability and generosity, in asking for help, and in being accountable. Showing up — literally and figuratively — points us toward the promise of our collective vitality and leads us to the liberated well-being we all want. This is what shapes human language and influences the way we communicate with one another. 

As we started thinking about voices who could provide both inspiration and a fresh perspective on community to our Connect participants I couldn’t stop thinking about Mia Birdsong. Her message of accountability and connectedness dovetails so perfectly with what we are thinking about, and celebrating at Connect this year: changing the way the world works.

I can’t wait to hear Mia Birdsong’s perspectives on how “showing up” makes us all stronger. I hope you’ll join us for her keynote session in October.

Learn more about Mia Birdsong here.

Learn more about TheCR Connect here.

Pushing the (Community) Dialog Further, Together

October 15, 2019 By Jim Storer

TheCR Connect conference is always striving to push the dialogue further, and this year did not disappoint. Between an in-depth exploration of the vendor market in their Community Solutions Showcase to the two thought-provoking keynotes on entrepreneurship and trust in Community spaces, my notebook is more frantic and full than ever with takeaways. Below are three themes (of the many) that seemed most prevalent in The CR Connect conference this year. 

Loved these real-time graphic recordings of the sessions!

Technology Needs to Catch Up (and Listen) 

As Community Managers, we’re often closest to the technology and the last to be invited to the table. As the platform landscape is shifting faster than ever before, with a wealth of migrations on the horizon, being included as part of the design is critical to Community success and platform harmony. 

Own Your Space (and Your Power) 

If you needed a confidence boost, you were in luck at this year’s Connect. As Rachel Happe states it “influence is more powerful than control”; and as community leaders we are on the front lines of influence. We heard from several presenters on how articulating your expertise and ownership of your skills is necessary for not only this industry, but the success of your own Community. 

We’re In This Together

When asked about key takeaways, one attendee summarized the feeling of Connect beautifully with the statement “I’m not alone!”

No matter if you’re more focused on executive dashboards, building out your ROI, or launching a community for the first time, we’re here for each other. Words cannot express the gratitude I feel each year in the availability of my peers to share their successes (and trip-ups) with each other, building a network that gets deeper and stronger over time. What other industry can put that to their name and truly practice what they preach. 

Bringing It Together, Together

Through the distilling in my notebook, I feel committed to owning my space, articulating my expertise, and leaning on the power of my network to direct where I can grow. As we hear from others in the coming weeks their big ideas from Connect, my hope is that we keep the conversation going. It is through this sharing, trust, and vulnerability in each other that we can truly lift each other up and succeed. See ya all next year! 

TheCR Network Wrap Up for September 2019: TheCR Connect

September 30, 2019 By Binta Dixon

If you’re feeling the extra jolt of energy in the community space this week, there is a good reason! We are riding the high of TheCR Connect which took place September 23rd – September 25th in Boston. This one-of-a-kind occasion was filled with first time meetings, reunions, and so many ah-ha moments; I’m still reeling!

Our members are still talking about the peer-led sessions they attended, the connects they made, and colleagues they met IRL. Nick Emmet did an amazing recap of day 1 and 2 of the conference you can dive into if you are feeling left out. 

Many attendees and I marveled at the graphic recordings produced at the event. These unique and creative renderings help to bring the topics we discussed to life.

One of my favorite aspects of the conference was our first ever Community Solutions Showcase. Although the session stimulated many more questions than answers, it was insightful to learn more about how community platforms view the needs of community managers, and in contrast, how community managers are evaluating the platforms they choose. You haven’t seen the last of this conversation so stay tuned to TheCR for our next platform focused event.

Another one of my favorite moments from TheCR Connect 2019 was the award ceremony. TheCR Awards recognizes leaders, trailblazers, and newcomers in the community management space who are making waves. We honored long-time TheCR member and expert community manager Jeff Ross with the Lifetime Achievement award. On the other side of the spectrum, we also recognized Amy Rood, a newcomer to the community space who hit the ground running with thoughtful questions in the Network.

Although Connect took up much of TheCR teams lifeforce during September, we know that the impact of the ideas shared will continue throughout the year and this is well worth the effort.

We could not continue to put on these events without the leadership, guidence, and support of our members. One of the key conversations I am determined to continue is about empowerment.

As Rachel Happe stated during the conference, community leadership IS leadership and as community managers, it is time to step into our full power and influence.

As we move into October, I encourage you to find ways you can lead in your community. You don’t need to manage people to take up the charge of being a leader. Ask the tough questions, find a community-minded way to solve a problem. Set a meeting with a stakeholder to update them on community. If there is anything I learned from this years conference, it is this; community leaders are experts in their organizations and now is the time to speak up!

Where do you go to recharge, get advice, and find empowerment? If you’re a community manager looking for support, research, and tools, you have found your people! Join TheCR Network today and join the conversation.

The Community Roundtable Recognizes Excellence in Community Management with TheCR Awards 2019

September 25, 2019 By Jim Storer

TheCR Awards - 2019

Humana, Inc., Heifer International, and Analog Devices, Inc. among global organizations celebrated as leaders in community management.

The winners of the fourth annual TheCR Awards were announced Tuesday, September 24, 2019 including innovative community leaders from Pearson, BMC Software, World Bank Group and Humana. The Community Roundtable, the leading global resource for the community management industry, presented the awards at their annual conference in Boston, TheCR Connect. As the recognized leader in community management research, training and thought leadership, The Community Roundtable is uniquely qualified to evaluate and reward individual and organizational contributions to the industry.

TheCR Awards recognize excellence in community management across four categories: Outstanding Community ROI, Outstanding Center of Excellence, Outstanding Community Change Agent, and Best Recognition & Reward Program. Members of TheCR Network – the world’s premier resource for community professionals – were recognized in six individual categories. Two additional awards, Community MVP and Outstanding Community Achievement, were awarded based on peer nominations.  In total, 14 organizations and individuals were recognized for outstanding efforts in community management.

“We see how community leaders are impacting the success of their organizations by empowering individuals,” said Rachel Happe, Co-Founder and Principal at The Community Roundtable. “These leaders are changing how their organizations engage and in doing so, changing business models to be more inclusive and powerful.”

The winners of TheCR Awards 2019 are:

TheCR Network Detective: Caroline Sekar, Manager, Community and Community Programs, Cisco Meraki

“TheCR Network Detective” awards the member who helps source group knowledge and expertise by regularly asking thoughtful and meaningful questions in TheCR Network.

TheCR Network Explorer: Oonagh McQuarrie, Content Creation &Engagement Manager, Massage Envy

“TheCR Network Explorer” awards the member who charts new territory in the community management industry. They take best practices, research, and community models to experiment and advance the industry.

TheCR Network Pack Leader: Peter Broadley, Manager, Community Development and Engagement, CSA Group

“TheCR Network Pack Leader” awards the member who consistently leads the most discussions, online, in-person, and on virtual calls, and shows leadership around a topic or initiative in TheCR Network.

TheCR Network Journaler: Maren Beckman, Community Manager, Pearson

“TheCR Network Journaler” awards the member who works out loud the most regularly and with the most depth.

TheCR Network Power User: Christopher Detzel, Community Manager, Imperva

“TheCR Network Power User” awards the most active member in TheCR Network who contributes on a regular basis in a wide variety of ways, from sharing their expertise to supporting and encouraging other members.

TheCR Network Rookie of the Year: Amy Rood, Online Community Manager, Ounce of Prevention Fund

“TheCR Network Rookie of the Year” awards a Network member who has fewer than three years of industry experience, is new to TheCR Network, and is a power user – regularly collaborating and contributing inside the Network.

Outstanding Community ROI: BMC Software

The “Outstanding Community ROI” award recognizes the community that best demonstrates significant ROI for their organization/business unit through innovative community management practices.

Outstanding Community Change Agent

The “Outstanding Community Change Agent” recognizes a community program or initiative that supported the cultural transformation in a large or small way at their organization.

The Outstanding Community Change Agent was awarded in three distinct categories in 2018: Individual Change Agent, Program Change Agent and Organizational Change Agent:

Outstanding Community Change Agent – External Community Program: Analog Devices, Inc.

Outstanding Community Change Agent – Internal Community Program: Humana, Inc.

Outstanding Center of Excellence

The “Outstanding Center of Excellence” award recognizes a community center of excellence that makes a measurable impact on their organization.

Outstanding Center of Excellence – External Community Program: World Bank Group

Outstanding Center of Excellence – Internal Community Program: CSA Group

Best Recognition + Reward Program: Heifer International

The “Best Recognition + Reward Program” award recognizes outstanding community recognition, reward, and gamification programs that increase engagement, drive participation and contribute to the overall positive health of your community.

Community MVP: Dina Vekaria, Community Manager, Pearson

The “Community MVP” award recognizes excellence in community management – including outstanding efforts, willingness to share with peers, achievements and excellent community results.

Outstanding Community Achievement: Jeff Ross, Community Strategist, Humana, Inc.

The “Outstanding Community Achievement” award recognizes someone who has dedicated much of their time and effort to successfully managing communities, furthering the industry, and helping their peers through sharing experiences, knowledge, and general support.

Learn more!

Three Reasons You Should Not Attend TheCR Connect

September 7, 2017 By Jim Storer

There are so many reasons that community pros should attend Connect, that it’s easy to forget there are very valid reasons why it might not be a great fit for you. Since registration closes tomorrow for our 2017 event I wanted to share three reasons that Connect might not make sense for you.

  • You need to catch up on your Twitter/Instagram/insert favorite social media here.

    Look, I understand. Sometimes you just want to attend an event and sit in the same seat all day long. Those tweets aren’t going to tweet themselves. We’ve all been at an event where you get to tune out and have plenty of time to catch up on your streams, or crush a little candy on your phone. If that’s what you’re looking for I’m going to be honest: Connect isn’t for you. We have an action-packed schedule that involves a lot of moving around, small group sessions, interactive workshops, and a couple of parties. If you’re looking to tune out this is not the event for you.

  • You like being talked at.

    I’ve been to more workshops/conferences/tradeshows than you can shake a stick at and one thing is pretty universally true: at some point, there will be an “expert” on stage talking at you for what feels like hours (this is when you pull out Candy Crush.) Even if the person actually is an expert and not a self-proclaimed guru/ninja/visionary it gets boring and gives you a chance to nap. I’m sorry to tell you that is not what happens at Connect. Our workshop is intentionally kept small so everyone participates. There are no “experts” – only a lot of real community practitioners sharing their stories, and encouraging you to share yours. If you want to zone out at Connect you’ll have to hide in the bathroom.

  • You’ve got community management 100% figured out.

    There is a chance if you’re reading this you’re saying, “Well, it sounds interesting, but I don’t need any help with my community programs.” If so, close this browser tab and get back to work! But, if you are looking to learn from some of the most innovative organizations in the world, and want to meet community professionals that can help you with your community and your career Connect might be for you. Workshops include:

    • Launching an Advocacy Program (Atlassian)
    • Building Community Allies in the Digital Workplace (Mastercard)
    • Assessing the Vendor Marketplace (McGraw-Hill Education)
    • Setting Yourself Up for a Successful Migration (Cisco)
    • The WIIFM and ROI of Community ROI (Humana)

So – those are the facts! If Connect isn’t for you, I totally understand. If Connect IS for you – run, don’t walk. Registration for this year’s workshop closes Friday, September 8th. I hope to see you there!

Register now. 

 

TheCR Connect Boston 2016 Recap

November 7, 2016 By Jim Storer

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Participants brainstorm during a working group session.

By Amy Turner, The Community Roundtable

Working in community you can get pretty numb to the amazing collisions that take place between passionate people. We recently got a reminder of what makes community professionals – and members of TheCR Network – so special.

TheCR Connect brought together community veterans and tactical experts from around the country for a two-day workshop full of inspiring speakers, actionable planning sessions, engaged networking and expert case studies. And just a little bit of networking held around actual roundtables, with delicious food and tasty drinks in hand. (Some extra-special bonding was done during the World Series game we watched as a group on night one!)

This year, participation was limited to members of TheCR Network to ensure that deep connections could be made quickly, and so that every participant could contribute and walk away with inspiration to effect real change in their community. No business cards needed at this event – everyone was already connected online in the Network!

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A roomful of community lovers led to great networking.

The Connect workshops, lightning talks and unconference sessions (all led by our amazing members) covered on topics such as Dashboards, Roadmaps, Community Platform Requirements, Gamification, Empathy and Crowdsourcing Innovation.

We even celebrated members of TheCR Network with a series of awards during Connect, to showcase the incredible work they are doing to advance the discipline of community management as well as contributing to Network in valuable ways. Awards covered such topics as “The Cheerleader”, “The Detective” and the “Explorer” and were a fun way to surprise and delight our members.

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Members of TheCR Community Team present member Ted Hopton with an award.

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Community VIP Claire Flanagan receives a special community commendation.

 

While we are sad to have another Connect event in our rear-view mirror, these amazing connections and conversations are already living on inside TheCR Network. Our year-round regular programming, including roundtable calls, working groups and discussions ensures that members are always connecting, always sharing and always learning – even if they aren’t in a room together anymore.

 

TheCR Connect Class of 2016

 

Learn how your community and your career will benefit from membership inside TheCR Network.  jointhecrnetwork_button

Connecting the Ecosystem (Video)

February 18, 2014 By Jim Storer

In case you missed out on IBM Connect 2014 here’s a little glimpse into the conversations that were taking place in Orlando. Rachel  sat down with Peter Cardon from USC Marshall School of Business to discuss how businesses are using communities and what form those communities take.

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You can view more “Connecting the Ecosystem” videos from IBM Connect 2014 here.

Connecting Through Community

February 3, 2014 By Jim Storer

By Shannon DiGregorio Abram, Relationship Manager at The Community Roundtable.

connecting through communityOur great content experiment continues in February (read more about Janaury here) with a month-long focus on connecting through community. At first glance the idea of connecting through community is obvious – as a community manager one of your main goals might be to connect with members, connect members to each other or connect member to information or resources that they need. And indeed, each of those activities can be a full time job in its own right. Over the next four weeks we’ll take a look at each of those ways of connecting, but we’re going to dig deeper as well.

For many community managers there is more “connecting the dots” than an outsider would ever imagine. Many of you struggle to connect the value of community management to tangible ROI and business results. Others wish for a way to connect with like-minded peers who share their purpose.  So often a community manager is an island in an organization that might not believe in the power of good community management or worse yet, struggle against a divided executive team – one that wants a successful community or social program without understanding the real work that goes into making it thrive.

Over the next month we’ll share content focused on all aspects of “connecting”  in the community world from member case studies to best practices and resources. We’re focusing on connecting people, ideas, and  resources – with expert advice and some fun surprises thrown in. If you have any great resources that help you “connect,” please reach out – we’d love to hear from you!

Finally, in the spirit of connectedness, I want to share some of the online places you can catch up with us. Many people share with us that they are on the community journey, but don’t yet have the resources to be a member of the Network – and we understand. Here are a few places you can connect with us and our content:

Pinterest – We have several boards focused on different aspects of community, including a Reading List, Research, Infographics and our ever-growing list of TheCR Network Experts.

Slideshare – On our slideshare page you can find both full length and excerpts of popular presentations as well as selected research and related community documents.

Twitter – Twitter is definitely our most active channel online – we tweet all day, every (week) day and it’s the best place to follow along for news, information and commentary on what’s happening in the community world.

Facebook – Our Facebook page is a great place to connect with us if you’re looking for news, calls for participation in events and research and for more general stories at the intersection of community and human interest.

LinkedIn – Looking for great discussions, alerts about available community jobs and lots of like-minded community peers? You can connect with us – and other community leaders here.

Of course, this blog is a great way to stay connected to the happenings at TheCR. In the coming months we’ll continue to connect you to new research, news and even more content centered around community managers themselves, including new Faces of Community Management profiles and a monthly Community Manager Spotlight webinar. We’d love to connect with you – please find us at in the places above, or share the best way to connect in the comments below!

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