Asynchronous Communications, Communication, Community Building, Community of Practice, Face-to-Face Meetings, Facilitation, IT Platform, Learning Communities, Online Community, Organizational Learning, Relationship Building, Set of Guidelines, Synchronous Communication, Virtual Communities, Virtual Organizations, Virtual Teams
ABSTRACT:
The boundaries of a Community of Practice (CoP) have changed significantly because of changes in organizations and the nature of the work they do. Organizations have become more distributed across geography and across industries. Relationships between people inside an organization and those previously considered outside (customers, suppliers, managers of collaborating organizations, other stakeholders) are becoming more important. In addition, organizations have discovered the value of collaborative work due to the new emphasis on Knowledge Management - harvesting the learning of the experience of members of the organization so that it is available to the whole organization. This chapter offers a practical toolkit of best practices, tips and examples from the authors' work training leaders to launch and sustain a virtual CoP including tips for chartering the community, defining roles, and creating the culture that will sustain the community over time.
