11/17/18

Building Platforms for Communities

A Model for Community Development

Casey Hughes

KMunity, Inc.

Overview

"A community will evolve only when people control their means of communications".

Franz Fanon

Let's explore the process of community development by understanding how the social and cultural aspects combined with a managed process supported through technology can yield a pattern for increasing returns and meaningful experiences among our relationships and collaborations.

Learning Objectives

  • Define the notion of "Community" and it's value for building sustainable relationships
  • Outline the key drivers that nurture the development of "community"
  • Learn how to integrate community principles and practices into your daily life (work and play)
  • Reproduce (through an example) the natural process for in-formation exchange and co-labor-ation through self organizing
  • Give examples of some of the best free Internet Tools and Resources for building community

What is "community"?

  • People interacting and activating value by embracing common purpose and principles
  • The interface between people, places, policies, practices, processes, programs…
  • More about "process" than "place"… not a build it and they will come exercise but an "if its useful, they will build it" one. It's about a shared experience of meaningful results.
  • A "container" whose boundaries are transparent yet consist of the collective heart, mind, body and soul of the participants.

Other Labels for Community…

  • Collaborations (or collaboratives)
  • Communities of Practice (CoP's)
  • Value Chains
  • Value Webs
  • e-marketplaces
  • Social (Cultural) Networks
  • Channels (in the distribution context)

Examples of Communities (online):

  • EBay
  • Amazon.com
  • Slashdot.org
  • Motley Fools
  • Collegeclub.com

What are the key Social and Cultural drivers for community?

Community is more about social behavior than it is about technology. It begins with the self (the ME) and connects us in meaningful ways to others (the organization or the WE). Technology provides the tools that can help us connect "in community" practices and experiences. Like all natural systems (cells, organs, our bodies, ecosystems, our planet, the galaxies) community demonstrates 3 basic principles:

  • Self-organizing

People are free to gather around common purpose and principles

  • They share in open conversation
  • They build trust
  • They honor diversity and encourage it
  • They re-cognize that there are many resources available that can be activated and seek ways to identify, understand, access and share them
  • They co-operate while still embracing their individual identities (and brands) … called co-opetition
  • They recognize that collaboration is a difficult process that requires effort (LABOR), time and support
  • Self-governing

The community dictates their own rules setting the framework for working together through common policies and practices

  • They recognize that rules do not restrict or limit, but accelerate the collaboration
  • They assume response-ability for their own "words, deeds and actions".
  • Participants are free to express their view of what was valuable vs. meaningless
  • Self-replicating

The best practices of the community emerge to replicate themselves and form new patterns for increasing the value inherent in the community.

  • Information increases in value as it is freely made available
  • Systems of people, practices and programs readily expand and become distributed to others when recognized for delivering value.

Each of these 3 core community principles must be embraced by all the participants at every level of the community… from the personal level of self (the "Me") to the group levels (of the "We").

Why Community?

Crisis creates community… every man-made institutional structure has proven to be increasingly ineffective at tapping into the human spirit. Through integrating and interweaving Community throughout and within every aspect of your work, you can:

  • Enhance the experience of your constituents
  • Optimize relationships with all participants (your staff, business partners, community organizations, vendors, citizens)
  • Receive increasing returns  everyone benefits through increasing participation
  • Activate shared resources minimizing duplication and overlaps
  • Obtain feedback loops  yields improved services/value, a win-win internally and externally
  • Create widening differentiation from competing organizations and individuals
  • Engage, transact and fulfill "customer" needs across the entire lifecycle
  • Enhance increasing revenue from Community syndication, sponsorship, programs and services
  • Innovate the core for a new digital economy distribution system for your content, programs and partnerships
  • Create a strong brand for your community practices

A 3 C's Model for Community Development… "If it's useful, they will build it!"

Overview:

The 3C's Model for Community provides a manageable framework for developing, launching and growing communities of shared purpose and principles. The "connectors" for this system are social and cultural "values-based" practices that serve to create a meaningful experience conducive to the community. This can be viewed as a phased approach supporting the value creation among all participants by creating an ongoing feedback mechanism for high value content and services to become shared (a model for "increasing returns").

The Phases are defined as:

Phase I… Content (stimulate the conversation)

All relationships begin with "content", a sharing of information about ourselves, our affiliations, our needs and aspirations. . Business partnerships begin with the exchange of business cards, eBay sales are facilitated through product descriptions and member profiles (and ratings!) and collaborations emerge out of programs that act as a driver for working together. Have you ever attended a conference to hear a speakers "presentation" and be motivated to meet him/her to further the "conversation"? Does YOUR content engage conversations?

Phase II… Collaboration (nurture the connections in relationships)

Content alone (as begun in Phase I above), can certainly educate and inform but needs to engage collaboration for action. Collaborative applications significantly extend the value for "connecting" all participants into inter-activity. Phase II serves to enlist participant input to content development and the free flow of knowledge (information, programs and services). Through the integration of collaborative applications (see Free Tools Section) of Discussions, Communications, and Email Lists, significant value can be activated across all community participants. This is the true beginning of the dynamic Community System. By drawing from the numerous Discussion Posts, Email Listservs contributions and Chat Transcripts, you create an ongoing "source" for new content available to the community. And you promote the value for free flow exchange.

What relationships among individuals and organizations are you overlapping in pursuit of your purpose?

Phase III… Commerce (aka Interactions of VALUE Exchange)

Through the feedback potential of the Collaborative applications coupled with transaction based systems, the cycle of community development can be further activated and sustained. Keep in mind that "Commerce" in the broader sense defines any exchange of value among participants and includes (but is not limited to):

  • Exchanging profile information
  • Sharing information on programs, policies and services
  • Developing programs and services in collaboration with others
  • Registering for an event
  • Collecting money for programs, products and services

What "transaction systems" do you employ (or could use) to encourage community exchanges?

Conditions for a successful community

  • A clear and shared sense of crisis or opportunity
  • Champions to activate the effort
  • Dedicated working group(s)
  • Broad communication and engagement (expanding participation)
  • Resources (time, tools, access, attention, financial)
  • Openness, curiosity, imagination
  • A will to succeed and the grace to compromise
  • An interplay of design and practice (pilot, learn and adapt)

How can a P&R Agency (or individual) apply these principles, practices and tools?

What ways are YOU????

Insights Illustrated…

Content + Collaboration + Commerce  (enables) Community

Social + Cultural + Technical  Community System
Internet Community Tools

More great tools at (click on Free Tools Icon)

Free Internet Access


A free internet provider with over 1,100 access points across all 50 US states,

Free US internet access AND e-mail accounts for the "price" of a permanent banner ad box somewhere on your screen with rotating advertisements.

Free Email Accounts

is one of the best and most advanced e-mail deals on the Internet, and it is all free. BigFoot allows you to auto respond to your email when you are away, reminds you of important dates as well as receive your e-mail wirelessly on your alphanumeric pager or PCS telephone.

Free e-mail account for life. Advertisements are shown to you when you use your account to offset the cost of running the service. A nice feature HotMail has is that it lets you check your pop email account as well.

can provide you a free lifetime e-mail address that works independently of your Internet Service Provider, wherever you go.


Industry leader in free email accounts. Great anti-virus scanning to protect your desktop too!

Free Communications (Instant Messaging)

is a revolutionary, user-friendly Internet tool that informs you who's on-line at any time and enables you to contact them at will. With ICQ, you can chat, send messages, files and URL's, play games, or just hang out with your friends while still surfing the Net.

is a free downloadable application that let's you send instant messages, make free phone calls in the US, get alerts for your stocks and Yahoo! Mail, news, weather, sports scores and more.

gives you more ways to communicate with friends and family. With AIM Talk, you can enjoy live conversation online through your computer. It's free and it's never been easier!

Instant Messenger uses AOL IM but with a slightly modified interface

is the fastest and most effective way to add Chat interactivity to your website. Instantly add an option for “Live Help”, see who visits your website(s) and monitor site traffic patterns. It’s FREE and adds an entire new dimension to you and your website visitors.

Free Discussion Forums and ListServs (Email List Management)

gives you a fast, easy way to add forums, message boards, and chat rooms to your Web site. Uses the WebCrossing Server. There's nothing to buy, nothing to download, nothing to install. Your forums reside on the World Crossing server, so there's no need to install software at your own site.

are often-updated sites that point to articles elsewhere on the web, often with comments, and to on-site articles. You can have discussions, share files, links and pictures and best of all, have as many site editors as you like.

is a free email group service that allows you to easily create and join email groups.

is a free Internet service that allows you to easily create, find, manage and participate in email lists.

Plan Events and Meetings

Use the Internet for what it was intended, to coordinate people across time zones and geographies. These great tools help reduce phone and e-mail "tag" and will help insure planning your next meeting or gathering is painless.

is a fun and easy way to get people together. Use Evite to send free invites, track RSVP's, provide maps and directions, and more.

offers a unique combination of services including automation tools to streamline registration; Event marketing engine to increase attendance; Global Attendee Database to increase attendee knowledge and optimize events over time

is a Web-based marketing, registration, and payment service for all types of activities and events. No set-up fees required.

is primarily a dedicated meeting scheduling tool, combining group meeting coordination with a vast array of tools to conduct online meeting (including Discussion Boards, Chat, Instant Messaging and File Sharing). It allows you to invite groups of people via email and to reserve needed resources (meeting rooms, data projectors, etc.).

Free Community Platforms


is a unique combination of powerful, secure and integrated tools for enabling web-based group communications. Create an interactive area for your employees or your website visitors in a matter of minutes, for free. Ideal for businesses, associations, teams & clubs, charities, not-for-profits, student groups, alumni, or any group needing a secure and branded collaborate area online. (used to be called vicinities.com).

Resources

KMunity.com

A network of independent professionals under the guidance of Casey Hughes that is providing organizational development, distribution channels and community technology services. Many links to Free Internet Tools, articles, online conversations and books on community development.

Lap.org

A non-profit in-formation organization under the caretaker leadership of Max Gail that is guiding the relation-ship formation among community technology centers, community networks and those they seek to serve.

CoWorking Institute

Bernie DeKoven's tips for building community along with a host of tools and resources for managing effective collaborations and meetings (called Technography).

Deep Fun

Bernie DeKoven's Center for exploring, extending and sharing your capacity for fun.

Lone-Eagle Consulting

Frank Odasz's Cross-Cultural Self-Directed Learner's Internet Guide

Full Circle Community Resources

Full Circle is the consulting practice of Nancy White and a network of independent professionals. Using communications as their centerpoint, they provide strategic facilitation, online community development, marketing, and project management services for the community, non-profit and business sectors

The Benton Foundation

Benton seeks to shape the emerging communications environment and to demonstrate the value of communications for solving social problems.

AT&T Learning Network Community Guide

AT&T developed this Guide as part of its ongoing effort to help communities take advantage of the many benefits of information technology.

Copyright 2001 KMunitypage 1 of 8