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OSR Alumni Association presents

Third annual conference

How is change changing? Explore new patterns of practice.

Achieve higher performance through communities of practice and social networks

with Clayton Gridley, David Kleweno and Iris Lemmer

Here are tools for cultivating community.

Communities of practice leverage the untapped talent, knowledge, and the potential necessary for generating unforeseen solutions. Fostering communities of practice is an emerging process that sets the groundwork for causing these new realities.

You’ll study a model for cultivating communities, based on the work of Etienne Wenger. It includes the following components:

• Set strategic context — Articulate need to leverage knowledge and expertise
• Education — Define language to legitimize communities of practice and establish their place within organizations
• Support — Identify needs and define adequate infrastructure
• Get going — Establish pilot communities where there is potential and readiness
• Encourage — Find sponsors and encourage participation
• Integrate — Align key structural and cultural elements

Presenting question

How do communities of practice and social networks affect the efforts to cause sustainable chance in complex systems?

Your workshop take-aways

• Resources for developing strong communities of practice
• Appreciating how communities of practice and social networks are an effective conduit to whole system change
• Techniques for leveraging diversity as a catalyst for innovation and sustainability in cross-collaborative efforts

Page updated Wed, March 25, 2009