Communities of Practice Slides from a webinar from Harry Webne-Behrman, author of What Matters at Work ( https://amzn.to/2XedDQR ) and Darin Eich of InnovationLearning.org. This was an experiential workshop with activities and breakouts. These are the slides from the main presentation.

1. COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE:
FOCUSING ON WHAT MATTERS
AT WORK
Darin Eich and
Harry Webne-Behrman
27 May 2020

2. DARIN EICH &
HARRY WEBNE-
BEHRMAN
Darin Eich
Innovation Learning
www.innovationlearning.org
Harry Webne-Behrman
Webne-Behrman Mediation and
Consulting
www.whatmattersatwork.ca
harry.whatmatters@gmail.com

3. AGENDA
1. Welcome! Instructor Introductions/ Desired Learning Outcomes
2. What are Communities of Practice (CoP’s)? How are they best
designed for success?
3. Doing It – Rapid Prototyping a CoP
4. What Matters At Work – A Quick Guide
5. Activities to Focus on What Matters: (a) Tell a “Core Story;”
(b) Reflect on How we use Time; (c) Manage Transitions
6. Q & A/ Synthesis/ Closing

4. DESIRED
LEARNING
OUTCOMES
To more fully understand the value of Communities of Practice
and their potential for your organization
To experience some of the learning facilitated by CoP’s in
service to your own priorities
To understand how CoP’s may be used in service to What
Matters at Work, aligning Values, Intentions, Resources, and
Actions
To connect with others’ expertise and resources around CoP’s
and What Matters at Work

5. WHY ARE YOU
HERE?
Why are you
interested in this
topic?
What brought you
to this Workshop?

6. WHAT ARE COMMUNITIES OF
PRACTICE?
(WITH THANKS TO ETIENNE WENGER ET AL)
Communities of practice are groups of people
who share a concern or a passion for something
they do and learn how to do it better as they
interact regularly.
Key characteristics:
Domain (of interest and competence)
Community (the group interacts and learns together)
Practice (shared repertoire)
Translation: “Learn…Share…Do…Learn…Share…Do…”
5/27/2020 6

7. 5 COMPELLING
REASONS
Why cultivate and support
Communities of Practice?
1) We see ours as a “learning
organization” dedicated to the
growth of our staff.
2) Practitioners (stakeholders)
identify needs and interests.
3) Giant decentralized bureaucracies
need boundary-spanning
structures.
4) Communities of Practice impact
quality and mission.
5) They’re going to happen anyway!
5/27/2020 7

8. COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE DESIGN
PRINCIPLES:
“DESIGN FOR ALIVENESS”
Design for evolution
Open dialogue between inside and outside
perspectives
Invite different levels of participation
Develop both public and private community spaces
Focus on value
Combine familiarity and excitement
Create a rhythm for the community

9. STAGES OF COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
5/27/2020 9
These stages help us
understand what CoP’s
need over time…
Wenger, E., McDermott, R., & Snyder, W.M. (2002). Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide to
Managing Knowledge. Harvard Business School Press.

10. DESIGN FOR
EMERGENCE
(WITH THANKS TO
WHEATLEY AND FRIEZE)
NETWORKS connect individuals
with one another for their
personal gain
CoP’s build community through
trust-based relationships,
cultivating collective identity
SYSTEMS OF INFLUENCE
negotiate with formal policy
structures and decision-making
bodies

11. UW-MANIAC (MADISON AREA NETWORK
FOR INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION)
UW-MANIAC learning events shared
innovative practices across
organizations, fields, and disciplines…
By learning tools and sharing stories,
members brought back tangible
approaches to solve real problems…
Through practice and prototyping
processes, skills and confidence
increased, trusting relationships
formed, and opportunities emerged
for new projects.

12. RAPID PROTOTYPING A
COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
“What’s something NOW that people
need to learn in your organization, in
order to get better at what they do?”

13. WHAT MATTERS AT WORK –
IN BRIEF
Align our Values, Intentions, Resources, and
Actions in Service to What Matters…

14. FOCUS ON WHAT
MATTERS
PREPARE
SURVEY THE TERRAIN
EXPLORE PATHWAYS AND PRACTICES
(OF THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE YOU)
NOURISH YOURSELF AND OTHERS
LAUNCH THE JOURNEY
LEARN TOGETHER TO DEEPEN CAPACITY

15. SMALL GROUP ACTIVITIES:
“IN WHAT WAYS MIGHT YOU OFFER LEADERSHIP (EVEN IN A SMALL WAY) IN
SERVICE TO WHAT MATTERS? WHAT MIGHT BE “NEXT STEPS?”
TELL YOUR CORE STORY:
WHY - HOW - WHAT
WAYS WE USE TIME :
REFLECTING –
CONNECTING –
PRODUCING/
PROTOTYPING –
SYNTHESIZING
MANAGING
TRANSITIONS:
ENDINGS,
BEGINNINGS,
“NEUTRAL ZONE”

16. WHAT’S YOUR STORY?
TELL YOUR OWN “CORE STORY,” ONE THAT
REFLECTS YOUR VALUES AND PASSION…
Adapted from
Simon Sinek, Start
With Why

17. HOW DO WE USE
OUR TIME?
REFLECTING…
CONNECTING…
PRODUCING (OR
PROTOTYPING)…
SYNTHESIZING
HOW DOES EACH OFFER
VALUE TO OUR OVERALL
LEARNING?

18. MANAGING TRANSITIONS
(ADAPTED FROM WILLIAM BRIDGES)
How might we successfully
navigate the significant
changes affecting our lives
and our work?

19. 3 ESSENTIAL
CONSIDERATIONS
5/27/2020 19
1) Make a case for value to
the organization and
individual.
2) Balance organic
emergence with
institutional direction.
3) Accommodate the need
for a strong leadership
role.

20. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US!
QUESTIONS?
Please be sure to follow up with Harry or Darin
regarding any specific ideas for future learning…
Darin Eich,
Innovation Learning
www.innovationlearning.org
Harry Webne-Behrman,
Webne-Behrman Mediation and Consulting
www.whatmattersatwork.ca
harry.whatmatters@gmail.com

21. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
William Bridges, Managing Transitions (and other writings)
Simon Sinek, Start With Why (TEDx Talk, as well)
Wenger, E., McDermott, R., & Snyder, W.M. (2002). Cultivating
Communities of Practice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge (and other
writings)
Meg Wheatley and Deborah Frieze, Using Emergence to Take Social
Innovations to Scale (and other writings by Meg Wheatley)
C. Otto Scharmer et al, Theory U (and other writings)