Thus communities transcend the typical organizational and geo-
graphical boundaries that can impede knowledge flow. Critically
important for any global company today, “success in global markets
depends on communities sharing knowledge across the globe.”^5
According to Wenger and his colleagues, “Communities of
practice are groups of people who share a concern, a set of prob-
lems, or a passion about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge
and expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis.”^6
The critical element for effective communities is the same
aspect that makes communities hard to “legislate” or build from the
top down: people participate in communities because they want to.
Hence striking the right balance between top-down structure and
infrastructure support for communities with the bottom-up, grass-
roots nature of communities is more art than science.
Storytelling
In Stephen Denning’s book The Springboard,he uses the word spring-
boardbecause the impact of a story comes more through a “leap of
understanding” than the ability to transfer lots of information.
He begins the book by admitting that he stumbled on story-
telling because “nothing else worked” and goes on to say,
“Storytelling enables the individuals in an organization to see
themselves and the organization in a different light, and accord-
ingly take decisions and change their behavior in accordance with
these new perceptions, insights, and identities.”^7
236 LEADINGORGANIZATIONALLEARNING
Tip:To support communities of practice or expertise in your orga-
nization, identify the places where energy is already in abundance;
make it easier for people to connect and engage with each another,
share information, and grow their community. Also, don’t change
the goals of the community for the first year; let the community take
shape before attempting any adjustments.