The Faces of Your Community
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LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW SERIES THE FACES OF YOUR COMMUNITY www.higherlogic.com/faces THE FACES OF YOUR COMMUNITY: A LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW SERIES FROM HIGHER LOGIC Online communities represent connections among real, valued and like-minded people. Introduction & Table of Contents At Higher Logic, we focus on advancing the concept of community. We build software that serves as the platform supporting the community, essentially the foundation. But it is the community managers that encourage collaboration and foster engagement. We want you to get to know the faces behind the more active and engaged communities in the world. Are you ready for the next conversation in community management? Read with us and go beyond their profiles, for this one-of-a-kind leadership interview series. You’ll see what makes these community evangelists tick, what keeps them up at night and what they do when they’re not online. Amy Sample Ward Roy Snell & The NTEN Team CEO Pages 2-5 SCCE/HCCA Pages 18-20 Ash Mathew Franchise Communications Teah Hopper Domino’s Pizza Director of Digital Engagement Pages 6-7 Missouri Realtors Pages 21-22 Andy Steggles President & Chief Customer Officer Summary & Faces Think Sheet Higher Logic You can galvanize your own audience and Pages 8-11 become a leading community manager— we’ve got the resources here to get you started. Peruse the leadership interviews Lindsay Starke and complete our Faces Think Sheet. Online Community Coordinator Pages 23-26 The Professional Photographers of America Pages 12-14 Sarah Robinson CEO and Chief Strategist Fierce Loyalty, Inc. Pages 15-17 www.higherlogic.com/faces HIGHER LOGIC | 1 LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW SERIES THE FACES OF YOUR COMMUNITY: NTEN Higher Logic: Who is NTEN? list. I joined over 10 years ago, and the group is still AMY SAMPLE WARD going, although activity is far less as group dynamics CEO, NTEN: The Nonprofit have changed, and folks interact in other online Technology Network NTEN Team: NTEN believes spaces as well. that nonprofits will be able to MEGAN KEANE more effectively and efficiently Bethany Lister: My first experience with online Membership Director, NTEN communities was through “alternative music” make real change in our chat rooms in the 1990s. I initially learned HTML BETHANY LISTER so I could re-share Smashing Pumpkins pics. communities and the world if Community Program A/S/L, anyone? they use technology strategically. Coordinator, NTEN Amy Sample Ward: Many of the early online HL: A wonderful goal! Tell us more. communities I was part of or created were replicas COMMUNITY of offline communities: email list for a soccer team MANAGEMENT TIP: NTEN Team: This means that every staff person out of season or groups of friends from camp in an organization needs to have the tools and the staying connected online. My first experience in Invest in a time management training to do their job well. We are a membership seeking out a group online, being strangers united by tool or set of tools. Everyone’s organization supporting nonprofits of all sizes a common thread, was when I was diagnosed with system will be a little different, and types, as well as the vendors, consultants, Celiac Disease. I had never heard of it, didn’t know but having a way of managing and service providers that work with nonprofits. what to do and wanted to find others in my situation. the flux of information and All NTEN staff engage with the community. The staying responsive to users team that is most often out of the office or out on HL: How many members are in your community? is crucial. social media includes: NTEN’s Community Program Coordinator, Bethany Lister; Membership Director, MK: We have about 50,000 in the overall NTEN Megan Keane; and CEO, Amy Sample Ward. community. About 6,000 have created an account on our community. HL: Describe your first community. HL: How do you define community and Megan Keane: My first online community, or first community management? in-person community? I come from a very big extended family, so that was a community of sorts! MK: I define community as a group of people that The first online community I took part in was the have some sort of shared affinity with one another, San Francisco Women on the Web (SFWoW) email whether that is interest(s), geographic location or a www.higherlogic.com/faces HIGHER LOGIC | 2 LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW SERIES THE FACES OF YOUR COMMUNITY: NTEN certain cause. I always like the analogy of the you will receive a tremendous amount of messag- “A community manager must party host to describe a community manager. es—in email, private messages in LinkedIn, Twitter be a good communicator You’re there to welcome guests, circulate, get or Facebook, personal messages within any other people talking to each other and provide online community platform you use for your and writer. Community is useful information, like where the bathrooms or groups and even voicemails. Taking the time to “messy”—there’s no right or refreshments are. And yes, sometimes you have learn and test which tools help save you that time, to be the bouncer or mediator. aggregate messages, and help you track who you wrong way of doing things. need to get back to can save you a few headaches, You have strategies and BL: I love Megan’s comparison of a community but can also ultimately help you be the best manager to a party host. I initially discovered community manager you can. policies, but also many grey that I wanted to work in community management areas. Community managers after regularly hosting networking nights for a HL: Where do you go and who do you ask for small nonprofit. You get to be the life of the party community management advice? have to be intuitive and without the spotlight actually being on you! comfortable with making MK: We have a Community Builders Community of HL: Tell me how you start your workday. Practice (#CommBuild) that holds weekly tweet judgment calls. Not everyone chats where I get a lot of good suggestions. The is comfortable with this level MK: I check email to head-off any fires. Then I Community Manager Roundtable is an excellent usually make a to-do list. I’m a big fan of writing resource. I also get a lot of great information from of ambiguity.” things down the old-fashioned way. It helps me get Ben Martin (Online Community Results). everything out of my head, and then I can plan my Megan Keane day’s tasks. BL: The #CommBuild community is a great Membership Director resource for community management advice— NTEN ASW: One of the most important community what a welcoming and generous bunch of smarties! groups for me to check in with first, every day, I also go to the Tech Club organizer community for is the NTEN staff (don’t forget that inside your help (Elijah van der Giessen with NetSquared is one organization you have a community, too!). I skim of my role models!) email for urgent issues, requests for support, or other priority needs from staff. We also have a HL: What skill(s) do you feel a community standing meeting each morning for sharing what’s manager must have? on your plate, where you may need help, or if you’re held up on progress. MK: Good communication and writing skills. Community is “messy”—there’s no right or wrong HL: What is one tool you’d recommend to all way of doing things. You have strategies and community managers? policies, but also many grey areas. Community managers have to be intuitive and comfortable with ASW: I think all community managers have to be making judgment calls. incredibly skilled with inbox management. As a facilitator, connector, supporter, and sometimes BL: Communication, listening skills and qualities coach to your community members and leaders, like appreciation and humility are essential. www.higherlogic.com/faces HIGHER LOGIC | 3 LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW SERIES THE FACES OF YOUR COMMUNITY: NTEN HL: Does your organization celebrate Minds on Design Lab (ModLab), and The Onion Community Manager Appreciation Day? (for all these years, it never fails to make me laugh aloud). MK: Not in any formal way, but we’re sure to send out some tweets of recognition! Instead, we hold BL: I love the community I’ve surrounded a member appreciation month, and using the myself with on Twitter. As a Tech Club organizer, hashtag “#ntenthanks,” we give out thanks to folks I appreciate NetSquared’s Community Organizers in our community, and community members are Handbook and look forward to the quarterly able to give thanks to each other (and sometimes organizer calls with other NTEN and NetSquared SHOUT OUT: us). It turns into quite the love fest! Tech Club organizers. I enjoy Model View Culture, There are many reasons B* Media, and Grassroots Institute for Fundraising to celebrate building an BL: I’ve experienced NTEN’s Member Appreciation Training, which all do great advocacy work. online community for your Month first hand as a community member (before membership. Write this joining NTEN staff). Megan asked me to speak on HL: Is your title important to you? If you could down—Community Manager an awesome, star-studded community webinar change it, what would it be? Appreciation Day (CMAD) about NTEN’s programs. It really lifted me up and takes place the 4th Monday made me feel appreciated for my contributions. MK: A title is a helpful descriptor, but it’s not who of January every year. CMAD I try to regularly give shouts-out to our community I am.