Communities of practice strategic capabilities and learning challenges in the 21st century

1. Communities of practicestrategic capabilitiesand learning challenges in the 21st century Etienne Wenger Manchester Business School April 1, 2011

2. Starting from a social theory of learningsome key concepts learning Where do webelong? community Who are webecoming? practice identity What are we doing? meaning What is ourexperience?

3. Australian Security and Investment Commission Seven directorates Biological Federal Ministry A Chemical Explosives Radiological-Nuclear Consumerprotection Executive Operations Compliance Enforcement Finance Regulations Federal Ministry B Federal Ministry C Federal Ministry D Federal Ministry E Financial instrument management Leadership Investigations Forensics Change management Derivatives Informationmanagement PEM   PAL Insurance ASIC graduates Insolvency Community of practice across sectors SME owners in Lancaster Ontario leading municipalities Municipalculturalplanning provincial service organizations NGOs government departments and agencies

4. A community of practice is ... … a self-governed learning partnership among people, who • share challenges, passion or interest • interact regularly • learn from and with each other improve their ability to do what they care about In gangs… • they learn to survive on the streets • In organizations… • they provide better service to clients

5. A social discipline of learningkey processes Reflect andself-design Meaning Push practiceforward Domain Identity Bring practice in Learningtogether Community Practice Boundaries Competence/power Create self-representation In collaboration with Beverly Trayner

6. Learning activitiesa great variety • Exchanges • Productive inquiries • Building shared understanding • Producing assets • Creating standards • Formal access to knowledge • Visits Outsidesources Pointers to resources News Informal Information 1 Hot topicdiscussions Stories Broadcast inquiry Debates Tips 3 Exploringideas Document sharing Readinggroup 2 Jointevents Case clinics Documentingpractice Eachother With Guests From Project/after-actionreviews Jointresponse Collections Visits 7 4 Field trips Problem solving Learningprojects Formalpracticetransfer Q&A Boundarycollaboration Practice fairs 6 Mutual benchmark 5 Models of practice Helpdesk Trainingand workshops Warranting Formal External benchmark Invited speaker Systematic scan

7. A social discipline of learningkey dimensions Sponsorship Meaning Domain Identity Nurturing Participation Learningtogether Community Practice Boundaries Competence/power Support

8. Communities of practice and strategic capabilities learning as a donut Strategy Stewardship Sharing Learning Domains Communities Practices Performance

9. A social discipline of learning taking initiative in social learning systems • core • boundaries • emergent • obsolete Strategic capabilities:portfolio of domains System level System of communities of practice • contributor • broker • convener • let go Learning citizenship: multimembership Personal level

10. Maximizing systemic learning capability requires both governance processes in interplay. Each by itself tends to undermine systemic learning capability. Learning governancestewardship and emergence Stewarding governance Emergentgovernance

11. Not a roll-out Not a reorganization Not additional bureaucracy Lessons from leading organizations Strategic commitment Ongoing alignment Formalized strategic conversation spaces but Varying versions of: • Multiple levels of formality • Cross-cutting knowledge leadership structure • Sponsorship and support • Community leadership as recognized function • Global knowledge career incentives

12. Learning in social systemsaspects of learning capability Social learning spaces learning as mutual meaningfulness Knowing as practice and identity Accountability and expressibility  When have you experienced a genuine social learning space? • Learning citizenship • learning as ethics of identity • Acts of learning citizenship • participating • brokering • convening • moving on •  Who are you as a learning citizen? • Social artists • learning as activism • Shaping the learning landscape … • social and intentional • collaborative and willful • idealistic and pragmatic • … with the force of their own inquiry •  Do you know a social artist? Learning governance learning as systemic capability Stewarding and emergent governance Vertical and horizontal accountability Transversal leadership, processes, etc.  Have you seen transversality?

13. Thank you! Etienne Wenger etienne@ewenger.com www.ewenger.com