CoP: Best Practices - 0 views
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Etienne Wenger
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Gabriela Sellart on 02 Aug 08www.ewenger.com/
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communities of practice are fundamentally self-organizing systems.
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shared practice
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not a new kind of organizational unit; rather, they are a different cut on the organization's structure–one that emphasizes the learning that people have done together
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outsiders and newcomers learn the practice in concrete terms, and core members gain new insights from contacts with less-engaged participants
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defined by knowledge rather than by task
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produces a shared practice as members engage in a collective process of learning
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develop the knowledge that lets them do these other tasks
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development ultimately depends on internal leadership.
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have intrinsic legitimacy in the community
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They are nodes for the exchange and interpretation of information.
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They can retain knowledge in "living" ways
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They can steward competencies to keep the organization at the cutting edge
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They provide homes for identities.
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Identity is important because, in a sea of information, it helps us sort out what we pay attention to, what we participate in, and what we stay away from.
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recognizing the work of sustaining them
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giving members the time to participate in activities
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value communities bring is acknowledged
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The art is to help such communities find resources and connections without overwhelming them with organizational meddling.
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No community can fully design the learning of another; but conversely no community can fully design its own learning.
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Communities of practice develop around things that matter to people. As a result, their practices reflect the members' own understanding of what is important. Obviously, outside constraints or directives can influence this understanding, but even then, members develop practices that are their own response to these external influences. Even when a community's actions conform to an external mandate, it is the community–not the mandate–that produces the practice.
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Choice? Communities are created because their members choose to belong and participate to them. The can't be imposed.
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Across business units: Important knowledge is often distributed in different business units.
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Communities of practice arise as people address recurring sets of problems together
