Communities of Practice (CoP) are groups of peers who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly (Goodhue & Seriamlu, 2021). Research suggests that learning is the main reason CoPs are established. Social learning and thinking together are key concepts in it. The collaborative learning process of ‘thinking together’ is one of the most meaningful elements of a CoP and what makes it work.

Three key elements are required to ensure a Community of Practice exists:

1.    Domain: a shared area of interest

2.    Community: members interact and learn together

3.    Practice: members are practitioners who develop a shared repertoire of resources

While this concept has existed for centuries under various guises, it has become more formally utilised to capture collective intelligence, accelerate learning, drive innovation, and bring coordinated effort to complex issues across corporate, government and social impact landscapes over the last few decades.

Leading thinkers like Etienne Wenger and Peter Senge elevated communities of practice into a recognised discipline, noting that they centre around ‘domain’, ‘community’, and ‘practice’.

Communities of practice differ from other organisational forms in several ways (Wenger & Snyder, 2000).:

  • They are self-organising, and members determine their agendas and leadership

  • Membership is voluntary and based on expertise and passion for the topic.

  • Trust develops from members' ability to learn together and share candidly.

Though communities of practice are informal, they benefit from cultivation by leadership in some keyways:

  • Providing infrastructure like budgets, coordination, and facilitating roles

  • Integrating them into talent development and rewards systems.

  • Assessing value through member stories versus traditional financial metrics.

In the context of the Australian social enterprise ecosystem specifically, communities of practice are critical because:

1. They accelerate innovation by enabling peer-based problem solving, experience sharing around what works, and member-led initiatives advancing practice. The collective insight around real-world challenges inspires new solutions.

2. There is immense tacit knowledge beyond formal resources – lived experiences, observations, embodied understandings – that communities extract through storytelling and sustained interactions. This is difficult to codify but powerful.

3. A trusted space is created where vulnerabilities, frustrations, limitations, and taboos can be discussed openly without judgement among peers who ‘get it’. This leads to breakthroughs.

4. Benchmarking, assessment tools, guides and case studies can diffuse more systematically across the community as reference materials to uplift capabilities.

5. Potential partnerships, collaboration opportunities, funding sources and talent connections can organically emerge through community interactions and relationships between members and extended networks.

6. A sense of shared identity, belonging, solidarity, and mandate forms for practitioners who may feel isolated just seeing the day-to-day demands of their organisations otherwise. This propels the entire ecosystem forward.

One10 Group aims to be an inclusive place fostering such communities of practice nationally across the ecosystem. The vision is to enhance capabilities, drive innovation and growth, and unite the collective voice of purpose-driven businesses toward common agendas.

The technology platform, structured programs, facilitated workshops, mentoring circles, and networking events planned are all designed to enable community building and knowledge flows. Realising this potential will increase system-level impact in line with global benchmarks, leveraging the accelerative power of platforms and network effects.

Expression of Interest

Social Enterprise Community of Practice

To Express Interest in our CoP please complete the short form and a CoP coordinator will be in touch.

https://share.hsforms.com/1F5cYSYZkTVWJ4HexdcDtKw4hsz2

 

References

Goodhue, R., & Seriamlu, S. (2021). A quick guide to establishing a Community of Practice. ARACY. Canberra.

Wenger, E.C., & Snyder, W.M. (2000). Communities of practice: The organizational frontier. Harvard Business Review, 78(1), 139-146.