Summary

This chapter has discussed the role of Communities of Practice (COPs) as a vehicle for knowledge building and encouraging shared learning in the modern workplace. Although not a new medium for learning, COPs have a number of advantages from an organisational learning perspective: they help with knowledge creation and preservation; they provide a way of integrating work and learning; participation in communities can help people develop a greater sense of identity, something that can be difficult in geographically dispersed teams, as well as enabling individuals to take responsibility for some aspects of organisational learning.

The chapter has provided a number of practitioner tips, drawn from the experience of an established learning and knowledge management practitioner. These include: How to help communities get started, How to develop and sustain interest in communities, and How to monitor and evaluate the outcomes of communities.