How to Build and Hire a Community Team  [[3. Resources/Readwise/Full Document Contents/Articles/How to Build and Hire a Community Team|Full Document Contents]] ## Document Notes ## Summarize: This article discusses the significance of community teams in organizations, their responsibilities, and where they should be positioned within the company. The article emphasizes the importance of community-led growth initiatives, which benefit both the community members and the business. It outlines five personas that make up an effective community team: the scientist, the strategist, the champion, the technician, and the captain. Each persona brings unique skills and perspectives that contribute to building a thriving community. The article also provides guidance on hiring a community team, emphasizing the importance of focusing on overall qualities rather than task-based skills. It concludes by introducing Common Room, a platform that empowers community teams by providing insights and tools to enhance community engagement and impact. ## Bullet Points: ### Responsibilities of a Community Team - Responding to user inquiries and requests - Facilitating member interactions - Creating content and sending welcome messages and member surveys - Planning and hosting events - Sharing community insights with internal teams - Reporting on the program's impact and driving value for members and the business ### Positioning of Community Teams in an Organization - Cross-functional nature with participation in multiple departments - Community teams as quarterbacks of cross-team initiatives - Roles within Marketing, Product, and Customer Success teams - Importance of the team's voice across all organizational functions ### Five Personas on a Community Team 1. The Scientist: Analytical and experimental mindset, data-driven, tests hypotheses, demonstrates ROI of community. 2. The Strategist: Creates the structure of the community program, defines goals and tactics, envisions long-term impacts. 3. The Champion: Celebrates and amplifies the work of community members, identifies moments for community growth opportunities. 4. The Technician: Supports community operations, ensures platforms function effectively and scale with the community. 5. The Captain: Supports team members, sets expectations, communicates shared goals, drives the community towards success. ### Hiring a Community Team - Focus on overall qualities that enhance the team and community - Hiring criteria aligned with company values - Diversified hiring process to showcase candidates' value to the community team ### Common Room - Empowering Community Teams - Provides visibility into community engagement across digital channels - Enables personalized interactions across the member and customer journey - Supports each persona on the community team with relevant insights and tools - Demonstrates impact and promotes community-led growth ## Paraphrase: 1. *Community teams play a crucial role in bringing organizations closer to their users, customers, and other stakeholders. They are responsible for managing and building user communities, aiming to create value for members and contribute to business growth. By nurturing the community through various activities, community teams establish a positive feedback loop where satisfied members become loyal customers, driving sustainable growth.* 2. *The positioning of community teams within an organization can vary, and it often involves working across different departments. A Twitter poll revealed that community teams are considered the quarterbacks of cross-team initiatives, being involved in marketing, product, and customer success functions. They collaborate with these teams to locate and elevate product champions, incorporate user-centric feedback into roadmaps, and support customer success by providing solutions through community engagement.* ## Conclusion: The article highlights the crucial role of community teams in organizations, managing user communities to create value for members and drive business growth. It emphasizes the cross-functional nature of community teams, working closely with marketing, product, and customer success functions to achieve shared goals. The five personas on a community team, including the scientist, strategist, champion, technician, and captain, contribute diverse skills and perspectives to build a thriving community. When hiring community team members, focusing on overall qualities, aligning with company values, and diversifying the hiring process can lead to success. Common Room provides a platform that empowers community teams with valuable insights and tools to enhance community engagement and demonstrate its impact on the business. ## Questions: 1. How do community-led growth (CLG) initiatives benefit both community members and businesses, and how can organizations effectively implement them? 2. What are the primary responsibilities of community teams, and how do these activities create a positive feedback loop for the business? 3. Why is the positioning of community teams within an organization considered a tricky question, and what factors should be considered when deciding where they should be placed? 4. How do community teams collaborate with marketing, product, and customer success functions, and how does this collaboration contribute to the success of each department? 5. Can a single individual possess multiple personas, such as being both a scientist and a champion, on a community team? How does this flexibility impact the team's effectiveness? ## Auto-tagging: community teams, community-led growth (CLG), user communities, value creation, business growth, responsibilities, cross-functional, positioning, marketing, product, customer success, personas, scientist, strategist, champion, technician, captain, hiring, Common Room, insights, tools, community engagement, impact ## Index Creation: - Community Teams: Responsibilities, Positioning, Hiring - Community-Led Growth (CLG): Benefits, Implementation - Five Personas: Scientist, Strategist, Champion, Technician, Captain - Hiring Criteria: Overall Qualities, Alignment with Values - Common Room: Empowering Community Teams, Insights, Tools, Impact ## Table of Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Responsibilities of Community Teams - Managing User Communities - Creating Value for Members and Businesses - Positive Feedback Loop 3. Positioning of Community Teams - Cross-Functional Nature - Collaboration with Marketing, Product, and Customer Success - The Tricky Question of Placement 4. The Five Personas on a Community Team - The Scientist: Analytical and Data-Driven - The Strategist: Visionary and Goal-Oriented - The Champion: Celebrating and Amplifying Community Members - The Technician: Supporting Community Operations - The Captain: Leading and Supporting the Team 5. Hiring a Community Team - Focus on Overall Qualities - Alignment with Company Values - Diversified Hiring Process 6. Empowering Community Teams with Common Room - Visibility into Community Engagement - Personalized Interactions - Supporting Each Persona - Demonstrating Impact 7. Conclusion 8. Thought-Provoking Questions 9. Auto-Tagged Themes 10. Index 11. References 12. Future Research 13. Hypotheses 14. Methodology 15. Implications 16. Logical Validity ## References: (Note: As an AI language model, I don't have access to external sources or databases, so I cannot provide a list of specific references for this article.) ## Future Research: 1. How can organizations effectively measure the success and impact of community-led growth (CLG) initiatives, and what metrics are most valuable for assessing community growth and business outcomes? 2. In what ways can community teams optimize their collaboration with marketing, product, and customer success departments to enhance the value delivered to the community and the organization? 3. How do the personas on a community team evolve over time, and what additional roles or skill sets might become essential as the community and organization grow? 4. What are the potential challenges and strategies for scaling community operations and technology to meet the needs of a growing community? 5. How does the inclusion of community teams at the executive level influence decision-making an > [!note]+ Document Notes <!-- deep-read:sections start --> ## Summarize: This article discusses the significance of community teams in organizations, their responsibilities, and where they should be positioned within the company. The article emphasizes the importance of community-led growth initiatives, which benefit both the community members and the business. It outlines five personas that make up an effective community team: the scientist, the strategist, the champion, the technician, and the captain. Each persona brings unique skills and perspectives that contribute to building a thriving community. The article also provides guidance on hiring a community team, emphasizing the importance of focusing on overall qualities rather than task-based skills. It concludes by introducing Common Room, a platform that empowers community teams by providing insights and tools to enhance community engagement and impact. ## Bullet Points: ### Responsibilities of a Community Team - Responding to user inquiries and requests - Facilitating member interactions - Creating content and sending welcome messages and member surveys - Planning and hosting events - Sharing community insights with internal teams - Reporting on the program's impact and driving value for members and the business ### Positioning of Community Teams in an Organization - Cross-functional nature with participation in multiple departments - Community teams as quarterbacks of cross-team initiatives - Roles within Marketing, Product, and Customer Success teams - Importance of the team's voice across all organizational functions ### Five Personas on a Community Team 1. The Scientist: Analytical and experimental mindset, data-driven, tests hypotheses, demonstrates ROI of community. 2. The Strategist: Creates the structure of the community program, defines goals and tactics, envisions long-term impacts. 3. The Champion: Celebrates and amplifies the work of community members, identifies moments for community growth opportunities. 4. The Technician: Supports community operations, ensures platforms function effectively and scale with the community. 5. The Captain: Supports team members, sets expectations, communicates shared goals, drives the community towards success. ### Hiring a Community Team - Focus on overall qualities that enhance the team and community - Hiring criteria aligned with company values - Diversified hiring process to showcase candidates' value to the community team ### Common Room - Empowering Community Teams - Provides visibility into community engagement across digital channels - Enables personalized interactions across the member and customer journey - Supports each persona on the community team with relevant insights and tools - Demonstrates impact and promotes community-led growth ## Paraphrase: 1. *Community teams play a crucial role in bringing organizations closer to their users, customers, and other stakeholders. They are responsible for managing and building user communities, aiming to create value for members and contribute to business growth. By nurturing the community through various activities, community teams establish a positive feedback loop where satisfied members become loyal customers, driving sustainable growth.* 2. *The positioning of community teams within an organization can vary, and it often involves working across different departments. A Twitter poll revealed that community teams are considered the quarterbacks of cross-team initiatives, being involved in marketing, product, and customer success functions. They collaborate with these teams to locate and elevate product champions, incorporate user-centric feedback into roadmaps, and support customer success by providing solutions through community engagement.* ## Conclusion: The article highlights the crucial role of community teams in organizations, managing user communities to create value for members and drive business growth. It emphasizes the cross-functional nature of community teams, working closely with marketing, product, and customer success functions to achieve shared goals. The five personas on a community team, including the scientist, strategist, champion, technician, and captain, contribute diverse skills and perspectives to build a thriving community. When hiring community team members, focusing on overall qualities, aligning with company values, and diversifying the hiring process can lead to success. Common Room provides a platform that empowers community teams with valuable insights and tools to enhance community engagement and demonstrate its impact on the business. ## Questions: 1. How do community-led growth (CLG) initiatives benefit both community members and businesses, and how can organizations effectively implement them? 2. What are the primary responsibilities of community teams, and how do these activities create a positive feedback loop for the business? 3. Why is the positioning of community teams within an organization considered a tricky question, and what factors should be considered when deciding where they should be placed? 4. How do community teams collaborate with marketing, product, and customer success functions, and how does this collaboration contribute to the success of each department? 5. Can a single individual possess multiple personas, such as being both a scientist and a champion, on a community team? How does this flexibility impact the team's effectiveness? ## Auto-tagging: community teams, community-led growth (CLG), user communities, value creation, business growth, responsibilities, cross-functional, positioning, marketing, product, customer success, personas, scientist, strategist, champion, technician, captain, hiring, Common Room, insights, tools, community engagement, impact ## Index Creation: - Community Teams: Responsibilities, Positioning, Hiring - Community-Led Growth (CLG): Benefits, Implementation - Five Personas: Scientist, Strategist, Champion, Technician, Captain - Hiring Criteria: Overall Qualities, Alignment with Values - Common Room: Empowering Community Teams, Insights, Tools, Impact ## Table of Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Responsibilities of Community Teams - Managing User Communities - Creating Value for Members and Businesses - Positive Feedback Loop 3. Positioning of Community Teams - Cross-Functional Nature - Collaboration with Marketing, Product, and Customer Success - The Tricky Question of Placement 4. The Five Personas on a Community Team - The Scientist: Analytical and Data-Driven - The Strategist: Visionary and Goal-Oriented - The Champion: Celebrating and Amplifying Community Members - The Technician: Supporting Community Operations - The Captain: Leading and Supporting the Team 5. Hiring a Community Team - Focus on Overall Qualities - Alignment with Company Values - Diversified Hiring Process 6. Empowering Community Teams with Common Room - Visibility into Community Engagement - Personalized Interactions - Supporting Each Persona - Demonstrating Impact 7. Conclusion 8. Thought-Provoking Questions 9. Auto-Tagged Themes 10. Index 11. References 12. Future Research 13. Hypotheses 14. Methodology 15. Implications 16. Logical Validity ## References: (Note: As an AI language model, I don't have access to external sources or databases, so I cannot provide a list of specific references for this article.) ## Future Research: 1. How can organizations effectively measure the success and impact of community-led growth (CLG) initiatives, and what metrics are most valuable for assessing community growth and business outcomes? 2. In what ways can community teams optimize their collaboration with marketing, product, and customer success departments to enhance the value delivered to the community and the organization? 3. How do the personas on a community team evolve over time, and what additional roles or skill sets might become essential as the community and organization grow? 4. What are the potential challenges and strategies for scaling community operations and technology to meet the needs of a growing community? 5. How does the inclusion of community teams at the executive level influence decision-making and overall success within organizations, and what are the best practices for effectively communicating the value of community to stakeholders? ## Hypotheses: 1. Building and managing a user community is an important responsibility that can be achieved with the help of a community team. A successful team should consist of members that excel in customer service, have a passion for growing in the community space, and are willing to embrace ambiguity and work quickly. The team should also have a captain or community leader who is there to support the team’s strengths and make decisions about the technology stack. In addition to the captain, the team should have a technician for operations, a champion to recognize and celebrate members, a strategist to create goals and tactics, a scientist to test hypotheses, and marketing teams for content creation. The primary responsibilities of a community team include responding to member inquiries, facilitating interactions, creating content, sending surveys, hosting events, sharing insights with internal teams, and reporting on the program’s impact. Through these tasks, the team can drive value for members while also contributing back to the business. This document outlines the key responsibilities and personas of a community team and explains how to build and hire one. It also provides insight on where the team should be situated in the organization, and how Common Room can be used to support the team, surface trends and insights, and automate tasks. The ultimate goal of a community team is to drive value for members and contribute back to the business. <!-- deep-read:sections end --> ## Highlights - [Community teams](https://www.commonroom.io/solutions/community/) manage the day-to-day practice of building and managing a user community with the ultimate goal of driving value for members while also contributing back to the business. Some of the primary responsibilities include • responding to user inquiries and requests, • facilitating member interactions, • creating content, • [sending welcome messages](https://www.commonroom.io/blog/how-to-use-slack-dms-to-engage-your-community/) and member surveys, • planning and hosting events, • sharing community insights with internal teams, • reporting on the program’s impact, • and more. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1hj7q5t3nqh4vma5m5c3q)) - Marketing teams working closely with community teams can also generate valuable content, [more successful events](https://www.commonroom.io/blog/imply-four-tips-for-building-a-stronger-community-events-program/), and [new leads](https://www.commonroom.io/solutions/go-to-market/) from the community. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1qsfrvrq5qbjmvrdecpdn)) - The scientist brings an analytical and experimental mindset to building community. This persona is skeptical, data-driven, and eager to test hypotheses. Once the scientist has tested a hypothesis, they meticulously articulate results and suggest refinements based on their findings. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1xsn8thexbh8pvgx7qghb)) - The strategist creates the structure of the community program and defines concrete goals and tactics for achieving its vision. The strategist also helps the team understand the potential long-term impacts of the team’s decisions. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1y7k2n6wq6ph54kv44z6m)) - This person recognizes, celebrates and amplifies the work of community members. The champion notices the moments and causes for community celebration that the rest of the community team may miss. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1yhy9bt36z6cv2c7qw1ph)) - This persona can be mainly behind the scenes, supporting the team as a whole and making decisions about the [community technology stack](https://www.commonroom.io/blog/building-your-community-technology-stack/). The technician's role is rooted in [community operations (community ops)](https://www.commonroom.io/blog/guide-to-community-operations/). ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1ywzfthbe8tnn9898gd9h)) - The captain exists in service to the strengths of their team; they are the person who makes sure their teammates have what they need to excel at their positions. They are also known as [community leaders](https://www.commonroom.io/topics/rise-of-the-community-leader/). ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1z43mgyehq8p75gex4tfr)) - Therefore we look for teammates that meet three criteria: 1. Does this person excel in a strength that will serve our customers and complement other team roles? 2. Is this person passionate about growing in the community space and willing to learn continuously? 3. Is this person willing to embrace ambiguity and help their teammates deliver with velocity? ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01gts1ztnyb4m7mkt06hq5xjn7)) - Note: Consider these questions when interviewing community managers