What is a Community?
Before going into the organization, the structure, the rules, and the modus operandi of a community, I must start with a definition to allow for a common understanding of what I will be discussing in the various posts on this topic.
Definition
A community is a group of individuals who share common values and culture, who operate within agreed upon self-defined norms, and that work together to achieve a goal. Members clearly identify themselves as belonging to the community.
A community can be composed of smaller communities and communities can be connected together creating a network of communities.
Examples
The Open Source movement qualifies as a community. Within the Open Source movement are smaller communities such as the Apache HTTP Server, the Linux operating system, and the Mozilla Firefox browser.
Crowdsourcing is another example of a community of individuals coming together to perform a specific task.
From an art perspective, Community Theatre is an example of individuals contributing to developing and performing art within a specific context.
Community and Business?
In an attempt to document an alternate way of structuring for-profit organizations, I will share my thoughts on the structure, the rules, and the modus operandi of communities and attempt to demonstrate they can effectively be used within that context.
More to come…
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