Workplace Communities: The Research

I don’t know about you folks, but I LOVE research, and that’s a good thing, because I had a chance to do a lot of it over the past several months as we designed our Community Accelerator program. While the complete list of sources is long enough to make your page-scrolling muscles sore, I wanted to share a selection of the research with you so you can explore more of the wide world of studies, examples, benchmarks, and articles with us at your own pace. 

The list is organized by subject to help you find the bits that are most relevant to you, and you’ll see a few highlights along the way to point you toward some of our favorites. Let us know what gems you find as you browse, and if you have a favorite source of your own that isn’t on our list, we’d love to hear about it! 

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Community Psychology: Norms, Belonging, and Engagement

Connection and Belonging

Christakis, N. A., & Fowler, J. H. (2011). Connected: The amazing power of social networks and how they shape our lives. HarperPress. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/813932020

Eisenberger, N. I., Lieberman, M. D., & Williams, K. D. (2003). Does rejection hurt? An FMRI study of social exclusion. Science (New York, N.Y.), 302(5643), 290–292. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1089134

Garrett, L. E., Spreitzer, G. M., & Bacevice, P. A. (2017). Co-constructing a Sense of Community at Work: The Emergence of Community in Coworking Spaces. Organization Studies, 38(6), 821–842. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840616685354

McMillan, D. W., & Chavis, D. M. (1986). Sense of community: A definition and theory. Journal of Community Psychology, 14(1), 6–23. https://doi.org/10.1002/1520-6629(198601)14:1<6::AID-JCOP2290140103>3.0.CO;2-I

Mintzberg, H. (2009). Rebuilding Companies as Communities. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2009/07/rebuilding-companies-as-communities

Engagement

Jones, C. M. (2020). How to Create Your Community Commitment Curve. Gather Community Consulting. https://www.gathercommunityconsulting.com/blog/creating-your-community-commitment-curve

Levels of Participation | Participatory Methods. (n.d.). Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://www.participatorymethods.org/method/levels-participation

Rich, B., Lepine, J., & Crawford, E. (2010). Job Engagement: Antecedents and Effects on Job Performance. Academy of Management Journal, 53, 617–635. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMJ.2010.51468988

Group Norms

Linabary, J. (2020). Establishing and Maintaining Group Norms. In Small Group Communication. https://smallgroup.pressbooks.com/chapter/norms/

Stangor, C. (2014). Understanding Social Groups. In Principles of Social Psychology—1st International Edition. BCcampus. https://opentextbc.ca/socialpsychology/chapter/understanding-social-groups/

Williamson, K. (2018). Building Blocks: What’s in a Norm? Medium. https://medium.com/in-rare-form/building-blocks-whats-in-a-norm-436180fad1ab

Data: Measures, Metrics, and the Value of Community

Community & Business Value

Bacon, J. (2019). People powered: How communities can supercharge your business, brand, and teams. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1099538590

Bussgang, J., & Bacon, J. (2020). When Community Becomes Your Competitive Advantage. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/01/when-community-becomes-your-competitive-advantage

Industry Benchmarks

Great (digital) teams: How they collaborate and how you measure it. (2020). SWOOP Collaboration Analytics. https://www.swoopanalytics.com/microsoft-teams-benchmarking

The 2020 Community Industry Trends Report by CMX. (2020). CMXhub. http://cmxhub.com/community-industry-trends-report-2020

The State of Community Management 2020. (2020). The Community Roundtable. https://thecr.s3.amazonaws.com/SOCM_2020_FINAL-Digital.pdf

Data Ethics

An ethics checklist for data scientists. (n.d.). Deon. Retrieved April 13, 2021, from https://deon.drivendata.org/

Federal Data Strategy: Data Ethics Framework. (2020). General Services Administration. https://resources.data.gov/assets/documents/fds-data-ethics-framework.pdf

Fritzler, A. (2015). An Ethical Checklist for Data Science. Data Science for Social Good. https://www.dssgfellowship.org/2015/09/18/an-ethical-checklist-for-data-science/

Gupta, A. (2018). A Practical Approach to Data Ethics. Medium. https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/a-practical-approach-to-data-ethics-c13a0fc0f0dc

Example Metrics Dashboard

Oblinger, B., & Kuhl, E. (n.d.). Community Metrics Template. Community Club. Retrieved January 6, 2021, from https://www.community.club/content/community-metrics-template

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion: In Communities, at Work, and in General

Abrams, G. B., Hebling, M. J., & Smull, B. (2018). Proactive restorative practices: Creating the conditions for individuals and communities to flourish. Strengthening the Spirit of Community, IIRP World Conference, Detroit, MI. https://www.iirp.edu/images/conf_downloads/FoqHEZ_Proactive_RP_Creating_the_Conditions_for_Individuals_and_Communities_to_Flourish.pdf

Arshad, R. (n.d.). Anti-racist Community Work - A Radical Approach. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers/malcolm1.html

Resource Center - Community Change Inc. (n.d.). Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://communitychangeinc.org/resource-center/

Community Strategies to End Racism and Support Racial Healing: The Place Matters Approach to Promoting Racial Equity. (2015). National Collaborative for Health Equity. https://www.nationalcollaborative.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Community-Strategies-to-End-Racism-and-Support-Racial-Healing-The-Place-Matters-Approach-to-Promoting-Racial-Equity-.pdf

Ellsworth, D., Mendy, A., & Sullivan, G. (2020, June 23). How the LGBTQ community fares in the workplace | McKinsey. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/how-the-lgbtq-plus-community-fares-in-the-workplace

Equity-Centered Community Design Field Guide. (n.d.). Creative Reaction Lab. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from https://www.creativereactionlab.com/our-approach

Equity Frameworks. (n.d.). Purpose. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from https://www.purpose.com/equity-frameworks/

Guide for Setting Ground Rules. (n.d.). Retrieved February 8, 2021, from http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/activities/groundrules.html

Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing. (1996). Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice. https://www.ejnet.org/ej/jemez.pdf

Community Building. (2019). National Museum of African American History and Culture. https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/community-building

On Bridging | Othering & Belonging Institute. (n.d.). Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley. Retrieved February 8, 2021, from https://belonging.berkeley.edu/on-bridging

Workforce Development: Beyond Training and the Skills Gap. (2019). Race Forward. https://www.raceforward.org/research/reports/research-and-recommendations-racially-equitable-communications-workforce

Si Kahn. Angela Davis. (2010). Creative Community Organizing: A Guide for Rabble-rousers, Activists, and Quiet Lovers of Justice (A BK currents book). Berrett-Koehler. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/890471394

The Learning Journey with Courageous Conversation Tools. (2020). Purpose. https://www.purpose.com/the-learning-journey-with-courageous-conversation-tools/

University of Washington. (n.d.). Anti-Racism Resources for White Individuals and Communities. University of Washington Counseling Center. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.washington.edu/counseling/culture-of-care/resources-for-white-individuals-and-communities/

ERG & CoP: The Two Most Common Types of Workplace Communities

Communities of Practice (CoP)

Athabasca University. (2021). Community of Inquiry (CoI) Framework. Athabasca University - CoI. https://coi.athabascau.ca/coi-model/

Communities of Practice. (n.d.). Community Intelligence. Retrieved March 3, 2021, from https://community-intelligence.com/what/collective-intelligence/communities-of-practice/

Tacit’s Community of Practice Maturity Model. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2021, from https://tacitlondon.com/community-of-practice-maturity-model/

Wenger, E., McDermott, R. A., & Snyder, W. (2010). Cultivating communities of practice: A guide to managing knowledge. Harvard Business School Press. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/699815657

Wheatley, M. J. (2002). Supporting Pioneering Leaders as Communities of Practice: How to Rapidly Develop New Leaders in Great Numbers. The Berkana Institute. https://berkana.org/resources/pioneering-a-new-paradigm/

Employee Resource Groups (ERG)

Asare, J. G. (2018). How To Start An Employee Resource Group At Your Organization. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2018/10/22/how-to-start-an-employee-resource-group-at-your-organization/

Beaver, G. R. (2018). Individual Outcomes of Employee Resource Group Membership [University of Minnesota]. https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstream/handle/11299/201079/Beaver_umn_0130E_19779.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Brown, J. (2011). Employee Resource Groups that Drive Business. Jennifer Brown Consulting. http://jenniferbrownconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/ERGreportEXTERNAL1.pdf

Empowering the Success of Life Sciences Companies through Employee Resources Groups. (2020). Massachusetts Biotechnology Council. https://www.massbio.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/2019-ERG-REport.pdf

Establishing an Employee Resource Group. (2021). Human Rights Campaign (HRC). https://www.hrc.org/resources/establishing-an-employee-resource-group

Green, W. M. (2018). Employee resource groups as learning communities. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 37(7), 634–648. https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-11-2016-0085

Palios, S. (2016, August 26). Not all ERGs are created equal. HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/not-all-ergs-are-created-equal_b_57c05cbbe4b0b01630de7a0c

The Business Benefits of Resource Groups. (2012). DiversityInc. https://www.diversityinc.com/the-business-benefits-of-employee-resource-groups/

Welbourne, T., Rolf, S., & Schlachter, S. (2017). The case for employee resource groups: A review and social identity theory-based research agenda. Personnel Review, 46, 00–00. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-01-2016-0004

Experience Design: Events, Rituals, and the Overall Member Experience

Experience Design Principles & Examples

Diaz, J. (2018). Want to understand experience design? Eat popcorn with chopsticks. Fast Company. https://www.fastcompany.com/90177381/want-to-understand-experience-design-eat-popcorn-with-chopsticks

How Disney fools your brain to make lines feel magically short. (2020, August 6). Popular Science. https://www.popsci.com/story/science/head-trip-disney-wait-lines/

Lamantia, J. (2008). Designing Ethical Experiences: Some Practical Suggestions. UXmatters. https://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2008/04/designing-ethical-experiences-some-practical-suggestions.php

Lennard, S. H. C. (2017). Planning a neighborhood square. CNU. https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2017/11/27/planning-neighborhood-square

Morand, T. (2019). 9 Ways to Improve Your Organization’s Member Experience. Wild Apricot Blog. https://www.wildapricot.com/blog/member-experience

Parker, P. (2020). The art of gathering: How we meet and why it matters. Riverhead Books. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1161986001

Experience Design Tools

Journey Map (n.d.). Service Design Tools. Retrieved May 9, 2021, from https://servicedesigntools.org/tools/journey-map

Journey Mapping. (n.d.). Open Design Kit. Retrieved May 9, 2021, from http://opendesignkit.org/methods/journey-maps/

Remis, N. (2017). Download Our Guide to Service Blueprinting. Medium. https://medium.com/capitalonedesign/download-our-guide-to-service-blueprinting-d70bb2717ddf

Event Ideas

Jones, C. M. (n.d.). Online Community Event Swipe File. Gather. Retrieved January 7, 2021, from https://www.gathercommunityconsulting.com/

Spinks, D. (2020, March 9). A Comprehensive List of Tips, Tools, and Examples for Event Organizers During the Coronavirus Outbreak. CMX. https://cmxhub.com/a-comprehensive-list-of-tips-tools-and-examples-for-event-organizers-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/

Zenk, L., Fundneider, T., & Peschl, M. (2016). Designing Knowledge Intensive Events. Procedia Computer Science, 99, 215–217. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2016.09.113

Ritual Design

Ozenc, K. (2016). Introducing Ritual Design: Meaning, purpose, and behavior change. Medium. https://medium.com/ritual-design/introducing-ritual-design-meaning-purpose-and-behavior-change-44d26d484edf

Going Digital: Online community-building tips & tools

Clouse, J. (2020). How to build an online community (and why I’m all in on Circle). Jay Clouse. https://jayclouse.com/how-to-build-an-online-community/

Community Stash. (n.d.). Retrieved February 8, 2021, from https://communitystash.com/

Dietz, J. (2016). 7 Community Website Ideas to Steal from Successful Online Communities. Higher Logic. https://www.higherlogic.com/blog/7-ideas-you-can-steal-from-successful-online-communities/

Leighninger, M. (n.d.). Using online tools to engage and be engaged by the public. Deliberative Democracy Consortium | IBM Center for the Business of Government. Retrieved January 7, 2021, from https://www.communityplanningtoolkit.org/sites/default/files/Using%20Online%20Tools%20to%20Engage%20-%20%20Deliberative%20Democracy.pdf

LinkedIn Learning. (2019). Building Online Communities. https://www.lynda.com/Marketing-tutorials/Building-Online-Communities/751336-2.html

Middlebury University. (2020). Community-Building Online: An Introduction, with Examples from Middlebury. 

Middlebury University - Digital Learning & Inquiry (DLINQ). https://dlinq.middcreate.net/digital-inclusion/community-building-online/

Millington, R. (2012). Buzzing communities: How to build bigger, better, and more active online communities. FeverBee. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/892558334

Papadopoulou, A. (2020). How to Build an Online Learning Community (In 2021). Learnworlds. https://www.learnworlds.com/build-online-learning-community/

Peters, J. (2020). The Roaring 20’s: Four reasons why we are entering the decade of the community builder. Community Chat Summit 2020, Online. https://commchat.substack.com/p/-announcing-the-virtual-community

Insights from Community Managers

Happe, R., & Storer, J. (Eds.). (2014). The Community Manager Handbook: 20 Lessons from Community Superheroes. The Community Roundtable. https://communityroundtable.com/what-we-do/research/community-manager-handbook/

Flowers, N. (2020). Three Metrics Every Community Manager Should Track. Noele Flowers. https://www.noeleflowers.com/post/the-three-metrics-every-community-manager-should-use

Radick, S. (2011). The Many Roles of an Internal Community Manager. Public Relations Strategery. https://www.steveradick.com/2011/03/09/the-many-roles-of-an-internal-community-manager/

Power Dynamics in Organizations

Heimans, J., & Timms, H. (2018). New power: How anyone can persuade, mobilize, and succeed in our chaotic, connected age. Anchor Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1088903336

Mintzberg, H. (1983). Power In and Around Organizations. SAGE Publications. https://escholarship.mcgill.ca/concern/books/7s75dh682?locale=en

Power | Participatory Methods. (n.d.). Institute of Development Studies. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://www.participatorymethods.org/method/power

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. (2005). People, Partnerships, and Communities. USDA. https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb1045565.pdf

Working Together: Collaboration and Co-creation

Aram, J. D., Morgan, C. P., & Esbeck, E. S. (1971). Relation of Collaborative Interpersonal Relationships to Individual Satisfaction and Organizational Performance. Administrative Science Quarterly, 16(3), 289–297. https://doi.org/10.2307/2391901

Boyle, D. (2010). Right here, right now: Taking co-production into the mainstream. NESTA. https://democracy.kent.gov.uk/documents/s16465/coproduction_right_here_right_now.pdf

Calvo, M., & Sclater, M. (2021). Creating Spaces for Collaboration in Community Co-design. International Journal of Art & Design Education, 40(1), 232–250. https://doi.org/10.1111/jade.12349

Cantu, D., & Selloni, D. (2013). From engaging to empowering people, a set of co-design experiments with a service design perspective. Social Frontiers. http://www.simpact-project.eu/publications/scientific/SelloniCantu_Engagement.pdf

Fapohunda, T. M. (2013). Towards Effective Team Building in the Workplace. International Journal of Education and Research, 1(4). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258344173_Towards_Effective_Team_Building_in_the_Workplace

Guide to co-design. (n.d.). Roadmap to Informed Communities. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://communities.sunlightfoundation.com/action/codesign/

Jordan, M., Chrislip, D., & Workman, E. (2016). Collaborative Stakeholder Engagement. Special Report. In Education Commission of the States. Education Commission of the States. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED567003

Straus, D. (2010). How to make collaboration work: Powerful ways to build consensus, solve problems, and make decisions. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1179476915

Tams, C. (n.d.). The Co-Creation Imperative: How To Make Organizational Change Collaborative. Forbes. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/carstentams/2018/02/11/the-co-creation-imperative-how-to-make-organizational-change-collaborative/

Wang, L., MacCann, C., Zhuang, X., Liu, O. L., & Roberts, R. D. (2009). Assessing Teamwork and Collaboration in High School Students: A Multimethod Approach. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 24(2), 108–124. https://doi.org/10.1177/0829573509335470

Toolkits & Resource Collections

A Toolkit for Establishing and Maintaining Successful Employee Resource Groups. (2011). Cornell University. https://www.viscardicenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/The-Toolkit-for-Establishing-Groups.pdf

Beautiful Trouble: Toolbox. (n.d.). Beautiful Trouble. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://www.beautifultrouble.org/toolbox

Co-Design Toolkit. (2017). Western Australian Council of Social Service. https://wacoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/co-design-toolkit-combined-2-1.pdf

Corrigan, C. (2020). Art of Hosting Workbook. Art of Hosting. http://www.artofhosting.org/home/

Community Stash. (n.d.). Retrieved February 8, 2021, from https://communitystash.com/

Community Tool Box. (n.d.). Community Tool Box. Retrieved January 6, 2021, from https://ctb.ku.edu/en/toolkits

Community Toolkit. (2021). Community Toolkit. https://www.communitytoolkit.it/en/toolkit-eng/

Design Kit. (n.d.). Designkit.org. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://www.designkit.org/

Development Impact & You: Practical tools to trigger & support social innovation. (n.d.). Nesta: Centre for Collective Intelligence Design. Retrieved April 6, 2021, from https://diytoolkit.org/media/DIY-Toolkit-Full-Download-A4-Size.pdf

Lipmanowicz, K. M., Henri. (n.d.). Liberating Structures Website. Retrieved December 2, 2020, from http://www.liberatingstructures.com/ls-menu/

Peach, K., Berditchevskaia, A., & Bass, T. (n.d.). Nesta: The collective intelligence design playbook. Nesta: Centre for Collective Intelligence Design. Retrieved January 7, 2021, from https://www.nesta.org.uk/toolkit/collective-intelligence-design-playbook/

Resources: FeverBee. (n.d.). FeverBee. Retrieved January 6, 2021, from https://www.feverbee.com/resources/

The Community Canvas. (n.d.). The Community Canvas. Retrieved February 19, 2021, from https://community-canvas.org

Tools for taking action. (n.d.). Stanford d.School. Retrieved May 8, 2021, from https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources

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