Season 2: Episode 1 How to Create and Grow a Sustainable Community

Do you want to grow your community quickly and sustainably which brings real value?

Well this episode is for you!

Meet Erica and Nastie, the founders of the D2 Collective, a value based technology community with over 3,000 members globally and over 100 events! AND all this in 14 months!!!

Erica and Nastie started out their career at LinkedIn and quickly started to identify how necessary the sense of connection in a community is to growing a sustainable communities which brings real value.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic where many countries across the world closed and went into lockdown, connection and community became ever more important. Noticing this and seeing a gap in the technology world where authentic and genuine connection was desperately needed, Erica and Nastie decided to start up D2 to being people in the technology community together and build valued connections.

The community has grown so strong over the past 14 months that there are now communities within the community where members are building their own connections and groups and finding new careers because of the D2 Collective events.

In this episode you will hear how Erica and Nastie started D2, and how to scale a community sustainably.

Key topics:

- Community founder's stories,

- how to grow authentic connection within a global community,

- what is the ROI on building a value based community, and

- how to scale a community.

Links:

https://linktr.ee/thed2collective?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaaEkkW96thzS96PQSj1G8Xfsqflsho9bDTv7TKO1Hg02syzVdC0FRMeVdw_aem_AdM8N3YOhbf3ovOTMFgogCq9WRfKB-Zi3jGTJ_8AuZWakcBEVSkR3dRnhdKuHLXPuCJX_F5tRPDvtX0d75n8Kktz

https://www.linkedin.com/in/erica-isotta-surace-22b99794?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=android_app

https://ww.linkedin.com/in/nastieschoenmakers?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=android_app

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

#10, Fostering Community Belonging and Engagement with Reina Pomeroy

In this episode, Michelle Sims had the pleasure of speaking with Reina Pomeroy, the Senior Director of Community at Good Inside. Reina, a seasoned Social Worker turned Certified Coach, community builder, and social strategist, brings a wealth of experience to the discussion. Formerly the head of community at Modern Fertility, she shares valuable insights into fostering a sense of belonging, enhancing member engagement, and empowering community leaders.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Building a Strong Sense of Belonging:
  • -->Reina delves into her strategies for creating a robust sense of community and belonging within groups.
• Best Practices for Member Engagement and Participation
  • --> We explore effective techniques to encourage active involvement from community members, ensuring a vibrant and dynamic space.
• Empowering Community Leaders
  • -->Reina shares her thoughts on empowering leaders within a community, emphasising the pivotal role they play in sustaining a thriving group dynamic.

Tune in to gain valuable tips and insights as we cover these topics and much more in today's engaging conversation.

Connect with Reina here:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reinapomeroy/

Website: https://www.reinaandco.com/

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's Talia Deer.

Talia is currently the Head of Community & Growth at The Trium Group, a management consulting firm in San Francisco, where they focus on executive community building and connecting professionals in the field of leadership, culture, and strategy execution. Prior to her role at The Trium Group, Talia served as the Head of Community at The Suite. Interestingly, her career journey has seen her transition from a background in law to her current role in community building.

During our discussion in this episode, we explore:

• Talia's personal journey, delving into her transition from a legal profession to becoming a community professional.
• Her unique perspective and definition of what constitutes a thriving community.
• Valuable and inspirational insights, as well as practical advice for individuals interested in community development and career growth.
• Recommendations for key figures to follow in the dynamic realm of community building.
• Stay tuned for a compelling and insightful conversation that covers these topics and more.

Connect with Talia here:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taliatanielian/

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's Shana Sumers,

Shana Sumers, is the Senior Manager of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging Communities at HubSpot. Shana's impressive career in community building includes launching HubSpot's groundbreaking Black@INBOUND community. She was also Head of Community at HER App. , where she launched the app's first community for LGBTQ+ folks, growing from 8 to 28 micro communities.

In this episode we covered Shana’s remarkable journey and triumphs in community building.

Connect with Shana Sumers here:

• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shana-sumers/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/shanahasatwitr
• Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bad-queers/id1510471190

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's Community expert Blaise Grimes-Viort

Blaise has more than two decades of online community, social media strategy and management experience. He’s an online communities consultant and manages well known communities like the Community Collective on Guild. To many of his client’s, he’s known as the fractional Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Social Officer, Chief Community officer and worked with a wide variety of industries including Publishing, Telecoms, Entertainment, Auto, Financial, Charity, Gaming and Social Networks.

On this episode we covered…

• Key takeaways from two decades in the industry
• The evolving definition of community
• His guidance for emerging community professionals
• And so much more

Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of online communities, learn from Blaise's experiences, and discover the evolving nature of community in today's fast-paced world.

Connect with Blaise Grimes-Viort here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaisegrimesviort/

https://www.blaisegv.com/

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

#6 Richard Millington, Lessons From A World Leading Community Consultant


On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's the Founder of FeverBee, Richard Millington

Over the past 13 years, Richard has helped to develop over 310 successful communities, including those for Apple, Facebook, Google.

Richard is the author of both Buzzing Communities, The Indispensable Community, and Build Your Community (Pearson, 2021).

On this episode we covered…

• His story as a leader in the community space
• Life as a community consultant
• Community trends and
• Upcoming projects
• His tips for community professionals
• The power of community data
• And so much more

Connect with Richard Millington here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-millington-5a32782/

https://twitter.com/RichMillington

https://richardmillington.substack.com

https://www.feverbee.com/

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's Talkbase’s COO & Head of Community, Tiffany Oda.

Tiffany is an experienced business leader at high-growth B2B SaaS companies with expertise in community, operations, program management, and strategy.

Her superpower is operationalizing ideas from inception to implementation. She's a leader with a reputation for getting stuff done. She's highly collaborative and communicative with a passion and talent for building cross-functional relationships, driving alignment, and achieving results.

On this episode we covered…

• How she got her start Community Operations
• Defining Community Operations
• Community team structure
• Community Trends and predictions
• Cross functional collaboration
• AI and community
• Her tips for aspiring community managers
• And so much more...

Connect with Tiffany Oda here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffeoda/

Key topics: community building techniques, community relationships, growth with community-driven, nurturing online communities, and building a strong, inclusive community from scratch.

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website

On today's podcast, Michelle Sims interview's community builder & leader, Jayvee Nava. In 2019, she was named Forbes 30 Under 30 for Marketing/Advertising.

Jayvee worked at Peloton for nine years and went from VP of Studio Operations to VP of Community. As VP of Community at Peloton, she oversaw member engagement as the company accelerated from a startup to a publicly traded company and leader in the fitness space.

On this episode we covered…

• How she got her start in community
• Her steps to gaining the role of VP of Community at Peloton
• Why fostering the right internal relationships is so important for success
• Her views on company culture for startups
• Her tips for career progression
• Her most proud project at Peloton
• Her community predictions for 2023 and beyond
• What separates a good community with a great community
• Where she gets her inspiration from
• And so much more...

Connect with Jayvee Nava here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayvee-nava-4903a747/

Remember to stay up to date with the podcast by subscribing and follow Michelle on Linkedin or Twitter.

If you loved today's podcast, please leave a review or send me your feedback. Thank you for listening!

Dyslexia in Adults is hosted by Michelle Sims and is produced by FAC. Fisher Audio Cast: Fisher Audio Cast Website