Can 5 years rock on a corporate clock?

5 years! That is a lifetime in a corporate world where one reorganization follows the other, where roles change and priorities shift with the people in power, sometimes making it hard to create something with lasting impact. Today, I am filled with both gratitude and amazement celebrating the 5th anniversary of the Digital Tribe Community that I started together with Ingeborg van Beusekom as an official initiative at SAP in 2018, with budget, dedicated resources, and executive sponsorship by one of the best managers ever, Marco Mueller . Over the years, the community has lost its official mandate, funding and formal status, but it did not quietly go away as so many other initiatives that people put a lot of time, energy and passion in. This community was mature enough to develop a life of its own, to pivot and change based on what the people in it wanted it to provide. In this video, some of the Digital Tribe members share what makes this network special and valuable to them. As Joel Granoff says: “During my 14 years at SAP in multiple roles and organizations, my one constant has been the connection to the Digital Tribe." Because a community is about people and connections, not roles, titles or jobs. And those connections remain! Joel comes to most of our meet ups and it feels no different from when he was at SAP, just adding new perspectives to already interesting conversations!

The Digital Tribe journey took us from a community that was set up to support and connect digital marketers at SAP, to a broader peer to peer learning platform beyond digital marketing. Today it is mostly a networking platform to stay in touch with, and learn from, like minded people, regardless of where they move within or beyond SAP. We meet once a quarter just to connect and chat without an agenda, and each month there is a session dedicated to a specific topic, either a peer to peer learning session if we have an expert in our network, or a coffee corner where we all discuss and contribute. In a few weeks time, Anand Mishra and I will discuss the topic of leadership with the amazing Charlotte Otter who left SAP to start her own consultancy and is in the process of writing a book that analyzes the type of leadership the world needs now (spoiler alert, it is not what took us here that will get us there!).

These are the things real communities do, they connect people and topics. A community is not a channel, a project or an organization, and putting a performance KPI on them is usually contra productive. Instead, they thrive when they are allowed to be rather unstructured networks of people who want to stay connected around topics they care about, in a culture that supports them. Chris Green CDMP has been part of the Digital Tribe community from day 1, and he summarizes it perfectly in his happy birthday note, that I have his permission to post ??

"I have been fortunate enough to be part of the Digital tribe almost from the very start and through the whole time it has been a very welcoming, open and comfortable place for the digital community within SAP to come and talk, debate and share ideas as well as learn. Every member, no matter how long they have been there, is treated with respect and no idea is a bad one. I have found it a place to go to where I can voice thoughts, ideas and also get roped into presenting and sharing my story. ???Everyones experience is valid and welcome and that makes it a special place to be. Many of my long term friends in SAP, past and present, still come to meetings and contribute to this thriving community. Long may that continue!”??

If you have left SAP and lost touch with the Digital Tribe, please contact me or Subhankar Pattanayak to get re-connected. We would be happy to add you to the DLs for our virtual meet ups. Happy birthday Digital Tribe, I am so proud of what you are, and excited to see what you will become. Keep rocking!

#community #birthday #people #culture