Imitating CoPs: Imposing formality on informality

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explore the claim that communities of practice (CoPs) can be designed and managed. The concept of CoPs was originally developed as a social learning theory, and CoPs were defined by their informal emergent nature. This informal nature has been recognized to be of value to organizations, resulting in a desire to design CoPs. In this article, the nature of CoPs is addressed by focusing on aspects of formality and informality in relationships and learning; CoPs are described as emergent and designed practices. Furthermore, it is questioned whether a designed CoP may realize the essential characteristics attributed to an emergent CoP. It is argued that it is crucial to recognize the informal nature of CoPs in order to either encourage them as informal phenomena or to use the concept of CoPs as inspiration for designing imitations of them. However, when attempting to design them, the original meaning of a CoP is lost, even though, in some cases, the consequences of such a design may be beneficial to organizations. Nevertheless, when not taking the nature of a CoP into account, a designed construct may have a negative impact on learning and knowing.

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