Creating Community: A Frank Discussion Between A Megacorp and a Start-up - Matt Butcher & Karen Chu

Discover how a megacorp and start-up built a thriving community, balancing resource investment and growth, while emphasizing community engagement, transparency, and belonging.

Key takeaways
  • Creating community requires investment of time and resources, but as a startup, you need to strike a balance between being scrappy and having a budget.
  • At Microsoft, it was easy to take in money, but as a startup, it’s complicated.
  • Community members are important because they can become contributors and advocates.
  • Open source communities are great because they are often filled with passionate people who are willing to contribute.
  • As a startup, you need to be creative and find ways to build and grow your community.
  • It’s important to show appreciation for community members, contributors, and maintainers to foster a sense of belonging.
  • As a representative of a company, you are also a representative of the community, so be careful about how you advertise and promote your company.
  • Having a good community can help translate into brand awareness, and it’s important to show that you are committed to your community.
  • Engage with your community regularly, and don’t ignore criticism or negativity.
  • Be transparent and open about your plans and goals.
  • Having a strong code of conduct is important to ensure everyone is comfortable contributing to your project.
  • When you’re a large company, it’s important to recognize that you have more resources, but also more complications.
  • Make sure to show and appreciate the people behind your community.
  • The community is what makes open source projects successful, and it’s important to prioritize that.
  • Don’t underestimate the power of community management.
  • It’s important to create a specific slider for GitHub, not just because it’s the new thing, but because it’s useful for community management and engagement.
  • Packaging your company and its community in a book, similar to the Linux Community Cookbook, can be helpful.
  • Putting your company’s story and values in a book can also be helpful.
  • Brand awareness matters, but it’s not the only thing that matters.
  • Showing appreciation and gratitude to your community can go a long way.
  • It’s important to foster a sense of belonging in your community, and that includes getting people to create and share content that represents the community.