Slides from a presentation given by Spyros Katsaris to a meeting of the North branch of IIBA UK in Sheffield on 25 April 2018

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Exploring the BA Domain
Building and running a BA Community of Practice: Lessons learned

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Building and running a BA Community of Practice:
Lessons learned
Spyros Katsaris
spyros.katsaris@irwinmitchell.com
Welcome

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• 11 years in IT
• A few years in Universities…studying!
• Various roles with the second word being “analyst”
• Moved a lot, learned a lot, absorbed a little!!!
• Keen on Information Systems as a Social Science rather than a
Business discipline
• The last 3.5 years in Irwin Mitchell as a Business Analyst
• “Leading” IM’s Community of Practice for a good chunk of that time!
* “leading” is relative as you will see further below
Short Bio

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As you can tell by my accent, I am not a native English speaker…
So…
…if I mumble a little or speak too fast…wave for me to stop..
…if I do not make any sense…wave for me to stop…
I also have an issue with long vowels…because of my accent…
so some words might sound a bit rude!!...
I apologise in advance!
Hopefully…
…we will get there in the end!
Word of caution!!

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• Explore what the Community of Practice is
• Gain some understanding around the practicalities and challenges
of a Community of Practice
• Discuss your experiences and perspectives
Aims

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• For us in IM, it is a space where we, as BAs,
…collectively learn, share, grow and create knowledge through strong
working relationships, within an environment that allows practitioners to
feel free to express their opinions and concerns, without fear of being
judged. (Mission Statement, IM Community of Practice Charter, 2016)
• In essence…
– A network of relationships, internal and external to an
organisation…with very intricate dynamics
– Creating value through collaboration, support and sharing
• We are not really breaking new ground here…
…Communities of Practice have existed, in one form or another,
as long as humanity exists!
What is a Community of Practice?

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• Activity is key in the Community
• This is about collaboration and…
• Self-reflection…
– Why are you part of the Community?
– What do you want from it?
– Do you get what you need?
– When do you stop being part of the Community? Why?
– Can you stop being part of the Community?
– Have you communicated your thoughts?
– What can you do to push the Community further?
There is nothing worse than Community members tagging along for
the ride…Nobody benefits and consensus and progress suffers.
Lesson #1

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A Community of Practice is about two things…
…individual perspectives and
…the facilitation of consensus
Without consensus, there can be no progress…
…open the running of the Community up…
…share responsibilities with people…ask them to decide what the
direction should be…how to get there…
Doesn’t always work…
…but when it does, it
just makes sense…
Lesson #2

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It has to be voluntary to a certain extent…
• If people don’t want to participate, don’t push them
• Let people come as and when they need to
This can be challenging for those members trying to keep the
Community going…
There are ebbs and flows in Communities for a number of reasons:
• Demanding projects
• Temporary loss of interest
• Etc…
Be patient…things will get back to where they were before in terms of
activity…
Lesson #3

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If things don’t get back to where they were…
…question whether there is consensus on the need for a Community …
(think Lesson #2)
…look into your roadmap…
…where did you lose direction?
…why? Has something changed in the organisation?
Changes in leadership, ambivalence in strategy for your department,
disillusion with the direction of your role…
…these are all things that will impact on members’ appetite to carry on
with the Community
Lesson #4

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Communities have cycles, stages which might be longer or shorter:
…they are born…
…they mature...
…they die…
That is OK!
…You can let go!!!
…Spend time, collectively with the team, reflecting on
…what went well…
…what did not go well…
…how well it met its prime objectives…
Doing the above might cause the re-birth of the Community in a slightly
different manner…
Lesson #5

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However…
…do not confuse lulls in activity with the “death” of the Community…
(think Lesson #5)
…Similar to Lesson #4…
…Ask:
1) Why is there a lull?
2) Is it time to review your roadmap?
3) Is it time to change focus?
4) Should you be moving to the next stage? What is the next stage?
…or
… is this genuine death!!!??
Lesson #6

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…Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate
…Controlling and directing everything will not work…
…Ask people, listen to them, support where you can …
… but don’t take over…this was MY biggest mistake!
However…
…useful to have the bus analogy in mind at the same time…
… all passengers will and can have a say on the direction of travel,
how the goal will be reached etc.
…still there will only be one driver…
…who can change, depending on the phase of the journey…
But there will still be one driver…in the best case scenario…with a co-
driver!
Lesson #7

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…People don’t get it first time…
…An excuse to slack off work!…A waste of time…Why do I care?...
…Sometimes this can be resolved…
…Show tangible results and changes…
… the implementation of a technique
…a paper on the approach of analysis that becomes embedded in
practice…
…A Community of Practice is a mechanism for change…
…so tap in the vast knowledge that exists in the field of change
management...
…still, as it happens with all social structures…
…it won’t always work…but this is your best chance…
Lesson #8

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…BUT…
…Not all benefits will be tangible...
…Our Practice matured and is perceived as such…
…this can be attributed to
• the time we spent exploring and discussing concepts and issues
• reaching consensus…to a certain extent…on how we do things
• the fact that we cultivated a more holistic viewpoint
• our team becoming more flexible in what we do
…all these are not necessarily tangible and really a matter of
…perception
...and perspective...
Lesson #9

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Thank you for attending!
Questions?