I agree that there is an inner circle in these communities and this is also the main reason why dozens of people I’ve mentored over the past couple of years have told me they don’t get more involved; they’re intimidated.

However as Kyle Soucy pointed out at the IA Summit this year in her presentation with IxDA board member Nasir Barday “Professional IA/UX Organizations – How to Start and Run a Successful Local Group or Chapter” http://tinyurl.com/cjxakm and has been proven by Steve Baty’s initiative with the UX Book club http://tinyurl.com/pnr55j the opportunity to share experiences and learn from others locally is entirely possible without the community of practice.

I believe that with the explosion of tools like Twitter, Facebook and others people don’t require such organizations to connect with other professionals. So the question becomes – what’s next?

I see the next couple of years as an opportunity for such groups to redefine their purpose by reaching out to their members and asking them what they want from such organizations.

This can then also make the work of any board members an easier task – simply follow the wishes of the members and at the same time communicate the direction in a format such as video or audio that ensures ideas and directions are clearly understood by members.

For the record – I have zero issue with any community of practice; I believe strongly that the ideas from any discipline can help all of us explore new ways to improve processes in our own work.

I just think we should be raising the bar to ensure we also raise the level of debate and ideas regardless of your title or chosen community of practice.

My own experience is having been nose-to-grindstone in a single corporation for the last eleven years as a design manager – and then being laid off, and needing to reorient myself outside of that context. So I’ve looked to the community for support, information and inspiration only to discover that it can be difficult to find your voice or have it be heard, however much experience leading and creating you might have under your belt.

I think that there are tons of people in this industry doing interesting things in difficult environments who either don’t see the need to participate in this community or simply don’t have the time. These are people being local leaders – “empowering others to do great things and inspiring creativity” as Jeff says here – but of whom the gang on Twitter and at the conferences and on the mailing lists have never heard.

I’m finding – bemusedly – that that’s a novel thought to people in the inner circle. And so there is a definitely a certain thread of insularity about the community and their “rock stars” that feels very stultifying and unhealthy to me. It’s a small group in a mad scramble to control terminology and define the boundaries of the work that – in web years, as Eric will have it – is only advanced as far as the auto industry in 1960.

Let it go, folks – it may be still too early for us to lock things down so hard. And there’s so many of us who you don’t include, don’t know about, and for whom you don’t speak, quietly inventing stuff about which you will never hear, and trying our best to deeply, locally and effectively get on with the work of the world.

It’s interesting that you ask about a series on this topic. Being a “dude” I’ve been in discussions with the “kahuna’s” over at Johnny Holland http://www.johnnyholland.org and we’re in production to create “Radio Johnny” a regular podcast for that great webzine on UX.

One of the first guests will be Joe Sokohl (@mojoguzzi) on this very subject.

Great seeing you @idea09 this year and I hope this note finds you and yours healthy and happy.