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Posted: Sun May 25, 2025 7:16 am
The use of online communities is becoming increasingly professional. Where in the past a student was hired to manage online discussions, now a highly educated community management professional works on the positioning of the community, moderation policy and strategic content management. What can we expect from community managers in 2013?
I will answer that in this article. The function of community manager has recently been given a clear profile, thanks to the Vakvereniging Online Community Management Nederland (CMNL). With this profile, organizations, recruiters and community professionals can get started right away.
Role within the organization
Organizations give many different interpretations to community management functions. There is too little latvia phone number list knowledge about the activities and position of a community professional. “We are talking about social media,” is often thought, so this person belongs in PR & communication. Or no, the community is intended to maintain customer contacts, perhaps that is why Customer Service is a better department? When the goal of the community is more in the direction of branding and profiling, the Marketing department is often chosen as the responsible person.
There is still a great lack of insight into the linking function that community management actually has. The domain of a community manager is the community and in an ideal situation this community touches many different departments within the organization. A community professional is therefore at the center of the organization and must talk to both support and the management team.
This confusion – where a community professional belongs and with whom to coordinate – exists because there is a lack of a clear and concrete professional profile that is aligned with the current professional level.
I will answer that in this article. The function of community manager has recently been given a clear profile, thanks to the Vakvereniging Online Community Management Nederland (CMNL). With this profile, organizations, recruiters and community professionals can get started right away.
Role within the organization
Organizations give many different interpretations to community management functions. There is too little latvia phone number list knowledge about the activities and position of a community professional. “We are talking about social media,” is often thought, so this person belongs in PR & communication. Or no, the community is intended to maintain customer contacts, perhaps that is why Customer Service is a better department? When the goal of the community is more in the direction of branding and profiling, the Marketing department is often chosen as the responsible person.
There is still a great lack of insight into the linking function that community management actually has. The domain of a community manager is the community and in an ideal situation this community touches many different departments within the organization. A community professional is therefore at the center of the organization and must talk to both support and the management team.
This confusion – where a community professional belongs and with whom to coordinate – exists because there is a lack of a clear and concrete professional profile that is aligned with the current professional level.