In this episode of This Week in Community, Rosie Sherry and Simon Tomes are back together after a couple of weeks apart.
They talk through the growth of chapters within the MoTaverse, including the AI Chapter's rapid rise, and the tension between making Chapters valuable enough to justify paid membership while keeping the volunteer spirit alive.
A big chunk of the conversation digs into AI's effect on community: spotting AI generated posts and comments, the growing amount of AI slop online, and why hearing a member's real voice, typos and all, matters more than polished perfection. They also explore boundaries around friction, entitlement, and why things being too easy can make them feel less valuable.
Guest Drew Pontikis joins to share his perspective on measuring community by the changes and outcomes it creates rather than views or numbers, and why the experience itself is often the real value.
The episode closes with Rosie and Simon thinking out loud about how they might use Claude in their community Slack, from summarising wins and surfacing member feedback to reminding them to recognise people's contributions.
Chapters
00:00 Welcome Back to the Community Podcast
01:20 The Significance of the 'Ninety Nine' Concept
02:50 Reflections on Community Management
04:42 Changes in Chapter Membership Policies
06:46 The Value of Leadership in Community Chapters
08:57 The Importance of Community Engagement
11:27 Building Trust in Community Events
13:50 The Challenge of Being a Community Member
15:07 Improving Onboarding for New Members
16:34 The Limitations of Community Discussions
18:18 Redefining Community Beyond Discussions
21:52 Inspiring New Community Builders
24:18 Setting Boundaries in Community Engagement
32:19 The Role of AI in Community Dynamics
39:20 Measuring Community Value and Impact
49:52 Exploring AI Tools for Community Management
53:12 Utilising AI for Community Engagement
55:11 Enhancing Slack Conversations
56:53 Feedback and Reporting Mechanisms
58:54 Conclusion and Next Steps
Additional resources
- By People for People — Drew Pontikis's blog on community of practice topics.
- omg.lol — A creative, indie web hosting platform mentioned as an example of experimenting rather than accepting community platform defaults.
- DORA 2025 report: State of AI-assisted Software Development — Google's DORA research finding that AI amplifies both good and bad behaviour, referenced via a conversation with Lisa Crispin as a framing for thinking about AI in community Slacks.
- Rosieland — Rosie's own site, mentioned as where she maps and writes about community thinking over time.
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