Haque has added another key piece to the social strategy puzzle with this week’s post. What I’ve really be digging into is the realization that my studies and interests seem to be coming full circle in a sort of unexpected, but ultimately inevitable business application.

We’ve focused a lot of energy on facilitating collaboration: -intra, -inter, -cross disciplinary and otherwise…getting strong individuals to play nice together in service of the greater good, the common goal. A social strategy takes that to the next level, connecting these nodes of collaboration to a broader view of participation in a more complex ecosystem- a community.

An interesting thing about communities, though, is that they’re not really self-aware. Individuals and groups go about their business without too much reflection on how their subtle, functional synchronicity builds momentum into the ecosystem. Activists and organizers come forward from the community to wake people up into awareness. Communities need passionate advocates to motivate more active participation. Communities need managers to
translate advocacy into efficiency.

The Efficient Community Hypothesis - Umair Haque - Harvard Business Review