For companies in search of ways to reduce costs and accelerate time-to-market for key initiatives, Enterprise Business Communities represent an important new area of opportunity.

Enterprise Communities bring together company employees both physically and virtually to transfer knowledge, share experience and ideas, plus potentially collaborate on strategically important projects. The Communities can be either Communities of Practice (i.e. within a function) or cross-functional.

While the potential of Enterprise Communities is clear, companies are still in the early stages of understanding how best to develop these effectively to deliver clear and measurable economic value. Understanding where the role of Enterprise Communities sits within an organisation, how and where to obtain buy-in, the skills and tools required for success and how to avoid the pitfalls and hurdles are all important factors in delivering business value with Communities.

Knexus is bringing together a cross-industry group of senior business executives, each of whom are taking leading roles within their organisations in the adoption of strategically focused, Enterprise Communities. The purpose of this collaborative session is to hear how some of these people are approaching the development of their Communities and to discuss the challenges and opportunities in a roundtable environment with professional moderation.

British American Tobacco (BAT) is one such company that will present a case study on its own Community.

We would welcome your participation and ideas, so please join us!