Joining a user group is an excellent way to further your understanding of technology being used by your community foundation. Not only will you have the opportunity to attend technical presentations and Q & A sessions provided by knowledgeable speakers, you will also be exposed to peers who share a common interest in that platform.
While user groups will vary according to the provider with which they are affiliated, benefits you might expect include:
Regular Meetings. Often held on-line, these meetings may feature presentations by experts, Q & A sessions given by a variety of knowledgeable speakers, troubleshooting sessions and discussion of best practices. Given the fact that many emerging user groups will represent technology new to community foundations, these meetings will provide important opportunities to discuss innovative ways in which they can "drive" our business as well as ways that we can address cultural shifts needed to promote their full use within community foundations.
On-Line Community. Many user groups have Web sites which feature the latest technical news, special offers, archived presentations, discussion forums and educational opportunities.
Volunteer Opportunities. User groups often depend, at least in part, on the volunteer efforts of their members. As new user groups emerge within our field, they will provide excellent opportunities to gain valuable experience on development projects, organizational committees, and other aspects of community foundation technology infrastructure.
While user groups provide excellent opportunities for you to gain knowledge of various technology platforms, they also provide a regular forum in which technology providers can gain feedback that may influence the future direction of their products. User groups enable providers to obtain a wide range of opinions from a representative set of target users about issues at hand. Each user's point of view is of interest but it is important to note that comments cannot necessarily be generalized or projected to the larger population served by the provider -- a population which likely extends beyond community foundations.
Participation in a user group is free-of-charge to product users and strictly voluntary. Neither users nor providers are required to act upon feedback or technical assistance provided within these forums. Representatives from both user and vendor groups participate in order to gain knowledge that will enable each to advance their business requirements. In order to benefit all, user groups should be guided by the desire to understand opportunities for advancing our institutional agendas, where appropriate, in partnership with others.
