Developing a Framework for Successful Virtual Communities of Practice (VCoPs): Lessons Learned from Redesigning SAPR Connect.

Background: In 2014, the Secretary of Defense directed the establishment of a community of practice as a process or resource to facilitate communication among those involved in sexual assault prevention across the Department of Defense (DoD). In response, DoD’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) created SAPR Connect, a virtual community of practice (VCoP), that allows DoD employees with a Common Access Card (CAC) to interact on a virtual platform.

Program background: As user involvement has grown and technology needs and opportunities have evolved, it has become clear that SAPR Connect should be replaced/updated and provide a platform that is a cutting-edge medium within communities of practice activities inside DoD. The purpose of this inquiry was (1) to understand what the driving principles behind a successful VCoP and (2) develop a “gold standard” definition of VCoP to use as the foundation in all future recommendation updates to SAPR Connect.

Evaluation Methods and Results: A mixed-methods approach was utilized to develop a gold standard VCoP definition. The literature review focuses broadly on the facilitators, motivators, and barriers to executing an effective VCoP for community members. The environmental scan of VCoP examples extracts best practices in the areas of user engagement and website functions, both of which inform how to design a VCoP so that users can most effectively access site features and resources. An informal roundtable discussion with select SAPR Connect users allowed FMG to further understand certain barriers to user involvement, perceived identity of the platform, and desires for new features. Altogether, these learnings informed the development of a Gold Standard VCoP definition.

Conclusions: Based upon findings from the literature review, environmental scan, and user roundtable, the following gold-stand VCoP Definition was developed.

1. Provides timely, current, relevant information and resources such as:
   • Static, shareable content (e.g., training guides, example PowerPoint presentations, or educational handouts); and
   • Dynamic, interactive content (e.g., webinars, trainings, workshops, and briefings) that build capacity or offers opportunities for capacity building.
2. Facilitates engagement with users and fosters community-building;
3. Provides a member-centric platform and user experience; and
4. Articulates shared values that help build community identity.

Implications for research and/or practice: In order to build effective VCoPs, there needs to be greater consensus among developers of online learning communities regarding what constitutes an effective VCoP and how VCoP tools can be applied to achieve prevention and education goals. The Gold Standard VCoP definition provides an important starting point for this conversation. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of VCoPs designed on these principles.