Using the CAMEL Model to Build a Community of Practice
Applying the Model
- Managing the project
- Choosing the partners
- Start-up meeting
- Organising the study visits
- Importance of social events
- Evaluation and Review
More...
'The JISC infoNet Project Management infoKit is going to help us here deliver what we need to deliver, achieving our strategic objectives and I look forward to using this regularly.'
Project Management:
- is crucial for project success
- can be tailored to the particular project
For a project of this type, a 'light touch' is probably the best approach; this was appreciated by our pilot participants who commented that it was the process that was important and they did not feel that the project was results/outcomes driven. However, even with a 'light touch' approach there will be occasions when gentle reminders are needed. It helps in managing the project if there is a lead person at each of the institutions and that this person takes on the responsibility for organising their study visit.
A Project Initiation Document (PID) is an excellent way of documenting your project. The main sections are:
- Goals
- Scope
- Roles and Responsibilities
- Stakeholders, reporting and communication
- Plan with milestones
- Risk assessment
- Financial arrangements
This will help you clarify your project with the partners so that everyone understands their role and responsibilities. It also ensures that any budget arrangements are available to all so that financial discussions can be open and honest.
Guidance on completing a PID can be found in our Project Management infoKit and a template is included in the 'resources' section of this resource.
No project runs entirely to plan and issues may arise as your project progresses. You may find it useful to document these, together with solutions, so that problems can be tracked and the experience and knowledge is not lost. This will be the responsibility of the Project Manager or a named person within your project. A Project Controls database and associated user guide can be found in the 'resources' section and guidance on managing issues can be found within the Project Management infoKit.
Documenting your study visits can be done in a variety of ways, for example:
- Note-taking
- Video
- Digital photographs
- Presentations (PowerPoint, Word etc)
- Post-its (large and small)
- Templates to record group discussions
These can be shared with your group using a JISC Mail list, social software (e.g. Flickr), or a learning environment such as Moodle. The Project Manager could also be responsible for the setting up and management of these communication systems.
If you decide to publish findings from your community of practice, the Project Manager could be responsible for the co-ordination of the publications.
A neutral Project Manager i.e. one from outside the partner organisations may also serve as a facilitator. A facilitator is useful in face-to-face and online discussions to ensure that participants all have a fair say and stick to issues that are of interest to the group as a whole.