Here is a cautionary tale about the importance of Community of Practice facilitation, and what happens when the facilitator is removed.
The story comes from Tom Humbarger, who was the community facilitator for a professional community from January 2007 until he was made redundant in July 2008.
Membership growth dropped by more than 63% on a week to week basis.
The community of practice limped on for a few more months, but performance was lacklustre.
Tom's story, and the graph above. demonstrate clearly the value that a facilitator brings to a community of practice.