We’re entering a new era where community is no longer optional; it’s strategic infrastructure.What if the most important competitive advantage in business today isn’t speed, scale, or even technology but trust?As organizations race deeper into an AI-driven world, leaders are discovering a growing gap: while AI can deliver answers instantly, it cannot create belonging, credibility, or human connection. That gap is exactly where community is becoming one of the most powerful strategic forces in modern business.In this episode of Talk About Your Community, Todd Nilson sits down with Chris Catania, creator of the ADAPT leadership framework and a leading voice in community-driven strategy, to explore why we are entering a new era where community is no longer a program or department, but as a strategic advantage.Chris brings over 20 years of experience helping organizations transform how they build trust, engage people, and adapt to change. His work, including his book The Community-First Advantage, challenges leaders to rethink community as a foundational business system that drives growth, innovation, resilience, and alignment across the organization.Together, they’ll touch on:- Chris’s journey into community and the lessons that shaped his thinking- Why the most successful communities are built on trust, not tactics- How community has evolved from engagement programming into business strategy- What separates thriving communities from those that struggle to scale- Why AI accelerates information, but community builds trust and transformation- Practical approaches for applying community-first thinking across any organizationIf you’re a community builder, strategist, or executive navigating what comes next in an AI-shaped world, this conversation will challenge how you think about growth, leadership, and the future of connection. Join the discussion live on June 26th at 10am Central!ABOUT CHRIS CATANIAChris Catania is an award-winning strategist, speaker, and author of The Community-First Advantage. For more than 20 years, he has helped organizations transform how they build trust, engage people, and adapt to change. Chris helps leaders see community not as a platform or department, but as a strategic advantage for growth, innovation, and resilience in an AI-driven world. His work centers on the ADAPT leadership framework and the belief that trust is becoming one of the most valuable assets a company can build.https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophercatania/ABOUT THE SHOWTalk About Your Community is a biweekly live stream for leaders, technologists, entrepreneurs and community builders. Todd Nilson interviews experts from a variety of fields who have input on how communities are both built and sustained online and off. Tune in to talk about community building and digital strategy.Talk About Your Community is produced by Clocktower Advisors, a global consultancy specialized at helping organizations like yours to build thriving, sustainable communities online.Clocktower Advisors Privacy Policy: https://lnkd.in/dS64AhxUConnect with Todd Nilson on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gi9gh6NNFollow Clocktower Advisors on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gu9CXE_sSchedule a call:https://calendly.com/clocktower-advisors/short-meeting

Community teams are often asked to drive loyalty, advocacy, retention, education, and growth while remaining disconnected from the workflows that shape the customer experience in the first place.In this episode of Talk About Your Community, Todd Nilson sits down with Joshua Zerkel, Head of Marketing & Community at Gradual and author of The Community Code, to explore the GROWTH Framework: a model for building community programs that align with real go-to-market priorities and measurable business outcomes.Drawing from two decades of experience building and scaling communities at companies including Asana, Evernote, HeyGen, and others, Joshua will share why many community programs struggle to demonstrate impact, where community efforts break down inside organizations, and what changes when community becomes embedded into the systems supporting marketing, product, customer success, sales, and education.Together, they’ll discuss:- Why engagement metrics alone rarely tell the full story- The difference between running a community program and building community integrated across GTM teams- How the GROWTH framework helps organizations move from experimentation toward scalable systems- Common organizational and measurement mistakes that limit community influence- How customer signal, advocacy, education, and peer engagement can strengthen alignment across the customer lifecycleIf you’re trying to connect community strategy to measurable business outcomes or rethink how community fits into your broader GTM strategy, join us live on Friday, June 12 at 10:00 AM Central.ABOUT JOSH ZERKELJoshua Zerkel, CPO is Head of Marketing & Community at Gradual and author of The Community Code: Strengthening and Aligning Your Go-to-Market Through Community. Over the past two decades, he has built and scaled community programs at companies including Asana and Evernote, helping connect community strategy to marketing, product, customer success, and revenue outcomes. His work focuses on what he calls community-integrated GTM: treating community as a core business system that strengthens alignment, customer insight, and long-term growth across the company.linkedin.com/in/joshuazerkelABOUT THE SHOWTalk About Your Community is a biweekly live stream for leaders, technologists, entrepreneurs and community builders. Todd Nilson interviews experts from a variety of fields who have input on how communities are both built and sustained online and off. Tune in to talk about community building and digital strategy.Talk About Your Community is produced by Clocktower Advisors, a global consultancy specialized at helping organizations like yours to build thriving, sustainable communities online.Clocktower Advisors Privacy Policy: https://lnkd.in/dS64AhxUConnect with Todd Nilson on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gi9gh6NNFollow Clocktower Advisors on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gu9CXE_sSchedule a call:https://calendly.com/clocktower-advisors/short-meeting

As AI rapidly reshapes how we work, communicate, and build relationships, community leaders are facing bigger questions than ever before: How do we create technology that actually serves people? What ethical tradeoffs come with AI-driven systems? How do we foster more intentional, sustainable human connection in an attention-driven economy?Join Todd Nilson, Founder of Clocktower Advisors, for a live conversation with David Douglas, Founder and CEO of Guideway Labs, an AI-native company focused on human capability in the age of artificial intelligence. A three-time founder with experience leading transformation programs at IBM, McKinsey, Accenture, Capital One, Discover, and Freddie Mac, David brings a practical and deeply thoughtful perspective on the real-world decisions organizations are making as AI becomes embedded into our communities, workplaces, and digital experiences.Together, Todd and David will explore:- The ethical design decisions behind modern AI systems- What it means to build technology that “does right by humans”- The impact of attention-driven platforms on online and offline communities- How organizations can create healthier, more intentional engagement- The future of trust, interaction, and human capability in AI-enabled spacesWhether you lead an online community, build digital products, or are navigating the intersection of technology and human connection, this conversation will offer strategic insights into where communities are headed next.RSVP now to join the conversation live on Friday, May 29th at 10:00am Central.ABOUT DAVID DOUGLASDavid Douglas is founder and CEO of Guideway Labs, an AI-native company focused on human capability as AI reshapes work. A three-time founder, he's led transformation programs at IBM, McKinsey, Accenture, Capital One, Discover, and Freddie Mac. His current focus: AI ethics in human systems.https://www.linkedin.com/in/ddouglas2007/ABOUT THE SHOWTalk About Your Community is a biweekly live stream for leaders, technologists, entrepreneurs and community builders. Todd Nilson interviews experts from a variety of fields who have input on how communities are both built and sustained online and off. Tune in to talk about community building and digital strategy.Talk About Your Community is produced by Clocktower Advisors, a global consultancy specialized at helping organizations like yours to build thriving, sustainable communities online.Clocktower Advisors Privacy Policy: https://lnkd.in/dS64AhxUConnect with Todd Nilson on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gi9gh6NNFollow Clocktower Advisors on LinkedInhttps://lnkd.in/gu9CXE_sSchedule a call:https://lnkd.in/gmYK3rwf