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How to Become A Community Manager: Insights & Advice from a Community Expert

Dorcas Kpabitey
11–16 minutes
How to Become A Community Manager: Insights & Advice from a Community Expert

Community management is one of many roles you can transition into as a non-coder in tech.

Whether it’s nurturing online forums, hosting events, or creating spaces where people feel seen and supported, community managers play a crucial role in shaping how individuals engage with brands and each other.

Currently, many community manager roles are freelance, part-time, or contract-based, making it possible to explore the field alongside a full-time job. It can also serve as a stepping stone into other roles in the tech space, such as marketing, customer success, sales, product, or brand.

Transitioning into tech can be challenging these days. But internal transitions are often easier, and community management can be your gateway role.

Wondering what community management actually is, or how to gain relevant experience? You’re in the right place.

Our Founder, Jess Armooh , spoke with Christabelle Boateng, a seasoned community manager whose path into the role was anything but traditional.

This article distills her experiences and advice into actionable insights for anyone considering a career in community management, whether you’re pivoting from another field or just getting started.

What is Community Management?

Community management is often confused with social media management, but the two are fundamentally different.

While social media focuses on broadcasting messages to a broad audience, community management is about cultivating spaces where people engage in meaningful two-way conversations.

Community management is more about fostering belonging, trust, and mutual value.

To better understand the distinction, it helps to know the difference between “social media” and “community.” Here’s how Christabelle Boateng puts it:

“Community is a group of people who come together because they share the same belief or they have a common goal, and there is a sense of belonging. It’s a two-way conversation as opposed to social media, where it’s a brand speaking to many people — that’s an audience.

At its core, a community is a group of people united by a shared belief, interest, or goal, where members feel safe, seen, and supported. Unlike the one-to-many nature of social media, community thrives on intimacy, interaction, and genuine dialogue.

This difference also shows up in how people relate to each other within these spaces:

“As much as I follow so and so on TikTok or Instagram and they have 10,000 followers, I don’t feel like I can go to that influencer and say ‘Hey babe, what do you think about this?’… Whereas in a community — maybe on Slack — I can add someone, or we can have a group discussion. – Christabelle Boateng

So, what is community management?

Community management is the strategic practice of building, growing, and nurturing relationships among a group of people connected by a shared purpose. It involves creating systems and spaces — online or offline — where members can connect, learn, support each other, and thrive together.

The best community managers listen closely, encourage engagement, and respond to evolving needs. In essence, they’re the bridge between people and the brand, and sometimes, between people and each other.

Why Community Management Matters

When done right, community management can drive:

A Day in the Life of a Community Manager

What does a community manager do?

No two days look the same in community management, but there’s one constant: people. 

Whether it’s through answering questions, curating events, or simply checking in with members, community managers spend their time fostering engagement, building relationships, and listening closely to the needs of their communities.

Key Responsibilities & Duties of A Community Manager

On any given day, a community manager might:

Listening is a huge part of the job. (Online) Community managers keep their ear to the ground, tuning into what members are asking, struggling with, or excited about.

“You need to have your ear on the ground and understand what pervasive needs are being talked about… then try to create solutions.” – Christabelle Boateng

That might mean producing timely resources or organising sessions tailored to members’ interests. For example, if several people are curious about breaking into product management, a community manager might respond by creating relevant content, like an event series or AMA with a product expert.

Above all, community managers are vibe-bringers. They create a welcoming tone, hold space for connection, and nurture a sense of belonging. This is because people need to feel like a space is good enough and safe enough to participate.

💡 Being resourceful is key in community management. Great community managers build and maintain relationships so they know exactly who or what can help their members thrive, essentially becoming a bridge between people and opportunities.

How to Transition into Community Management

If you’re curious about community management but unsure where to begin, you’re not alone. The field is still evolving, and there’s no one-size-fits-all path into it.

As Christabelle Boateng’s journey shows, some of the most successful community managers may come from unexpected backgrounds. With a degree in physiology and early experience in health and fitness, she transitioned into community work through customer success roles, driven by strong people skills, empathy, and a natural ability to bring others together.

Here’s a simple roadmap to help you break into community management:

Identify Transferable Skills

Community management isn’t just for people with direct experience. It’s for anyone who knows how to connect, support, and organise. If you’ve worked in teaching, customer support, marketing, event planning, or social work, you likely already have valuable skills. (more on this shortly!)

And even if you haven’t worked in these specific fields, as long as you’ve built these skills elsewhere, you can still thrive in community management.

Engage with Communities

To understand what it’s like to manage a community, start by participating in one. You don’t need a job title to begin

This hands-on involvement helps you learn what makes a community tick, and gives you stories and experience in community management to include on your resume or in interviews.

Learn Continuously

Community building blends art and strategy. To stay current and build your confidence, seek out resources and learning spaces: articles, podcasts, books, videos, events, and courses.

The more you engage with the field, the more you’ll understand its needs – and your place in it.

Find Mentorship and Exposure

Joining professional communities like CMX, The Community Club, or Rosieland can open doors to jobs, mentors, and visibility. Many established community professionals are happy to share insights or recommend newcomers for opportunities.

Whether you’re aiming for a formal role or simply want to explore the space, small actions—like engaging in group chats or helping answer someone’s question—can go a long way in demonstrating your potential.

7 Common Pathways into Community Management

There’s no single path into community management—and that’s part of what makes the field so dynamic and accessible.

Whether you’re coming from a corporate background or a creative one, there’s likely a stepping stone that aligns with your experience.

Here are seven common entry points into community management:

1. Customer Support

Many community managers start in customer support roles, where they develop strong skills in problem-solving, empathy, and user communication.

These roles offer a front-row seat to user needs and frustrations, making them a natural bridge into community work, especially for creating spaces that offer peer support and reduce pressure on support teams.

2. Content Creation & Social Media

If you’ve built an audience online or managed social channels for a brand, you already understand how to engage people at scale.

Community management takes that one step further, focusing on two-way relationships instead of one-way broadcasting.

Content creators often bring storytelling skills, tone of voice expertise, and a feel for what gets people talking.

3. Operations

People in operations roles are often skilled at connecting dots, creating systems, and making things run smoothly, all critical for managing community logistics, tools, and event coordination.

If you’ve managed programs, schedules, or tools in a team setting, you’re likely equipped to handle community workflows.

4. Content Marketing & Writing

Writers and content marketers are pros at distilling complex ideas, crafting engaging messages, and tailoring content to specific audiences.

These skills are useful for everything from writing community newsletters to shaping the onboarding experience for new members.

If you’ve worked in content, you’re well-positioned to bring clarity and consistency to community messaging.

5. Project Management

Project managers are experienced in planning, coordination, and stakeholder communication.

These skills transfer easily to community management, where you’re often juggling events, partnerships, and cross-functional initiatives.

Project Managers also excel at measuring impact, an increasingly important part of community roles.

6. Volunteer and Advocacy Work

If you’ve volunteered to lead groups, mentor others, or advocate for a cause, you’ve already done some form of community work.

These experiences often involve mobilising people, organising events, and building relationships—core functions of a community manager.

Many community professionals started by volunteering their time in grassroots initiatives or professional networks.

7. Courses and Self-Learning

Some people break into community roles by taking online courses or workshops that teach the fundamentals—strategy, engagement, tooling, and measurement.

Pairing this knowledge with hands-on experience (even in a volunteer or side project role) can make your entry into the field much smoother.

Recommended Reading: Upskilling: A Proven Way to Stay Competitive in the Fast-Changing Remote Job Market 

4 Essential (and Transferable) Skills for Community Managers

You don’t need a degree or experience in community management to thrive in it. Most people who succeed in this field bring transferable skills from roles like customer support, teaching, marketing, event planning, or advocacy.

Community management blends people skills, creativity, and business strategy. Whether you’re welcoming a new member, moderating conflict, or launching an initiative, these core skills help you thrive in dynamic, people-centered environments:

1. Communication and Relationship Building

At the heart of community management is connection. You need to listen actively, communicate clearly, and create a space where people feel safe, seen, and heard.

“It takes skill to pull out information from people and also make them feel comfortable enough to share. Some people are more active, some are not—it depends on the vibe of the community… Being able to build rapport, that’s one of the core skills I’d name.” – Christabelle Boateng

2. Creativity and Problem-Solving

Communities are living systems; things don’t always go as planned. You’ll often need to design engagement strategies, adapt to new trends, or rework your approach when things fall flat.

Creativity fuels ideas like themed challenges, discussion prompts, and community-led events. Problem-solving also helps you respond to challenges with agility and empathy.

3. Business Alignment and Strategy

A community must connect to broader company goals. As a community manager, you must understand how to measure impact, align efforts with marketing or product strategies, and communicate the value of your work.

If you’ve ever handled reporting, cross-functional collaboration, or led programs with KPIs, this skill likely exists in your toolkit already.

4. Domain Expertise

This is an often overlooked advantage. If you deeply understand a specific audience—say, designers, teachers, or wellness enthusiasts—you’re more equipped to build authentic community experiences that speak to their needs.

You don’t have to be a generalist. Knowing your people is a skill in itself.

Recommended Reading: How to Leverage Domain Knowledge as a Transferable Skill when Changing Careers

💡 Bottom line: Most of the essential skills needed to get started in community management are transferable. If you’re empathetic, resourceful, and curious, you already have a strong foundation.

How Community Management Contributes to Business Goals

While community management is often associated with connection and culture, its strategic impact on a business can be profound. A well-managed community can drive tangible business outcomes across the customer lifecycle.

“It’s not just enough to be the vibe curator and understand community needs — you also have to map your work onto KPIs and bring value to the business” – Christabelle Boateng

Here are four ways community management impacts business outcomes:

  1. Increases Loyalty and Retention: Communities give customers a space to ask questions, share experiences, and build relationships, deepening brand loyalty and trust.
  2. Fuels Organic Growth: Members often become advocates, spreading the word authentically. Peer recommendations within communities often outperform ads.
  3. Lowers Support Costs: Peer-to-peer help in forums and groups reduces the load on customer support teams. People enjoy helping others, and community makes that scalable.
  4.  Lifts Brand Perception: When people feel heard, connected, and valued, their trust in the brand grows.

💡 A Note on Understanding Organisational Readiness

Not all companies are ready for community, and that’s okay.

But “be sure the organisation understands ‘community’,” Christabelle advises. “Community isn’t a quick fix. It needs nurturing. Like sourdough starter — you need to check it, feed it, nurture it until one day it’s alive.”

Resources for Aspiring Community Managers

Whether you’re just starting or looking to grow your skills, there are plenty of resources available to help you succeed in community management.

Tools of the Trade

While community managers often work across platforms, their toolkits typically include:

Educational Resources

Community Platforms and Networks

Find other online communities for NoCode Techies →

Conclusion

Community management is a growing field with space for people from many different backgrounds. Whether you’re coming from teaching, customer support, marketing, or another area, your people skills, empathy, and problem-solving abilities are valuable here.

As more companies invest in community through events, forums, or ambassador programs, there are opportunities to build a meaningful career while helping others feel seen, supported, and connected. If you’re curious about getting started, know that there’s no one right path, and your perspective is needed.

Christabelle Boateng is open to connecting with aspiring community professionals. Feel free to reach out to her on LinkedIn; she’s happy to offer support or share advice.

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Dorcas Kpabitey