Lisa Bidder is a Reconnect Member from Bristol, UK. Lisa was an Xbox MVP from 2007-2012, and is now working as Principal Community Strategist & Global Community Strategy Lead at Khoros.
After spending six years in the MVP program, Lisa found herself losing touch with fellow MVPs as Reconnect hadn’t yet been introduced. “Becoming part of Reconnect allowed me to do just that - to reconnect with many of the MVPs I knew during my award period, and even find more. I even discovered one of my colleagues had been an MVP!” said Lisa.
The impact the Reconnect community has had on Lisa had been huge: “To put it simply, I feel connected. Online communities are a huge part of my life, they’ve had a significant impact on me personally, connecting me with so many amazing individuals I would otherwise have never met,” she explained.
“I used to be a prolific participant in the community but I guess you could call me more of a lurker these days. I keep up on news and events from a quiet corner, while still feeling very much a part of something special. The community is right there on hand when I need them.”
During her day job, Lisa not only gets to work with some incredible brands, but is also able to dedicate her time to not-for-profit organizations that don’t have the resources of big brands to face the challenges they’re trying to solve. “There’s something very special about the communities they build. Take Breast Cancer Care, for example, who I’ve had the pleasure to work with many times over recent years. It’s difficult to quantify why this community is so important to its users, but ultimately it provides them with a support network at a time of personal crisis,” she said.
For Lisa, the best part of MVP events was interacting with and learning from the other people involved. “As an MVP I was working with and learning from amazing people. They were smart and good at what they did, but there was so much more to it than that. They all truly valued the relationships with the wider community and worked to support each other.. I’ve got to say, it’s the people, always the people!” explained Lisa.
To new MVPs, Lisa says “Embrace the people, value the relationships you will gain and nurture the new blood as it comes through the door. It doesn’t matter what area of expertise you or your fellow MVPs have been awarded, everyone is here for the same reason: You care for and value the community around you. Enjoy it and make friends!”
In the future, Lisa would like to continue working with communities and showing how powerful online communities can be in personal and professional lives.
Check her out on Twitter: @kleaneasy
