This is what closing the community management training gap looks like.
Earlier this year, the DLC Leadership Program onboarded a pilot cohort of 84 community managers, digital leaders, and games researchers from 20 countries across six continents. Together they lead communities reaching more than 200,000 people.
Over the following weeks they worked through coursework on self-care, de-escalation strategies, and operational security — three areas our research identified as the widest gaps in existing community management training.
Among those who completed the program, confidence rose significantly across all eight competency areas we measured. The gains held whether participants came in with years of experience or none at all.
The results didn’t wait for a certificate. 85% of completers had already changed how they lead before the program ended: new moderation practices, rewritten guidelines, different approaches to conflict and community safety. 98% said they would recommend the program to other community leaders.
That last figure matters more than it looks. This is a field where people have been told for years that training either doesn’t exist or isn’t worth their time. Given something built around what they actually do, they used it immediately.
The pilot was the proof. Our waitlist is now more than three cohorts deep, and applications for the first public cohort open soon.
New to this work? Start with the community management training gap — the research behind why this program exists.
