[LBC #137] New Tools, CMAD 2026, Community Stories & Fresh Opportunities

Hi friends!

Happy New Year and welcome to our very first newsletter of 2026! Grab your favorite drink and ease into the year with a little reflection and a few fresh things to explore:

🎥 Community Pros Yearbook 2025 is live — short, honest video reflections from community pros around the world on what 2025 taught us and what’s next for our work in 2026.

🧰 New tools are here to help you stand out: build a professional portfolio to showcase your experience, and create a community profile to attract members and get discovered.

🎉 CMAD 2026 is on the way! We’re teaming up with The Community Collective, CMX, and the Community Consultants Collective to celebrate Community Manager Appreciation Day around the world. Stay tuned.

🎤 Community Week 2026 is taking shape — Early Bird passes are now live for London, New York, and Lisbon. Choose your city (or go all-access) and save your spot. Get your ticket.

📚 This week’s reading stack includes strategy, ops, analytics, and reflections from Higher Logic, Circle, Discourse, and CMX.

💌 Notes from community pros: thoughtful newsletters from Richard Millington, Bill Johnston, Martha Essien, Laura Zug, and more.

🌟 Meet Ishani Kundu, Senior Community Manager at Wisdo Health, building care-first communities rooted in psychology and lived experience. Read her story.

📘 Featured playbook: Building a Successful Advocacy Program by Brian Oblinger — a practical guide to launching or refining your advocacy efforts.

💼 Looking for your next role (or your next hire)? The Job Board has new openings across the US, Europe, Asia, and remote-friendly teams. Take a look.

Scroll on for stories, resources, and opportunities to start the year connected.

With love,
Francisco, Paôla & the Led by Community Team of Volunteers

2025 changed how Community, Education, and Digital CS teams work together. In this on-demand session by Gainsight, Greatest Hits in Digital CX 2025, learn what leaders are bringing into 2026. From smarter use of AI to the strategies driving adoption, engagement, and retention, this is a fast, practical watch before 2026 planning kicks off.

• From Circle: The 2026 Community Trends Report by Circle. Read

• Discourse Discover: Linux Communities. Read

• From CMX: From Toastmasters to Intercom: Diana Tripac's Journey in Community Building. Read

• How to Become a Community Manager: A Clear, Practical Guide by Nikita Heyland. Read

We love to feature Community Professionals sharing their wisdom with the community. This week we have a few:

• If You Want To Give Better Advice To Clients, Follow These Three Simple Rules by Richard Millington. Read

• The Last Days of Mass Social Media by Bill Johnston. Read

• I took a lot of turns… by Martha Essien. Read

• What if 2026 isn't about achieving more? by Laura Zug. Read

• What Kitchens Taught Me About Community-first Leadership by Chris Catania. Read

Are we missing a newsletter? Let us know!

And more worth reading below:

• From Rosieland: Community as a Service. Read

• From Australian Community Managers: What is Community Management? Read

• From Gravyty: End-of-year reflections: A moment to reflect and reconnect with your alumni community. Read

• Your 2025 Stacked: A year of knowledge, community, and impact. Read

This week, we have a few new podcast episodes available:

• From Higher Logic Podcast: Successful Events with Hillary Chambers. Listen

A builder of empathy, safety, and belonging, Ishani brings years of experience at the intersection of mental health and community leadership. Rooted in lived experience and intentional leadership, her work shows that strong communities aren’t built on strategy alone — they’re built on compassion.

Her journey into community work began early, shaped by personal experiences in mental health spaces. Volunteering quickly became a calling, allowing her to combine her psychology background with her ability to nurture trust-led, human-centered ecosystems.

Today, as a Senior Community Manager and Mental Health Coach at Wisdo Health, Ishani creates environments where people feel safe to show up as themselves — and supported enough to grow. Across global and Indian organizations, she has led communities in mental health, wellness, and professional spaces, always centering care beyond metrics.

We have 120+ jobs available in our Job Board, but we are featuring a few below:

US & Remote

💼 Community Engagement Manager- US(Remote) at Stripe. Apply

💼 Community Manager- US(Remote) at Wiz. Apply

💼 Community Manager- US(Remote) at Karbon. Apply

💼 Community Manager- US(In-Office) at Launch. Apply

💼 Community Manager- US(In-Office) at System. Apply

💼 Community & Events Lead- US(Remote) at Quo. Apply

💼 Community Intern - Winter/Spring 2026- US(Remote) at Bubble. Apply

💼 Community Strategist III- US(In-Office) at Riot Games. Apply

💼 Online Community Manager- US(In-Office) at BAE Systems. Apply

💼 Ecosystem Activations- US(Remote) at Monad Foundation. Apply

💼 Program Manager, Community Content and Events- US(In-Office) at Datadog. Apply

💼 Community Enablement Lead- US(Remote) at Stripe. Apply

💼 Content & Community Marketing Associate- US(Remote) at Airtop. Apply

💼 Community Manager- US (In-Office) at Yelp. Apply

💼 Digital Community Manager- US(Remote) at Shopify. Apply

💼 Community Organizer- US(Remote) at Oregon Natural Desert Association. Apply

💼 Community Manager, Digital Spaghetti- US(Remote) at Patreon. Apply

💼 Soapbox Portland Community Lead- US(Remote) at Soapbox Project. Apply

💼 Senior Manager, Content Marketing & Community- US(Remote) at Zocks. Apply

💼 Head of Community & Events- US(Remote) at Checkmate. Apply

💼 Customer Marketing Manager- US(Hybrid) at Lovable. Apply

💼 Community Support Specialist- US(Remote) at Figma. Apply

💼 Community Impact Program Manager- US(In-Office) at Columbia Sportswear Company. Apply

💼 Marketing & Community Manager- US(Remote) at Three Trees. Apply

💼 Payment Advisors Community Lead - Global Alliances and Channels- US(Hybrid) at Stripe. Apply

💼 Platform Network Manager- US(In-Office) at Visible Hands. Apply

💼 Community Impact Program Manager- US(Remote) at Cribl. Apply

Canada & Remote

💼 Program Manager, Thought Leadership– Canada(Remote) at YPO. Apply

💼 Community & Discord Manager– Canada(Hybrid) at Pearl West. Apply

💼 Community Insights Manager– Canada(Hybrid) at Electronic Arts. Apply

💼 Program & Community Coordinator– Canada(In-Office) at League of Innovators Accelerator. Apply

💼 Community Insights Manager– Canada(Hybrid) at Electronic Arts. Apply

💼 Community & Discord Manager– Canada(Hybrid) at Pearl West. Apply

💼 Customer Marketing Associate– Canada(Remote) at HighlightTA. Apply

Europe & UK & Remote

💼 Creator Partnerships Manager- UK(Hybrid) at Dizplai. Apply

💼 Community Manager - Portugal(In-Office) at Novo Nordisk. Apply

💼 Senior Advocacy Manager- UK(Hybrid) at HiBob. Apply

💼 Community Manager- UK(Hybrid) at Vidsy. Apply

💼 Community Manager- France(In-Office) at Madbox. Apply

💼 Program Manager, Outreach & Audiences- UK (Remote) at OpenAI. Apply

💼 AI Community Manager- France (Remote) at Solina. Apply

💼 Discord Community Manager- Croatia (Remote) at Millionaire Commerce. Apply

💼 Community Director, LF Energy- Germany (In-Office) at The Linux Foundation. Apply

💼 Junior Community Manager - UK (In-Office) at Warner Music Group. Apply

💼 Community Lead, Research- UK (Remote) at Prolific. Apply

💼 Community Support Specialist- UK (Remote) at Figma. Apply

💼 Community Developer- France (Hybrid) at Ubisoft. Apply

Australia & Asia & Remote

💼  App Creator Community Manager- Israel (Remote) at Overwolf. Apply

💼 Director, Customer Advocacy- Africa (In-Office) at GitLab. Apply

💼 Community Manager -India (Hybrid) at WorkWall - A Global Tech Marketplace. Apply

💼 Student Communications & Engagement Lead - India (Remote) at University of the People. Apply

Jobs in other locations

💼 Community Operations & Project Manager- Global(Remote) at Bellingcat. Apply

📅 The Global Events Calendar

🗓️ Feb 11th, Turning Members into Storytellers: Unlocking the Power of Peer-Led Content with Beth Saunders. Save your spot

🗓️ Feb 25th, Build a Thriving Membership Community in 2026 with Tom Ross. Save your spot

🗓️ Mar 11th, Scaling Community Relationships at Squarespace with Sarah Greisdorf. Save your spot

🗓️ July 07th, London Community Week 2026 (July 7th - 10th, 2026 ). Save your spot