Connecting people in communities.
This is how we create
Hi, I am Zuzana, a community consultant and builder.
I believe communities are magical. They are the future superpower, greatest competitive advantage, engine of innovation, and key to resilience and joy.
Yes, communities feel magical, but they don’t come together by magic.
Every community takes planning, long-term effort and love.
This is where I can come in and use my 20+ years of experience to co-create or grow your community..
I am passionate about belonging - creating a deep sense of connection, trust, and shared purpose so that people are inspired to learn from each other and co-operate.
I also enjoy organizing events, making them deeply satisfying, engaging, and meaningful experiences, and developing business rituals.
4 years ago I founded Beelong Community and Networking, a community of Slovak professional women that changed my life so much for the better. Since then I have been helping other communities to develop and flourish.
Imagine that...
… your brand is becoming an integral part of your customers‘ lives. They advise each other, help innovate and market your product, and eagerly organise gatherings. I will help you create your unique BRAND/CUSTOMER community→
Brand / Customer communities→
…you are a solo entrepreneur looking for a peer group for collective wisdom, idea iteration, mutual learning, energy and accountability. You could benefit from a learning community, a community of practice or an ecosystem→
Communities of interest & practise→
…your employees want to work, feel valued, heard, and contribute to the future of the company. Collaboration thrives, ideas blossom, work becomes meaningful. They work as if it were their own company. I will help you create ERGs (Employee resources groups)→
In my work, I combine my personal experience of co-creating my communities and my clients‘ communities with my studies, observations, coaching practice, and more than 28 years of professional experience in various fields. I also draw on the community building method of Scott Peck and Edward Groody and many other community building professionals.
I believe that each person’s experience with communities is unique, not transferable, but can be broken down into some positive experiences that can then be reinforced with community building methods and meaningful events. So I share what I believe.
Communities have changed my life and I believe they can change the life of anyone who makes the big choice to be a part of them.
My approach
I believe that every community needs to have a clear purpose and give members something they can’t get elsewhere that is relevant to their lives (e.g., benefits, skills, information, impact).
But most importantly, the community has to satisfy them on a deep, human level.
The principles of my work are:
Relationships first (and always)
Combining vision, intuition, and hard data (primary and secondary research, evidence-based recommendations)
Long-term, consistent effort before shortcuts
Alignment of community and business goals
Clear methodology, but always check the purpose although it should be written here that purpose can evolve and clarity only comes from action
A 12-step model I have developed
Acceptance of differences, respect and psycho- sociological safety
Clients
My typical clients are:
Founders, entrepreneurs and startups who want to build and scale their community because they believe communities can help them innovate their products and drive revenue.
Brand managers who want to make their brand into a love brand that no one can copy.
Community managers who want to take a fresh look at their community, usually increase connection, activity, revenue, and impact.
HR managers who want to create a sense of belonging and well-being in the workplace. Or who need to create ERGs as part of their DEI initiatives and want to get it right.
Ecosystems that want to use the community to share knowledge and resources and benefit from collective wisdom.
References
Zuzana finally brought order and a system of community building to our DO NAHA business community. We even had her as a special guest at a meeting and finally, all of us entrepreneurs understood what a superpower communities can be.
Zuzana is probably the most energetic woman in business I know. Her presence alone moves our community and brings a subtle feminine element to it. We implemented at least 10 of her suggestions right away. The biggest AHA moment for me and all the core members was when she gave us a short workshop to get answers to the fundamental questions. Learning about our values and needs was like a reawakening for us, and I think that was the moment we started to see ourselves as a real community.
Commission me!
I am so looking forward to hearing from you!
Zuzana Gergeľová
based in Bratislava, Slovakia
eager to work internationally
