The Community Collective is about to close applications for its eighth cohort, which will bring in speakers from Google, IBM Canada, Canva, and TEDxMelbourne, in what founder Paz Pisarski describes as the program’s most ambitious intake to date.
The eight-week program targets founders, marketers, and ecosystem leaders seeking to build communities that drive business growth. It combines live sessions with global practitioners, practical frameworks, and real-time case studies — positioning itself explicitly against theory-heavy alternatives.
“These are the people behind the scenes at Google, IBM, Canva and TEDx — the ones actually building and scaling communities globally,” Pisarski said. “Our members aren’t learning theory. They’re learning what’s working right now.”
From grassroots meetup to global movement
The Community Collective was co-founded by Pisarski alongside Melia Rayner of Blackbird Ventures and Jaala Alex of Thriday, and has grown from an original meetup at The Commons in Cremorne into a community of more than 17,800 members across 18 countries. The program has supported more than 350 companies in launching and growing engaged communities, and its cohort model has maintained an average Net Promoter Score above 80.
Past speakers have included Seth Godin, Steph Claire Smith, Laura Henshaw, and Derek Sivers.
Cohort 8 speaker lineup
The confirmed speaker list includes:
- Kelsey Robb from Google
- Nicholas Renotte from IBM
- Yana Belova from Canva
- Jon Yeo from TEDxMelbourne
- Madeleine Hanger from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- Taylor Harrington from Dreamers & Doers
- Joel McKerrow from Penguin Random House
- Areej AbuAli from Women in Tech SEO
- Tim Duggan from the Digital Publishers Alliance
- Abbey Pantano from The Impact Collab x One Roof
“Community is no longer a ‘nice to have’ — it’s a core growth strategy,” Pisarski said. “But more importantly, people join for the network. The relationships, collaborations and opportunities that come out of each cohort are what make this program so powerful.”Applications close today. Apply at thecommunitycollective.co/cohort.
