Smoke signals, carrier pigeons, Dilbert-style meetings, web meetings, virtual worlds, mobile, face-to-face meetings. It would seem that what once was old is new again. More precisely, I should say that the desire to connect with kindred spirits seems never to have waned. What do I base this upon? Recently, a few clients of mine expressed a desire to meet with others interested in KM, from other organizations, in their geographic area. So in other words, in this always-on always-connected world, they still want to sit and chat with others in person—go figure!

Now of course, that may just be a single data point (as they say), but it did get me thinking about the other face-to-face KM groups I’ve come across in my travels—so there really are more data points to be had. The ones I’m familiar with include some which are geographically undesirable for me, but at the same time I’m only listing them—not endorsing them. Still, I like the idea of local KM groups, so I don’t mind giving them a shout out. Of course, today a group whose primary means of meeting  is in person often has a secondary way of connecting—electronically.

In no particular order then, the groups I know of include:

•    KM Chicago, which not only conducts monthly face-to-face gatherings but also includes a webinar element in those meetings
•    Midwest KM, which is based out of southeast Michigan (no weblink, but you can contact them through [email protected])
•    GovLoop which has an occasional face-to-face in the Washington DC area, but is more often an electronic space
•    KM Atlanta, which I understand is just getting started
•    Boston KM Forum, which hosts a number of event types

All which brings me back to the original thought for this post: anyone in the greater Pittsburgh area interested in joining or creating such a local group? I know of a couple of organizations already interested in connecting. Who can I add to the list?

P.S. While I’m thinking of it, there was a small but hearty band of folks in Cleveland that attempted to create a local group there. I wonder if the time has come to resurrect it?