From members to co-owners: Building communities everyone truly belongs to with Francisco Opazo
Communities aren’t built for spectators—they’re built with collaborators.
In this session, we’ll explore shifting from managing members to empowering co-owners, unlocking trust, engagement, and long-term sustainability. You’ll learn how to create clear systems for shared leadership, identify and support emerging member-leaders, and avoid the chaos that can come with decentralisation.
Whether you’re leading a niche group or scaling a global network, this session will give you the mindset, tools, and structures to make your community feel owned by all—without losing direction.
About the Speaker
Francisco Opazo is a veteran community strategist and growth marketer and the founder of Led by Community, a global initiative that empowers community builders through events, courses, and peer-to-peer support.
With over 14 years of experience working with high-growth startups like Circle, Bettermode, and BuddyBoss, Francisco specialises in community-led growth and building ecosystems that scale with people, not just tools.
He’s organising Community Week and the Community-led World Summit, bringing together thousands of professionals around shared learning and genuine collaboration.
Francisco believes the future of community lies in co-ownership, shared leadership, and designing with—not just for—members. His talks blend practical frameworks, lived experience, and a dash of humour to challenge how we build and lead communities today.
Key Takeaways:
🟠 Why psychological ownership drives engagement
Help members see the space as theirs, not just yours. This shift fuels participation, advocacy, and accountability.
🟠 The difference between contribution and co-ownership
Posting in a thread is participation. Leading a program or decision is ownership. Learn how to bridge that gap.
🟠 Creating clarity without hierarchy
Structure enables freedom. We’ll explore how to define roles, expectations, and boundaries while staying flexible.
🟠 Recognising and supporting emerging leaders
Not everyone raises their hand—but some are already leading. Learn how to spot, support, and elevate them.
🟠 Designing systems for shared decision-making
You don’t need to decide everything alone. We’ll look at advisory boards, working groups, and democratic processes that scale.
🟠 Avoiding power vacuums and burnout
Shared leadership doesn’t mean neglect. Learn how to maintain momentum without stretching yourself or others too thin.
🟠 Using rituals and systems to maintain ownership over time
It’s one thing to co-create a launch, but how do you make shared ownership part of the culture long-term?
🟠 Tools that support co-ownership
From onboarding flows to program templates, we’ll review what actually helps members lead with confidence.
🟠 Celebrating contributions meaningfully
Recognition must go beyond badges. We’ll look at public praise, spotlighting, and even co-authoring community decisions.
Event Date/Time:
🗓️ Wednesday, 30 April 2025
🕥 11:00 AM EST (Eastern Time - US & Canada)
This event is part of the Talks & Pros Series from Led by Community, hosted by Francisco Opazo. This is brought to you by Bettermode, an advanced community platform that empowers your community to thrive through innovative templates and unlimited content capabilities for meaningful engagement and growth.