Degenerative structures that inhibit the emergence of communities of practice: a case study of knowledge management in the British Council

.  This paper presents the British Council’s knowledge management strategy. It outlines how, as part of this strategy, the organization attempted to engender communities of practice among a strategically significant group spread across the 110 countries in which the organization operates. Using a case study of this group, the paper explores ‘degenerative structures’ that impact on the ability to engender communities of practice and, through consideration of issues of individualization and risk, highlights a series of paradoxes that inhibited this organization’s attempt to move from a ‘hub‐and‐spoke’ structure to become a networked organization in which communities of practice flourish.