Why We Chose Circle for Our Internal Community
As GlobalAssist grows, we face new challenges that come with a fully remote, international team. One of the biggest was keeping track of who is in the team, where they're based, and how we can best stay connected and learn from each other. We also needed an easy-to-use platform where team members could manage their own profiles, share updates, and support our growing community work online.
We considered building a custom team directory on WordPress, but quickly realized the admin overhead would be too much. We wanted something that would allow team members to maintain their own profiles and support us in our efforts to stay aligned and connected. After evaluating various tools, we discovered Circle—and it checked all our boxes.
From Google Sheets to a Community Feed
Our community managers have been actively contributing to discussions across the internet. We were tracking all these efforts in Google Sheets, but it became increasingly difficult to follow and engage with updates. We needed a centralized, interactive feed where contributions could be posted, discussed, and celebrated. Circle offered just that.
It felt like a clean and modern solution—no need for heavy customization or manual setup. Just a few clicks, and we had a full internal platform that looks good, feels simple, and empowers the team to collaborate better.
Beyond Communication: Courses and Learning
We already had a WordPress-based training hub for onboarding and learning materials, but Circle offers built-in support for courses and even quizzes. This gives us a cleaner and more cohesive environment to teach best practices and onboard new teammates.
Currently, we use ClassMarker for quizzes—mainly for applicant testing—but we’re considering Circle for team-related quizzes in the future. Keeping everything in one place just makes sense.
Keeping Chats Simple
Circle also provides direct messaging and group chat options, but for now, we’re sticking with WhatsApp. It’s already deeply integrated into our daily work, and introducing a second chat system might do more harm than good. We believe in keeping things simple and focused.
How We Use Circle Today
- Team Directory: Everyone can create their own profile, sharing who they are, where they come from, why they joined, and what they’re passionate about. This helps humanize the team and connect people across borders.
- Contact Sharing: Each profile includes contact details and social media links, so team members can find and reach each other quickly and easily—even based on location or expertise.
- Community Posts: Our booking managers now post about their online community engagement efforts. These contributions are visible to others, sparking feedback and ideas, and helping everyone improve their community-building skills.
- Courses: We've started with a single onboarding course, but more are coming. We aim to cover various aspects of our work so we can share knowledge across the team and grow together.
Reflections on Circle as a Tool
So far, Circle has proven to be a simple and effective addition to our tech stack. It looks good, it works well, and it solves multiple problems in one platform. We're surprised more companies don’t use it for their internal teams—it’s often marketed for customer communities—but for a remote-first team like ours, it’s ideal.
Adoption is still in progress. Not everyone has signed up yet, but that’s normal with new tools. We’re confident it will become a central part of our daily work, because it makes life easier, smoother, and more connected.
Community Management: A New Chapter
Our booking managers have embraced their roles as community managers faster than expected. We occasionally remind them that it’s not about self-promotion, but about providing genuine help. By doing so, our reputation grows naturally—and sometimes, people do ask for our services directly, which is when it makes perfect sense to step in.
An unexpected benefit of our community work is real-time monitoring. We sometimes discover discussions about our brands and can jump in with helpful responses. Even better, we can involve our real clients in those discussions, offering firsthand experiences to potential new clients.
What This Means for Our Mission
Circle isn’t just a tool for us—it’s a catalyst for growth. By helping our team connect, share, and learn, we’re better equipped to deliver amazing services and support tourism growth in Africa. We want to empower local suppliers, boost GDPs, strengthen local currencies, and make African destinations more visible and trusted in the global travel market.
It’s a step toward a future where tourism becomes a force for good—bridging cultures, reducing inequality, and improving life for everyone involved.
