Welcome to The People Behind the Programs, a blog series celebrating the voices, stories, and impact of the community professionals powering connection and belonging across the globe.

Today, we meet Tarun Gupta, Founder, CTO, Growth Catalyst Leader, and Community Builder at Vivaansh Consulting in Delhi, India. Tarun’s path into the community industry was serendipitous, driven by a natural passion for connecting people and solving problems collectively. These elements have shaped his journey and purpose. Let’s hear his story in his own words.

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How It Started

I didn’t initially set out to work in the community industry—it started with my passion for connecting people and solving problems together. My journey into the community industry started by attending events across Salesforce, Slack, MongoDB, Google Developers, and Startup communities. That’s when I truly realized how much communities matter—not just for networking, but for creating impact and belonging.

What began with attending events soon turned into speaking opportunities, where I shared my own experiences and insights. Those moments of giving back fueled my passion even more and eventually led me into leadership roles, including leading a CMX Connect chapter, Salesforce, Slack, and Tableau communities.

These roles helped me understand the deeper value of building authentic connections, driving collaboration, and sustaining engagement at scale. Over time, this passion gave me the confidence to take it further. I started my own consulting company, Vivaansh Consulting, where I help organizations build and strengthen their internal communities. I advise leadership teams, train internal community builders, and guide them in maintaining culture across different clusters. So far, I’ve had the privilege of working with more than 10 organizations, and I continue to support several communities through strategy and ongoing direction.

Looking back, my path into the community industry wasn’t planned—it was fueled by curiosity, passion, and a willingness to step up whenever I saw an opportunity to connect and create impact. Today, I see myself as both a connector and a catalyst, helping individuals grow while ensuring communities—whether external or internal—truly thrive.

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A Day in the Life

In my current role, I wear multiple hats as both a community leader and a consultant. On one side, I actively lead and contribute to communities like CMX, Salesforce, Slack, and Tableau, where I focus on creating spaces for meaningful engagement, knowledge sharing, and collaboration. On the other side, I run my own consulting company, where I help organizations build and scale their internal communities. This involves advising leadership teams, training internal community builders, and guiding them to sustain culture and engagement across different clusters of their organizations.

A typical day for me is a mix of strategy and execution. I usually start by reviewing community activities—checking ongoing conversations, event updates, and member engagement trends. I then spend time connecting with community leaders, either mentoring them or brainstorming new initiatives that can add value. Midday is often dedicated to my consulting projects, where I work closely with clients to design frameworks, create playbooks, or run workshops that empower their teams to strengthen internal communities.

Later in the day, I often engage in external collaborations—whether it’s preparing for upcoming events, working on speaker sessions, or networking with fellow community professionals. I also carve out time for content creation, as sharing insights and experiences through blogs, talks, or posts is an important part of my role in inspiring others. No two days are exactly alike, but what ties them together is the purpose of enabling connection, fostering growth, and helping communities thrive—whether they are external ecosystems or internal networks within organizations.

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‍The Tools that Power My Work

My go-to tools for community building are Slack, WhatsApp, and Notion. Each of them plays a unique role in creating and sustaining engagement.

Slack and WhatsApp are powerful for real-time conversations, knowledge sharing, and collaboration. Slack allows communities to organize into channels based on interests or focus areas, making discussions easy to navigate and helping members feel connected. WhatsApp, on the other hand, provides instant accessibility and informal engagement, which works especially well for quick updates, event reminders, and keeping the community energy alive on the go.

For me, the real power of Slack lies in its ability to balance engagement with culture. Features like integrations, workflows, and automation help scale community management without losing the personal touch. WhatsApp complements this by fostering immediacy and closeness in communication.

I also rely on Notion for documentation, knowledge hubs, and event planning. It helps create a structured space where members can access resources anytime and keeps the community organized beyond just conversations. For hosting meetups, I often use Zoom or Bevy, while my CMX Connect local community in Delhi; also lives on Bevy.

Ultimately, it’s less about the platform and more about how you use it. Tools like Slack, WhatsApp, and Notion give you the structure, but the real magic of community building comes from the trust, empathy, and meaningful experiences you create within them.

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Advice for Newcomers

If you’re just starting out in the community industry, my biggest advice is to focus on people over platforms. Tools and strategies are important, but what really makes a community thrive is empathy, listening, and the ability to create a sense of belonging. Spend time understanding your members—what excites them, what challenges they face, and how the community can truly add value to their journey.

For those venturing into the industry, I also recommend immersing yourself in as many different communities as possible. Engage with them, observe how you feel, and note what is effective or inspiring. Each community has its own rhythm, and experiencing this variety will help clarify your values, refine your approach, and guide your professional goals. Remember—there’s no one-size-fits-all in community work. What succeeds in one space might not fit another, and that’s okay.

I wish I had known earlier that community building isn’t about doing everything yourself. The most sustainable communities are the ones where members step up as leaders, contributors, and advocates. Don’t be afraid to delegate, co-create, and allow members to take ownership—it builds both trust and engagement.

Another lesson is to be patient. Communities take time to grow. At first, it might feel like your efforts aren’t showing results, but every conversation, event, and connection lays a foundation for long-term impact.

My encouragement to newcomers: start small, celebrate every win, and never underestimate the ripple effect of your efforts. Even if you impact just one person meaningfully, that’s the seed of a strong community. Lead with authenticity, curiosity, and consistency. If you do, you’ll not only build thriving communities—you’ll also grow immensely as a person and a leader.

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Resources I Suggest

There are a few resources that I always recommend to new community builders because they combine both practical strategies and inspiring stories. For books, The Business of Belonging by David Spinks is a must-read. It explains not just the ‘how’ but also the ‘why’ of community building—tying engagement directly to business and impact. Another great one is Get Together by Bailey Richardson, which focuses on real-life stories of communities and how they grow authentically.

On the podcast side, I’d recommend Masters of Community by David Spinks. It brings in leaders from across industries to share their experiences, challenges, and frameworks for building thriving communities. Each episode feels like a mini-masterclass.

For ongoing learning, I’d also point to resources like CMX Hub, the Community Club, and the Community Roundtable. They offer playbooks, templates, and networking opportunities with other community professionals—helpful whether you’re just starting or scaling a program.

But beyond formal resources, one of the best ways to learn is by participating in communities yourself. Join a few, observe what works, and take note of how you feel as a member. Experiencing community from the inside is one of the most valuable resources you can give yourself.

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💬 Let’s connect on LinkedIn — I’d love to hear from fellow community builders.

💡 The People Behind the Programs is a blog series that shines a light on the community professionals powering impactful programs around the world. Want to share your story or nominate someone doing incredible community work? Submit your spotlight here.