Community Manager versus Advocate

One of the new professions that the new “always-on” world has given birth is the Community Manager. Some wonder if this is indeed a real job, but believe me, not only it is a real job, but is also one that is taking impetus and is becoming a key position in any corporation that values its future.

Jeremiah Owyang, an Industry Analyst form Altimeter Group and formerly from Forrester Research, has been an evangelist of this position and he defined what The Four Tenets of the Community Manager are. In brief, these
are the tenets, and you can look deeper into those at his excellent blog post here.

1. A Community Advocate
2. Brand Evangelist
3. Savvy Communications Skills, Shapes Editorial
4. Gathers Community Input for Future Product and Services

My point in this post relates only to the first tenet, A Community Advocate. According to Jeremiah, the Community Manager represents the customer, and this is his primary role as a community advocate. My question, then, is how does a community manager conciliates the best interest of the community with the best interest of his employer? If faced with this, how does he or she deal with it?

Following from this first question, where do being an advocate for the community and being a brand evangelist may clash or come together? What is their first and foremost passion? The community or the brand they represent?

I would love to hear from you.