How long should a community take to get going?

Community formation takes time, but the time it takes for a community to become fully operational varies a lot from case to case. Some communities are so ready to exist that they congeal as soon as members have an opportunity to start learning together. Members can see the value of connecting with each other even before they start. Other communities begin much more tentatively. Members have to experience the value of learning together over and over before they are ready to make a commitment. But in general, one could expect a community to really get going and produce value within months and become mature in less than a year.