Re: Q to all candidates: about advancing Debian (as organisation) while not being DPL
* Laura Arjona Reina <larjona@debian.org> [2019-03-29 14:23]:
> There are some teams in Debian that focus in areas similar to the
> DPL tasks and allow people to make a difference in the project
> working on them, without the need - and the burden? or the
> satisfaction? - of being a DPL.
> What are your views on this?
I think that's a very good question and one that I'm struggling with.
I've been working on putting together a list of things I'd like to do,
but a lot of them could actually be done by existing teams. So 1) why
don't I just join these teams, and 2) what additional value would I
provide as DPL (that I couldn't provide by joining the team without
being DPL). [ Having said that, the next step of compiling a list of
tasks is identifying who can do them; it doesn't have to be me in all
cases... sometimes you just need to ask someone or delegate. ]
I'm still trying to figure out what the right balance is. However, I
believe the DPL can in some cases give more "leverage" to these teams,
for example by opening doors. Some companies might be more likely
to respond to the project leader than a partners team (but that
doesn't mean the DPL would have to do all the work; they could open
the door to introduce the partners team). Same with publicity/press
where the DPL should obviously work in close cooperationg on the
overall communication strategy and in finding opportunities to engage.
frontdesk, MIA: I don't see much conflicting overlap with the DPL
there.
Events: obviously the DPL will attend events, but no DPL can attend
all events so again this is an opportunity to bring other people in
(I previously mentioned our "speakers" page, which needs some attention).
Treasury: the DPL can emphasize the importance of getting financial
reports out, e.g. by recruiting more volunteers to the team and
putting more pressure on TOs to supply the data needed.
So, to summarize, I agree with the challenges you describe. I am not
100% sure how I would approach them in practice in all cases, but
overall I'd try to work closely with existing teams instead of going
on my own, give direction and open doors. ("Give direction" shouldn't
sound too top-down here; obviously the teams have more experience in
theirs areas than the DPL in many cases and the DPL should listen
closely to what they say; but obviously every DPL also brings along a
vision for the project and that may influence some priorities of
teams.)
It would be interesting to hear what previous DPLs have done that
worked for the various teams and what made them feel less motivated
(without going into details on who the DPL was).
--
Martin Michlmayr
https://www.cyrius.com/
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