Bug#830344: How should the TC help with a project roadmap?

[Ian Jackson <ijackson@chiark.greenend.org.uk>]

Sam Hartman writes ("Re: Bug#830344: How should the TC help with a project roadmap?"):
> However, I'm struck by the following even if I don't entirely know what
> to make of it.
> 
>     Ian>  * To be accessible and approachable, and not judgemental.
> 
>     Ian>  * To have the communication and technical skills to help
>     Ian> someone with an idea produce clear and cogent explanations.
> 
>     Ian>  * To have high status and high visibility, so that when they
>     Ian> introduce someone driving a project to stakeholders, they get
>     Ian> airtime.
> 
>     Ian>  * Ideally to contain people with few enemies.
> 
>     Ian>  * To be dynamic and novelty-oriented.
> 
> I'll note that with the exception of the last bullet point, that's
> fairly close to what I'd hope to see out of a TC.
> The last bullet point may well be important in this context.

Well, not _all_ of the bullet points above are things that the TC is
(or could be) bad at.

But, in increasing order of likely controversy:

 * By my comments about "judgemental" I meant that a "helping people
   get their ideas done" team ought to try to avoid making technical
   judgements, especially adverse ones, about those ideas.

   However, making technical judgements is the key function of the TC,
   and making them early, tentatively and informally is very valuable
   in the TC context.  In the context of a "new ideas enabling" team,
   early technical judgement (even if tentative and informal) risks
   sapping energy.

 * It is inevitable that people are often unhappy with TC decisions.
   It is natural that TC members will tend to accumulate, if not
   actual "enemies", people who have serious qualms about their
   judgement.

   We can hope that usually people who are pleased by TC decisions are
   more numerous, but in the context of an "idea enablement" team, it
   is much more important that stakeholders don't have an initially
   negative view of the team members.

 * I think that the TC should have a bias towards being conservative,
   when resolving disputes (which is its primary function).

Thanks,
Ian.


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