I’m writing this post to discuss some much-needed changes to the way the ClassicPress project is governed and managed. These proposed changes have two main goals:
- Ensure that we are always making regular, publicly visible progress towards developing our roadmap and helping ClassicPress grow and evolve.
- Align our documented governance structure with the way ClassicPress is actually getting things done today.
Management Committee
The Management Committee has not met since January of this year, and there is at least one significant task that is still outstanding from that meeting (was agreed upon but not fully executed).
So far the stated purpose of the Committee has been to ensure that ClassicPress continues to operate smoothly (loosely described, more formal language is available here).
I am not sure if the Committee has any outstanding business at this time that requires a meeting. If so, we should have that meeting and then ensure that we continue having regular meetings after that. If not, then we should consider dissolving the Committee and having the Directors formally take responsibility for overseeing the strategy and progress of the project and its various Teams.
Dissolving the Committee is my preferred option at this time. Michelle, Wade and myself would stay on as Directors, and the Teams would also stay as currently structured. This change would take effect on January 1, 2021, i.e. the 2020 Committee would serve the full term as elected by the community. After that, the Directors would collaborate with the Team Leads to handle the duties that the Committee was previously tasked with. I think of this as a simplification of our organizational structure that better reflects the reality of how ClassicPress actually gets things done today.
After this change, we would end up in a similar place to a previous suggestion by @anon95694377:
with respect to the committee there isn’t (or I can’t easily see) a visible, dare I say charismatic, leader. Every major software project needs a figurehead or personality…
However, I think having the three of us (Wade, Michelle and myself) assume this role together is a much better solution than having a single person make all of the decisions. If you all see this suggestion as viable then I would be happy to write a bit more about the measures we’ve already taken to ensure that we always put the needs and goals of ClassicPress users first.
Team Leads
I’d also like for us to officially set the expectation that all Team Leads should participate in regular update threads on the forums like we have in June, July and September. I think we should be making these threads approximately every 2 months, if not every month as we continue growing and building.
The goal of these threads is again to show regular, publicly-visible progress, for our community as well as for people looking in from the outside. Over time these threads should also serve as a clear, easily-readable archive of what the project has been working on, which has been something we’ve wanted before but haven’t really achieved yet. We will also be able to use this “high-level activity log” to summarize and promote our progress on the blog and other marketing channels.
As part of this change, Team Leads that are not making regular progress in their areas should be personally asked to do so, or to make way for another person to lead the team if that’s not possible.
Feedback
These are pretty important decisions and I don’t want us to make them without feedback from our community. Please reply below and let me know what you think