Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
From: Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org Subject: New "treasurers" mailing list Date: November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST To: "internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Allow me to introduce myself,
My name is Mulwardi Tjitra, easier to be called "Moel" as nick-name. I was on my break of office-routine when WMID was looking for a Project admnistrator. Being an active editor at id.wiki, I am easily "hook" for the position which then lead as treasurer.
With WMID, I learn a lot regarding "NGO's accounting transparencies" as I do not have any experience on non-profit thingy.
The more I "play" with the platform [MediaWiki] for accounting reports etc.. I learn the importance of having a transparent financial information [perhaps not 100% due to certain sensitive information etc - though this should be reconsider]
When Stu mentioned about the "treasurer-list", I am so happy .. knowing or hoping that I would learn much more about how other chapters do their financial reports .. and the possibilities of having a shared information about it. Of course, I am looking forward to meet other in person for a beer [or two] when the chance permits me for next-year Wikimania.
I also hope that with this list, we could share various idea towars [as what Stu has mentioned] "Best practices around governance/transparency in the movement" ..
Cheers,
Moel
On 10/12/11 9:20 0, Stuart West wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
*From: *Stuart West <stu@wikimedia.org mailto:stu@wikimedia.org> *Subject: **New "treasurers" mailing list* *Date: *November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST *To: *"internal-l" <internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org mailto:internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org mailto:treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org mailto:stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
I'm Theo.
I have been an editor and contributor to the projects for 3 years. I have no affiliation with any chapter in particular. I have been involved in policy and governance related issues for the past 2 year with WMF. I started contributing to the WMF strategic plan in '09 focusing primarily on Financial sustainability, it was one area I always thought I could have something to contribute. At the time, I was concerned about the projects not being around in the next few years or decade if we didn't have a sustainable model. My personal solution at the time was an endowment fund.
I am a finance geek, my business background is strictly from a for-profit perspective. I grew up reading about junk bonds, leverage buy-outs, arbitrages while dealing in currency and commodity exchanges. I spent most of my teenage years studying balance sheets of large companies while working for an investment fund and negotiating international contracts. I have dealt and negotiated with suppliers and clients from Hong kong, Singapore, UK to Riyadh, Qatar, UAE and Nigeria.
I hope I can offer some advice and partake in discussion related to finances, and generally be of some help to treasurers.
Regards Theo
On Sat, Dec 10, 2011 at 5:21 PM, Moel moel.tj@gmail.com wrote:
Allow me to introduce myself,
My name is Mulwardi Tjitra, easier to be called "Moel" as nick-name. I was on my break of office-routine when WMID was looking for a Project admnistrator. Being an active editor at id.wiki, I am easily "hook" for the position which then lead as treasurer.
With WMID, I learn a lot regarding "NGO's accounting transparencies" as I do not have any experience on non-profit thingy.
The more I "play" with the platform [MediaWiki] for accounting reports etc.. I learn the importance of having a transparent financial information [perhaps not 100% due to certain sensitive information etc - though this should be reconsider]
When Stu mentioned about the "treasurer-list", I am so happy .. knowing or hoping that I would learn much more about how other chapters do their financial reports .. and the possibilities of having a shared information about it. Of course, I am looking forward to meet other in person for a beer [or two] when the chance permits me for next-year Wikimania.
I also hope that with this list, we could share various idea towars [as what Stu has mentioned] "Best practices around governance/transparency in the movement" ..
Cheers,
Moel
On 10/12/11 9:20 0, Stuart West wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
*From: *Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org *Subject: **New "treasurers" mailing list* *Date: *November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST *To: *"internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing listTreasurers@lists.wikimedia.orghttps://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
I would feel more comfortable with this very specific list, if all those who have signed up, give their real name and more informations on their background ... and I immedialtly put what I said into practice.
My name is Thierry Coudray. I'm a contributor on Wikipedia in French since 2005, member of Wikimedia France since 2007, Wikimedia France board member since March 2010 and volunteer treasurer of the French Chapter since august 2010.
I've no specific background in finances or accountings (I've studied logistics and human ressources), I've worked as an executive for 12 years in an international long term rental car company, in logistics, purchases and at the end, operational risks management. At this last position, I was in charge of the respect of some accountability aspects of the French subsidiary (quite formative for a Latin to complain to Dutch rules :)). I worked after in freelance for a small electric car company until last february and others freelance activities. My involment in Wikimedia makes some of my relatives thinking its my full time job :).
I've learned a lot about charities accountings, * *regulatory framework of associative tax policy and accountabiliy this last year as WMFr had to compliance its accountings with French standards for charities which call for publics donations (quite binding despite our small size with audited accountings and accomptability, specific financial reports for donators, detailled and certified financial reports, etc.) and as Wikimedia France has recruited its first employee last year. Figures : In 2011 Wikimedia France has a budget about 250 000 €, 4 employees and 300 members.
Thierry
2011/12/10 Moel moel.tj@gmail.com
Allow me to introduce myself,
My name is Mulwardi Tjitra, easier to be called "Moel" as nick-name. I was on my break of office-routine when WMID was looking for a Project admnistrator. Being an active editor at id.wiki, I am easily "hook" for the position which then lead as treasurer.
With WMID, I learn a lot regarding "NGO's accounting transparencies" as I do not have any experience on non-profit thingy.
The more I "play" with the platform [MediaWiki] for accounting reports etc.. I learn the importance of having a transparent financial information [perhaps not 100% due to certain sensitive information etc - though this should be reconsider]
When Stu mentioned about the "treasurer-list", I am so happy .. knowing or hoping that I would learn much more about how other chapters do their financial reports .. and the possibilities of having a shared information about it. Of course, I am looking forward to meet other in person for a beer [or two] when the chance permits me for next-year Wikimania.
I also hope that with this list, we could share various idea towars [as what Stu has mentioned] "Best practices around governance/transparency in the movement" ..
Cheers,
Moel
On 10/12/11 9:20 0, Stuart West wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
*From: *Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org *Subject: **New "treasurers" mailing list* *Date: *November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST *To: *"internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing listTreasurers@lists.wikimedia.orghttps://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
My Name is Tomer Ashur (תומר אשור) in Hebrew.
I've been an editor on he.wiki since 2008, a member of Wikimedia Israel since 2009, a member of its board and its treasurer since 2010 and its chairman since 2011. I was also part of the core team of Wikimania 2011, in charge of the time resources and logistics management.
I was a captain in medics corps of the Israel Defence forces and was stationed at various positions. The last of which was the head of IT branch of the military school of medicine. I completed a Bsc in Computer Science and management at the open university of Israel.
After I left the army I joined an international Tel-Aviv based data-security start up company, built its support team and worked as its support manager and senior pre-sale engineer. I was the CIO of a healthcare company and worked as an implementation project manager for a delivery company.
Today, I'm a graduate student and a teaching assistance at the university of Haifa. My field of study is cryptography (Specifically, I'm trying to break ciphers and other cryptographic systems).
I'm interested in governance from the managerial side. That is: How can we build a sustainable, fully functional multinational operation with checks and balances toward all stakeholders that is actually working. That is not an easy thing but suspect it is possible.
I'm very happy to be part of this group Tomer Ashur Wikimedia Israel
On 12/11/11 12:22 AM, Thierry Coudray wrote:
I would feel more comfortable with this very specific list, if all those who have signed up, give their real name and more informations on their background ...
My real name is Jimmy Wales. :) I'm the founder of the Wikimedia Foundation, and an honorary member of at least some chapters.
I have a strong background in finance, though not so much in accounting/auditing, having completed a master's degree in Finance at the University of Alabama in 1989 and done all the course work (but not the dissertation) for a PhD in Finance from Indiana University. As a part of all that, of course I studied accounting extensively and spent a lot of time looking at balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements.
I'm on this list primarily because I think it is IMPORTANT. We can look at the importance in two ways - the positive and the negative. Just to get it out of the way, I will take the negative first.
The single biggest risk that I see to the financial sustainability of our movement as a whole is our highly distributed structure of chapters, and in particular the very high risk of a possible financial scandal at one of the chapters bringing global headlines and causing people to fear giving money to any of us.
We are on a track such that we will have over 100 chapters at some point, some small, some large. Some will be in jurisdictions with strong traditions of accounting and accountability, and some will be in more loose jurisdictions. Some will have a lot of money, some will only have a little money.
The treasurers of the chapters therefore have a grave responsibility to protect the movement by implementing the best possible controls and practices as quickly as possible and at all times.
On the positive side, avoidance of scandal is not the only thing this is about, of course! Good financial management will ensure that money is well-spent, that when volunteers need funding for something, the chapters will have the money and be there to supply it. Good financial management will give the transparency to allow the chapters to have the trust of their local editing community, rather than being viewed with suspicion as a bunch of people just trying to make money off of Wikipedia or whatever.
On this list I will mostly be here to cheer you on, and to learn about the status of things in your chapters. In the past there has been tension between the Foundation and the Chapters relating to money issues, and that's obviously going to happen more in the future. I hope that by being here I can help to keep those tensions to a minimum.
--Jimbo
I'm Philippe Beaudette. I'm Head of Reader Relations for the Wikimedia Foundation, primarily charged with representing the voice of the 99% of our user base that never hits the "edit" button. However, practically speaking, I'm also in a community outreach role, and am often a point of contact for members of chapters.
As for why I'm here, look at what Jimmy wrote, because he did it far more eloquently than I could have. It's so important that we get financial controls and planning right. I ran the Fundraiser last year, and I know how hard chapter members and Foundation staff work for every dollar, and I have a vested interest in making sure that we do everything possible to honor those donations.
pb ___________________ Philippe Beaudette Head of Reader Relations Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.
415-839-6885, x 6643
philippe@wikimedia.org
On Sat, Dec 10, 2011 at 11:40 PM, Jimmy Wales jwales@wikia-inc.com wrote:
On 12/11/11 12:22 AM, Thierry Coudray wrote:
I would feel more comfortable with this very specific list, if all those who have signed up, give their real name and more informations on their background ...
My real name is Jimmy Wales. :) I'm the founder of the Wikimedia Foundation, and an honorary member of at least some chapters.
I have a strong background in finance, though not so much in accounting/auditing, having completed a master's degree in Finance at the University of Alabama in 1989 and done all the course work (but not the dissertation) for a PhD in Finance from Indiana University. As a part of all that, of course I studied accounting extensively and spent a lot of time looking at balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements.
I'm on this list primarily because I think it is IMPORTANT. We can look at the importance in two ways - the positive and the negative. Just to get it out of the way, I will take the negative first.
The single biggest risk that I see to the financial sustainability of our movement as a whole is our highly distributed structure of chapters, and in particular the very high risk of a possible financial scandal at one of the chapters bringing global headlines and causing people to fear giving money to any of us.
We are on a track such that we will have over 100 chapters at some point, some small, some large. Some will be in jurisdictions with strong traditions of accounting and accountability, and some will be in more loose jurisdictions. Some will have a lot of money, some will only have a little money.
The treasurers of the chapters therefore have a grave responsibility to protect the movement by implementing the best possible controls and practices as quickly as possible and at all times.
On the positive side, avoidance of scandal is not the only thing this is about, of course! Good financial management will ensure that money is well-spent, that when volunteers need funding for something, the chapters will have the money and be there to supply it. Good financial management will give the transparency to allow the chapters to have the trust of their local editing community, rather than being viewed with suspicion as a bunch of people just trying to make money off of Wikipedia or whatever.
On this list I will mostly be here to cheer you on, and to learn about the status of things in your chapters. In the past there has been tension between the Foundation and the Chapters relating to money issues, and that's obviously going to happen more in the future. I hope that by being here I can help to keep those tensions to a minimum.
--Jimbo
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Greetings!
I am James Hare, Treasurer of Wikimedia District of Columbia, which represents Washington, DC and four other U.S. states. As treasurer it is my job to keep the books, prepare the budget, answer to our unfortunately undersized Audit Committee, and serve as the ex-officio chairman of the Fundraising Committee. Regrettably, the number of finance-types in our organization is really small. In fact, I'm not even an accountant by trade, nor am I (at this time) studying to become one. But given that I'm responsible for keeping track of mostly cash transactions and not the balance sheet of Goldman Sachs, it hasn't been an excessive burden. Matt Bisanz, who has formal training in accounting, serve as our Audit Committee chair (and its only member).
Our current challenge is fundraising, as we are a brand new chapter that needs to bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars for Wikimania 2012. Last night I finished our fundraising plan for this fiscal year, which focuses largely on the ancillary marketing and networking strategies Wikimedia DC will need to adopt. My ambition going forward is to set up a number of relationships with local organizations so that we can rely less and less on the Wikimedia Foundation for our funding. Our need is particularly pressing since we cannot rely on the website fundraiser for our revenue.
On Fri, Dec 9, 2011 at 8:20 PM, Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
From: Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org Subject: New "treasurers" mailing list Date: November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST To: "internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Hello all!
I am Ali Haidar Khan (nickname: Tonmoy), founder member & Treasurer of Wikimedia Bangladesh. We are a newly approved chapter and I am very exited to have a mailing list like this for discussing & sharing finance matters with others. I am a contributor on Bengali Wikipedia & Meta since 2008 & also participating in/organizing offline campaigns for Wikipedia & Wikimedia projects in Bangladesh since then.
I am a finance graduate & completed Bachelor in Business Administration from University of Dhaka. Now I am working in a financial institution as credit analyst for last 3 years. I have worked in the areas of financial management, financial reporting, analysis of books of accounts and similar finance jobs over the years. Since our chapter is new, I hope I will be able to structure an efficient financial framework for it. Currently we are working towards registering our Chapter with the local authority.
Looking forward to having your cheers & support for our newly approved chapter.
Thanks
Tonmoy
On Sun, Dec 11, 2011 at 9:18 PM, James Hare messedrocker@gmail.com wrote:
Greetings!
I am James Hare, Treasurer of Wikimedia District of Columbia, which represents Washington, DC and four other U.S. states. As treasurer it is my job to keep the books, prepare the budget, answer to our unfortunately undersized Audit Committee, and serve as the ex-officio chairman of the Fundraising Committee. Regrettably, the number of finance-types in our organization is really small. In fact, I'm not even an accountant by trade, nor am I (at this time) studying to become one. But given that I'm responsible for keeping track of mostly cash transactions and not the balance sheet of Goldman Sachs, it hasn't been an excessive burden. Matt Bisanz, who has formal training in accounting, serve as our Audit Committee chair (and its only member).
Our current challenge is fundraising, as we are a brand new chapter that needs to bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars for Wikimania 2012. Last night I finished our fundraising plan for this fiscal year, which focuses largely on the ancillary marketing and networking strategies Wikimedia DC will need to adopt. My ambition going forward is to set up a number of relationships with local organizations so that we can rely less and less on the Wikimedia Foundation for our funding. Our need is particularly pressing since we cannot rely on the website fundraiser for our revenue.
On Fri, Dec 9, 2011 at 8:20 PM, Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so
far),
let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked
well
on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic
and
what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's
board
of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit
Committee.
I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues
for a
few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to
focus
on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has
accomplished,
and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement.
I
hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers,
finance staff,
and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all
of
us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking
for
advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly,
I hope
we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
From: Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org Subject: New "treasurers" mailing list Date: November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST To: "internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org
for
discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and
financial
transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended
membership
is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a)
there's
lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various
treasurers
both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
-- James Hare
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Hi!
I am Renata Stasaityte or Renata3 on wiki. I am a contributor to English Wikipedia since July 2005 and WMF Audit Committee member since July 2009.
I have bachelor's degree in accounting and master's degree in taxation. I am also a certified public accountant (CPA), so these accountability and transparency topics are part of my daily bread and butter. I work as a tax accountant (though for for-profit entities) in a mid-size New York accounting firm.
Below are the basic beliefs that I have on the topic of accountability within the "Wikipedia Movement" (for lack of a better term):
1) It is supremely important. Each year thousands of people give you $10 or $20 of their hard-earned money trusting *you *to spend the money wisely and effectively. It is our sacred duty to honor that trust. At the end of each year we should be able to account for every penny and say with clear conscience say "we spent every penny in the most effective way".
2) If Wikipedia is to stay here for the long haul, we need to make sure it is build on solid foundations. It means avoiding any financial scandals, it means building trust and goodwill with the readers and government authorities, it means being responsible and accountable for our actions -- including expenditures.
3) Most volunteers did not sign up to write financial reports. You want to do fun, exciting things. You want to change the world, and not count debits and credits. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, I would be shocked if anyone said otherwise. So the reporting procedures should be simple, not burdensome, understandable to someone with little or no finance/accounting background, but at the same time accomplish the goals of accountability and transparency.
4) The Wikipedia Movement is still growing, still evolving. Things are still changing at a dizzying speed, and I suspect they will continue to change. So the reporting and transparency also needs to change and adapt to the new circumstances. So don't expect that what you are doing today is going to be sufficient tomorrow.
5) We are in this together, we are part of a global initiative. Things affecting one chapter will affect everyone else. We can't just say "oh, it's not my problem" if one chapter is struggling with its obligations. It is our problem. As Jimmy said, one chapter involved in shenanigans could bring down the whole movement down.
Renata
Hi everyone,
My name is Sebastian Moleski and I serve as a volunteer at Wikimedia Deutschland (WMDE) in the role of its president and as a member of its board. I've been involved with Wikipedia since 2004 and have been a WMDE board member since 2007. From August 2008 through July 2009 I served as interim executive director (ED) while the chapter was looking for a permanent replacement for Arne Klempert, who used to be ED from 2006 until 2008. In my non-Wikimedia life, I'm CEO of NetService24 GmbH, an internet service company specializing in domain name registration, webhosting, and online security located in Munich, Germany. I've graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX in 2006 with a degree in Economics.
I'm on this list because I view money as a great enabler for making creative and innovative programs run by Wikimedians happen. Together with our then-VP Alice Wiegand, I was the mastermind behind WMDE's Community Projects Budget, which is a €200,000 fund for projects initiated and led by Wikimedians, with a volunteer commission evaluating proposals and allocating funds. It's been a tremendous success with close to 100 ideas proposed since it started in April of this year.
By participating in the discussion on this list, I want to make sure that the matter of accountability and financial controls is always also viewed in the light of supporting and strengthening effective programs. One of our largest challenges, from my experience, is how we spend the money that comes in, and how to do so effectively. Thorough budget planning is still sparse within the Wikimedia movement. Where planning exists, underspending has been rampant. That means, besides figuring out how to ensure proper accountability, responsibility, and efficiency in spending, we also need to figure out how to improve planning and execution to a level where spending is effective and no donation remains unused.
I'm very much looking forward to the discussions here, on Meta, and wherever else they make sense.
Beste Grüße Sebastian Moleski President ------------------------------------- Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. Eisenacher Straße 2 10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0 www.wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
So we're waiting for the another 17 people on this list and the real name of Theo and we can getting down the nitty-gritty... :)
Thierry
2011/12/12 Sebastian Moleski sebastian.moleski@wikimedia.de
Hi everyone,
My name is Sebastian Moleski and I serve as a volunteer at Wikimedia Deutschland (WMDE) in the role of its president and as a member of its board. I've been involved with Wikipedia since 2004 and have been a WMDE board member since 2007. From August 2008 through July 2009 I served as interim executive director (ED) while the chapter was looking for a permanent replacement for Arne Klempert, who used to be ED from 2006 until 2008. In my non-Wikimedia life, I'm CEO of NetService24 GmbH, an internet service company specializing in domain name registration, webhosting, and online security located in Munich, Germany. I've graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX in 2006 with a degree in Economics.
I'm on this list because I view money as a great enabler for making creative and innovative programs run by Wikimedians happen. Together with our then-VP Alice Wiegand, I was the mastermind behind WMDE's Community Projects Budget, which is a €200,000 fund for projects initiated and led by Wikimedians, with a volunteer commission evaluating proposals and allocating funds. It's been a tremendous success with close to 100 ideas proposed since it started in April of this year.
By participating in the discussion on this list, I want to make sure that the matter of accountability and financial controls is always also viewed in the light of supporting and strengthening effective programs. One of our largest challenges, from my experience, is how we spend the money that comes in, and how to do so effectively. Thorough budget planning is still sparse within the Wikimedia movement. Where planning exists, underspending has been rampant. That means, besides figuring out how to ensure proper accountability, responsibility, and efficiency in spending, we also need to figure out how to improve planning and execution to a level where spending is effective and no donation remains unused.
I'm very much looking forward to the discussions here, on Meta, and wherever else they make sense.
Beste Grüße Sebastian Moleski President
Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. Eisenacher Straße 2 10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0 www.wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Ha! I'm 75% done a post on how I think about this stuff for the WMF…. will have up in the next day or two.
-s
On Dec 20, 2011, at 5:27 AM, Thierry Coudray wrote:
So we're waiting for the another 17 people on this list and the real name of Theo and we can getting down the nitty-gritty... :)
Thierry
2011/12/12 Sebastian Moleski sebastian.moleski@wikimedia.de Hi everyone,
My name is Sebastian Moleski and I serve as a volunteer at Wikimedia Deutschland (WMDE) in the role of its president and as a member of its board. I've been involved with Wikipedia since 2004 and have been a WMDE board member since 2007. From August 2008 through July 2009 I served as interim executive director (ED) while the chapter was looking for a permanent replacement for Arne Klempert, who used to be ED from 2006 until 2008. In my non-Wikimedia life, I'm CEO of NetService24 GmbH, an internet service company specializing in domain name registration, webhosting, and online security located in Munich, Germany. I've graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX in 2006 with a degree in Economics.
I'm on this list because I view money as a great enabler for making creative and innovative programs run by Wikimedians happen. Together with our then-VP Alice Wiegand, I was the mastermind behind WMDE's Community Projects Budget, which is a €200,000 fund for projects initiated and led by Wikimedians, with a volunteer commission evaluating proposals and allocating funds. It's been a tremendous success with close to 100 ideas proposed since it started in April of this year.
By participating in the discussion on this list, I want to make sure that the matter of accountability and financial controls is always also viewed in the light of supporting and strengthening effective programs. One of our largest challenges, from my experience, is how we spend the money that comes in, and how to do so effectively. Thorough budget planning is still sparse within the Wikimedia movement. Where planning exists, underspending has been rampant. That means, besides figuring out how to ensure proper accountability, responsibility, and efficiency in spending, we also need to figure out how to improve planning and execution to a level where spending is effective and no donation remains unused.
I'm very much looking forward to the discussions here, on Meta, and wherever else they make sense.
Beste Grüße Sebastian Moleski President
Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. Eisenacher Straße 2 10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0 www.wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
-- Thierry Coudray Administrateur - Trésorier Wikimédia France Mob. 06.82.85.84.40 http://blog.wikimedia.fr/
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Hi,
my name is Stephan and responsible for financial affairs, e.g., reporting for the chair, executive board and project manager. I´ve been finished my studies in "nonprofit-management and governance" with a master degree in October this Year. Currently I´m constructing a system who allows to report about financial developments for our staff and more transparency for our Stakeholder.
This mailing list is a great idea and I hope to get and to relay new appendages for a better reporting.
Cheers,
Stephan
2011/12/20 Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org
Ha! I'm 75% done a post on how I think about this stuff for the WMF…. will have up in the next day or two.
-s
On Dec 20, 2011, at 5:27 AM, Thierry Coudray wrote:
So we're waiting for the another 17 people on this list and the real name of Theo and we can getting down the nitty-gritty... :)
Thierry
2011/12/12 Sebastian Moleski sebastian.moleski@wikimedia.de
Hi everyone,
My name is Sebastian Moleski and I serve as a volunteer at Wikimedia Deutschland (WMDE) in the role of its president and as a member of its board. I've been involved with Wikipedia since 2004 and have been a WMDE board member since 2007. From August 2008 through July 2009 I served as interim executive director (ED) while the chapter was looking for a permanent replacement for Arne Klempert, who used to be ED from 2006 until 2008. In my non-Wikimedia life, I'm CEO of NetService24 GmbH, an internet service company specializing in domain name registration, webhosting, and online security located in Munich, Germany. I've graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX in 2006 with a degree in Economics.
I'm on this list because I view money as a great enabler for making creative and innovative programs run by Wikimedians happen. Together with our then-VP Alice Wiegand, I was the mastermind behind WMDE's Community Projects Budget, which is a €200,000 fund for projects initiated and led by Wikimedians, with a volunteer commission evaluating proposals and allocating funds. It's been a tremendous success with close to 100 ideas proposed since it started in April of this year.
By participating in the discussion on this list, I want to make sure that the matter of accountability and financial controls is always also viewed in the light of supporting and strengthening effective programs. One of our largest challenges, from my experience, is how we spend the money that comes in, and how to do so effectively. Thorough budget planning is still sparse within the Wikimedia movement. Where planning exists, underspending has been rampant. That means, besides figuring out how to ensure proper accountability, responsibility, and efficiency in spending, we also need to figure out how to improve planning and execution to a level where spending is effective and no donation remains unused.
I'm very much looking forward to the discussions here, on Meta, and wherever else they make sense.
Beste Grüße Sebastian Moleski President
Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. Eisenacher Straße 2 10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0 www.wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
-- Thierry Coudray Administrateur - Trésorier Wikimédia France http://www.wikimedia.fr/ Mob. 06.82.85.84.40 http://blog.wikimedia.fr/
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Greetings!
I am treasurer with Wikimedia India. I have been a part of the movement since early 2006 and I'm a graduate of commerce and law.
I am interested in governance and transparency issues because I think that these form a central part of our identity as the custodians the Wikimedia movement, after all, our projects are successful chiefly because of their openness and effective self-governance.
Yours sincerely,
Anirudh Bhati
+855 975 529 803 Skype: anirudhsbh
On Tue, Dec 20, 2011 at 8:14 PM, Stephan Rost stephan.rost@wikimedia.dewrote:
Hi,
my name is Stephan and responsible for financial affairs, e.g., reporting for the chair, executive board and project manager. I´ve been finished my studies in "nonprofit-management and governance" with a master degree in October this Year. Currently I´m constructing a system who allows to report about financial developments for our staff and more transparency for our Stakeholder.
This mailing list is a great idea and I hope to get and to relay new appendages for a better reporting.
Cheers,
Stephan
2011/12/20 Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org
Ha! I'm 75% done a post on how I think about this stuff for the WMF…. will have up in the next day or two.
-s
On Dec 20, 2011, at 5:27 AM, Thierry Coudray wrote:
So we're waiting for the another 17 people on this list and the real name of Theo and we can getting down the nitty-gritty... :)
Thierry
2011/12/12 Sebastian Moleski sebastian.moleski@wikimedia.de
Hi everyone,
My name is Sebastian Moleski and I serve as a volunteer at Wikimedia Deutschland (WMDE) in the role of its president and as a member of its board. I've been involved with Wikipedia since 2004 and have been a WMDE board member since 2007. From August 2008 through July 2009 I served as interim executive director (ED) while the chapter was looking for a permanent replacement for Arne Klempert, who used to be ED from 2006 until 2008. In my non-Wikimedia life, I'm CEO of NetService24 GmbH, an internet service company specializing in domain name registration, webhosting, and online security located in Munich, Germany. I've graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX in 2006 with a degree in Economics.
I'm on this list because I view money as a great enabler for making creative and innovative programs run by Wikimedians happen. Together with our then-VP Alice Wiegand, I was the mastermind behind WMDE's Community Projects Budget, which is a €200,000 fund for projects initiated and led by Wikimedians, with a volunteer commission evaluating proposals and allocating funds. It's been a tremendous success with close to 100 ideas proposed since it started in April of this year.
By participating in the discussion on this list, I want to make sure that the matter of accountability and financial controls is always also viewed in the light of supporting and strengthening effective programs. One of our largest challenges, from my experience, is how we spend the money that comes in, and how to do so effectively. Thorough budget planning is still sparse within the Wikimedia movement. Where planning exists, underspending has been rampant. That means, besides figuring out how to ensure proper accountability, responsibility, and efficiency in spending, we also need to figure out how to improve planning and execution to a level where spending is effective and no donation remains unused.
I'm very much looking forward to the discussions here, on Meta, and wherever else they make sense.
Beste Grüße Sebastian Moleski President
Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. Eisenacher Straße 2 10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0 www.wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
-- Thierry Coudray Administrateur - Trésorier Wikimédia France http://www.wikimedia.fr/ Mob. 06.82.85.84.40 http://blog.wikimedia.fr/
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
-- Mit freundlichen Grüßen
Stephan Rost Finanzadministration und Berichtswesen
Wikimedia Deutschland e.V.
Eisenacher Straße 2
10777 Berlin
Telefon 030 - 219 158 26-0
www.wikimedia.de
*Helfen Sie mit, dass WIKIPEDIA von der UNESCO als erstes digitales Weltkulturerbe anerkannt wird. *
*Unterzeichnen Sie die Online-Petitionhttps://wke.wikimedia.de/wke/Main_Page !*
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei!
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e. V.
Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 Nz. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Hi all,
I am Bence Damokos, vice-president of Wikimedia Hungary. I am not a treasurer, but I thought important to stay informed about latest developments and to relay any best practices to my chapter.
Best regards, Bence
On Tue, Dec 20, 2011 at 6:57 PM, Thierry Coudray < thierry.coudray@wikimedia.fr> wrote:
So we're waiting for the another 17 people on this list and the real name of Theo and we can getting down the nitty-gritty... :)
Sorry for the late reply Thierry. My name is Salmaan Haroon, my username Theo10011. We actually hung-out for a couple of days in Berlin earlier this year during the chapters conference.
Regards Theo
Hello all,
First of all, many wishes for the new year, may it bring you lots of fun challenges and happiness.
My name is Delphine Ménard and I have been the treasurer of Wikimedia Deutschland since November last year. I have been around the Wikimedia movement since 2004 and have served twice on Wikimedia France's board (2006 and 2009), once as a treasurer (2009) before handing it all to Thierry. As I live in Germany, I decided in 2010 to run for the board of Wikimedia Deutschland and have been a board member there ever since, this is my third mandate within WMDE (due to bylaw changes and calendar mayhaps, the previous 2 terms were quite short). I also worked for the Foundation as Chapters coordinator in for 2 years, in 2007-2008. (none of those positions overlapped!)
I have long worked in marketing, event management and communication, in various agencies in France before moving to Germany where I started a consulting business for intercultural communication, in which I help companies overcome the difficulties that working with and/or within different cultures bring along. I also have a little web design business focused on making small websites for wine producers.
Ever since I have joined Wikimedia, i have been interested mostly in organisation development, on a wide scale, chapters and Foundation alike. Although we have come a long way, there are still a lot of open questions that need answering, both on the accountability and fund dissemination topics.
Having been the treasurer of a "growing chapter", just at the time where Wikimedia France shifted from the "small non-profit focused on bake sales" to "big organisation in need of financial audit and with several 100k€ budget" and now being the treasurer of a "big well developped and functional chapter with staff", I have quite a broad view of what it might be to be the treasurer of a Wikimedia Chapter. Believe it or not, it's actually easier to be the treasurer of a big chapter than that of a small(ish) one :).
I look forward to exchanging ideas and opinions on this list and hope that we can be a part of making sure that Wikimedia grows to be sustainable and accountable, both to its donors and its mission, as well as organisationally functional on an international level.
Best,
Delphine
Hello:
I am Garfield Byrd, the Chief of Finance and Administration for the Wikimedia Foundation. In have been in accounting for over 22 years with most of that time working with and for not for profits. I have served in both staff and board roles, having served as the Treasurer of the Board of arts and education organizations. In addition to accounting, I have a background in endowment management and human resources. I am looking forward to the conversation on topics of mutual interest.
Garfield Byrd
2012/1/3 Delphine Ménard delphine.menard@wikimedia.de
Hello all,
First of all, many wishes for the new year, may it bring you lots of fun challenges and happiness.
My name is Delphine Ménard and I have been the treasurer of Wikimedia Deutschland since November last year. I have been around the Wikimedia movement since 2004 and have served twice on Wikimedia France's board (2006 and 2009), once as a treasurer (2009) before handing it all to Thierry. As I live in Germany, I decided in 2010 to run for the board of Wikimedia Deutschland and have been a board member there ever since, this is my third mandate within WMDE (due to bylaw changes and calendar mayhaps, the previous 2 terms were quite short). I also worked for the Foundation as Chapters coordinator in for 2 years, in 2007-2008. (none of those positions overlapped!)
I have long worked in marketing, event management and communication, in various agencies in France before moving to Germany where I started a consulting business for intercultural communication, in which I help companies overcome the difficulties that working with and/or within different cultures bring along. I also have a little web design business focused on making small websites for wine producers.
Ever since I have joined Wikimedia, i have been interested mostly in organisation development, on a wide scale, chapters and Foundation alike. Although we have come a long way, there are still a lot of open questions that need answering, both on the accountability and fund dissemination topics.
Having been the treasurer of a "growing chapter", just at the time where Wikimedia France shifted from the "small non-profit focused on bake sales" to "big organisation in need of financial audit and with several 100k€ budget" and now being the treasurer of a "big well developped and functional chapter with staff", I have quite a broad view of what it might be to be the treasurer of a Wikimedia Chapter. Believe it or not, it's actually easier to be the treasurer of a big chapter than that of a small(ish) one :).
I look forward to exchanging ideas and opinions on this list and hope that we can be a part of making sure that Wikimedia grows to be sustainable and accountable, both to its donors and its mission, as well as organisationally functional on an international level.
Best,
Delphine
-- Delphine Ménard Schatzmeisterin Wikimedia Deutschland e.V. http://wikimedia.de
Stellen Sie sich eine Welt vor, in der jeder Mensch an der Menge allen Wissens frei teilhaben kann. Helfen Sie uns dabei! http://spenden.wikimedia.de/
Wikimedia Deutschland - Gesellschaft zur Förderung Freien Wissens e.V. Eingetragen im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichts Berlin-Charlottenburg unter der Nummer 23855 B. Als gemeinnützig anerkannt durch das Finanzamt für Körperschaften I Berlin, Steuernummer 27/681/51985.
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Thanks Stuart, not just for kicking this off, but also for setting up this mailing list!
I am Craig Franklin, currently serving my second term as the Treasurer of Wikimedia Australia. My formal accounting education ended with Mrs O'Keefe's Year 10 accounting class, but I do have a degree in Information Technology from the Queensland University of Technology (where I am currently a part-time graduate student). My workplace roles over the past seven years have involved implementing, maintaining, and consulting on SAP Financials software, with a particular focus on Controlling, Management Accounting, and Business Intelligence, particularly in the non-profit and public sectors.
As Treasurer of WMAU, my prime focus has been on professionalising and developing the business operations of the chapter. On my watch, we've moved from an organisation with a few thousand dollars in the bank, a chequebook, and an accounting Excel spreadsheet, to an organisation with hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets, more robust record keeping systems, and a hell of a lot more regulatory requirements to keep up with!
At a movement level, my prime interest is in working out an equitable funds distribution model that is acceptable to all. I know it's unfashionable to say it, but I do fear that the movement will have trouble lasting another year, yet alone a hundred years, if we don't sort this out and get it right now.
Cheers, Craig Franklin
On 10 December 2011 11:20, Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
*From: *Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org *Subject: **New "treasurers" mailing list* *Date: *November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST *To: *"internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
Treasurers mailing list Treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Hi All,
My real name is Tamás Mészöly, my nickname is Samat.
I contribute to Hungarian Wikipedia for almost 5 years as administrator and bureaucrat, where I was active in community activities, organizing programs, operating a bot, but I got interested more and more in PR and educating of Wikipedia and in relations between Wikipedia and other organizations, archives, governmental institutes etc. I am a founding member of Wikimedia Hungary and I was the executive vice president of the chapter in the first two year term.
Now I am the first (part-time) employee of our chapter as office manager (in practice from January 2012), and one of my task is helping out the Board (included our Treasurer).
I am an engineer, so I am not graduated or well-known in financial/accounting area, but I'd like to be well informed and I'd like to be familiar with thinking of WMF or best practices of other chapters. I hope this list help us getting closer.
My English is far from perfect, so I am usually shy and read-only on international lists, but if you have any question, I am here :)
Tamás Mészöly User:Samat
On Sat, Dec 10, 2011 at 02:20, Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org wrote:
Now that we've had some time for people to sign up for the list (28 so far), let's kick things off. I'd like to start with something that's worked well on both the gendergap and developing countries lists: quick personal introductions and then description of why we're interested in this topic and what we hope to get out of the list.
I'll go first.
My name is Stu West and I'm a volunteer on the Wikimedia Foundation's board of trustees. I am the Board's Treasurer and chair of its Audit Committee. I've been involved with Wikipedia for about 5-6 years, and on the Board since early 2008. My day job is in Silicon Valley, where I've worked for private and publicly-traded technology companies in roles including CFO.
I'm really interested in governance/transparency/accountability issues for a few reasons. In my role as WMF Treasurer, it's my responsibility to focus on these. More broadly though, my personal point of view on Wikimedia is very long term. I'm really amazed at what our community has accomplished, and want to ensure we continue to have a huge and growing impact for the next 100 years. To do that, I think we'll need to give our community the best possible organizational/legal/governance support.
As for this list, I'd like it to be a place for high-quality sharing of ideas and best practices around governance/transparency in our movement. I hope we can attract a significant portion of the treasurers, finance staff, and even Audit Committee members. I hope it can be a great way for all of us to learn from each other and hope we can have lots of emails asking for advice/support/ideas from one another. Finally and most importantly, I hope we can use this list to plan Wikimania beers and other in person get-togethers.
Who's next?
-s
Begin forwarded message:
*From: *Stuart West stu@wikimedia.org *Subject: **New "treasurers" mailing list* *Date: *November 10, 2011 12:15:12 PM PST *To: *"internal-l" internal-l@lists.wikimedia.org
I set up a new public mailing list called treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org for discussing and sharing best practices in financial reporting and financial transparency across the Wikimedia movement. The primary intended membership is treasurers, audit committees, and finance staff of movement organizations, but the list is public and anyone interested in financial reporting and transparency is welcome. This list is archived publicly.
You can subscribe here: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/treasurers
Please take a moment to forward this on to your favorite Treasurer or finance staffer. Thanks.
(I thought about just using internal but decided against because a) there's lots of traffic on it already and b) i'm not sure all our various treasurers both subscribe to and read internal regularly.)
-s
=============== Stuart West Board Treasurer Wikimedia Foundation stu@wikimedia.org
treasurers@lists.wikimedia.org