Hello Christophe

Thank you for your email, and always good to hear from you as I very much appreciate your questions, and the spirit in which they’re always asked of the Board. And you rightly pointed out that there has been a lot of change in senior leadership at the Foundation.  

Underlying these planned transitions at the Foundation (also playing out in many organizations globally, I might add) is that they come at a time when we are all going through a period of disruption brought on by the global pandemic, and the toll it’s had on individuals, the Foundation, and the movement. Most organizations are feeling this, even as we all simultaneously work to make sure we are fully prepared with the right leadership for the next normal of a post-pandemic world.
Amid this, a few have left  citing deeply personal reasons, some in response to changing needs, reassessment of roles, and emerging organizational or individual work/life priorities. There have been a myriad of factors that have led to these planned departures but, taken together, we know they can be, at the minimum, be perceived as concerning and even related.
On behalf of the Board, I want to reassure you and the communities that the Transition Team is working closely with department and team leaders to ensure that these departures will not distract from our mission and our support of the movement. There is strong interim leadership in place to provide continuity and support to staff, and address any questions or concerns they may have, including in the affected teams. And the Board is very actively engaged with Foundation leadership, and will continue to be both available and participative, as we purposefully move toward filling the Foundation’s leadership roles, starting with the CEO/ED. 

Members of the Board are also meeting this month with full Foundation staff to provide continuity and support to the entire team, in addition to many of us having made ourselves fully available to the Foundation’s leaders, realizing this is a transition period for all.
The Wikimedia Foundation today is very different from the one 10 years ago or even two years ago, but it is still laser focused on moving our mission forward with the help of movement leaders such as yourself. We are optimistic about emerging from this time, with the Foundation well-positioned to support the growth of the movement and achieve the goals we set out with communities in our movement strategy process.
Best,
Raju