[Foundation-l] Welcome Tilman Bayer to the Wikimedia Foundation

[Jay Walsh]

Dear Wikimedians,

It's with great pleasure that I announce a longtime Wikipedian and
accomplished Wikimedia project supporter, Tilman Bayer (User:HaeB) has
agreed to join the Wikimedia Foundation in support of our movement
communications activities.  Pending approval of the U.S. immigration
visa process, we intend to bring Tilman to San Francisco, full-time,
as Manager, Movement Communications in the coming months. Tilman will
augment Wikimedia's communications team (now at three!) and will
report to me.

Tilman will be known to many in the English Wikipedia community as
editor-in-chief of the Wikipedia Signpost, where over the past year
(after picking up the reigns from another current WMF staffer, Sage
Ross) he has led the publication’s dedicated crew of volunteers and
increased the depth and breadth of stories about Wikipedia, our
projects, and the movement as a whole.  Tilman has also helped raise
the overall visibility of Signpost beyond the English Wikipedia,
building a significant social media presence (managing and bolstering
its Identi.ca and Twitter feeds), and generally increasing the reach
of the stories about Wikipedia to more editors and readers than ever.

Tilman has been active in both the German and English WP communities
since 2003 (he's been a checkuser on the German Wikipedia since 2006).
 He holds degrees in mathematics from the University of Cambridge and
the University of Bonn.

At the Wikimedia Foundation Tilman will be working with all WMF staff,
and the community at large, to help us both build new movement
communications systems, and work with tech and the community
department to produce great specifications for user communication
oriented projects.  We’re particularly interested in improving
feedback, discussion, and broadcast channels among and outside of the
projects (including social media, variations on mailing lists etc).

In short, we want to introduce more painless, relevant, and effective
ways to increase the exchange of information within the community -
including information you want to share with everyone, as well as the
stuff from WMF.

Tilman will be visible on the projects and IRC, and you will likely
start to see him posting to the mailing lists, blogs, and on-wiki.
He’s also currently in the process of working on succession for the
editorial leadership with the Signpost.

Please join me in welcoming Tilman!


-- 
Jay Walsh
Head of Communications
WikimediaFoundation.org
blog.wikimedia.org
+1 (415) 839 6885 x 6609, @jansonw