[Foundation-l] Revised proposal

daniwo59 at aol.com daniwo59 at aol.com
Sun Aug 13 01:30:23 UTC 2006


I had no idea of the maelstrom point seven in my proposal would lead to.  
That said, I want to remove that point as contentious, and resubmit the proposal  
without it for now. 
 
In response to some of Anthere's questions, I believe that most speaking  
requests continue to come through the office or the communications committee.  
Many of the private requests were actually directed to individuals through the  
office or the comcom. 
 
Although I admit that we cannot enforce it, in the event that people are  
asked privately, we can ask them to inform the Foundation. For one thing, it is  
good to know where people are speaking, while we also stand to benefit from  
their experiences and can provide support if we have a repository of speeches,  
questions, AV material, etc. available for them.
 
While I believe that we can turn down speaking engagements, the reason  
should never be because the requesting group has no money.
 
As for budgeting talks, I have no problem at all if the order of 3 and 4  are 
reversed. My feeling is, however, that for talks in Europe, it is probably  
wiser to send someone locally than to send someone from the US. Nevertheless,  
this also involves costs and questions. If a free talk is requested in 
Romania,  is it cheaper to send someone from Serbia or from England. That should be a 
 consideration too (until we find an ideal Romanian speaker--this is only an  
example). 
 
Finally, I believe that we should be as wary of the use of our logo and tm  
in talks as we are when it is used online.
 
Having said all that, I submit an amended proposal.
 
 
1. Requests for speakers from the Foundation will be approved by a   
subcommittee of the Communications Committee to be known as the  "Speakers  
Subcommittee."

2. The Speakers Subcommittee will determine whether and how fulfilling  the  
request furthers the goals of the Foundation. This will be called  Speaker  
Objectives.

3. The Speakers Subcommittee will then determine whether the Speaker   
Objectives are equal or greater to the costs involved in sending a speaker  
to  the 
event.

4. The Speaker Subcommittee will then determine  which representative of the  
WMF is best suited to deliver the talk,  based on considerations of language, 
 
geography, skills, conference  needs, availability, etc.

5. Basic costs for speakers will include  
a. transportation
b. per diem (hotel,  food)
c. ancillary (babysitting, formal wear such as   renting a tux, other)

6. The Speaker Subcommittee will negotiate with the requesting  organization  
to ensure that they cover as much of these costs as  possible. Should the 
event 
be deemed worthwhile, but the requesting  organization is unable to cover 
these  basic costs, the Speakers  Committee will determine a budget for the 
speaker to   participate.

7. A calendar of speaking engagements and speakers will be  maintained  in a 
public space, such as wikimediafoundation.org.  

8. The Foundation will discourage the use of logos, registered tms, etc.,  
except by speakers  approved and appointed by the Speakers  Subcommittee.

9. Upon completing their speaking engagement, speakers will provide a   
written report to the Speakers Subcommittee in which they describe whether  
and  how 
the Speaker Objectives were met.

10. The written report will include a summary of the talk, major  questions  
asked, and a copy of handouts, PowerPoint presentations,  etc. as  necessary.

11. These materials will be made easily available to other speakers so  as  
to 
enhance their own presentations.

12. Upon completing their speaking engagement, speakers will also   submit 
any 
receipts for *approved* expenses.

13. Upon submission of receipts, the written report, and ancillary   
materials--and only upon their submission--the speaker will be reimbursed  
for  any 
out-of-pocket expenses.



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