[Wikimedia-l] Resignation announcement, and a parting remark to everyone

[Anders Wennersten]

MZMcBride skrev 2013-04-29 07:13:
> I took a look at the current FDC members list[1] and the 
> decision-making information[2] but I'm still a bit unclear how 
> decisions like this[3] are made. Is there a vote on each individual 
> request (and subsequent recommendation)? If so, is that vote public? 
> Or is it a single recommendation encompassing all requests for that 
> round and members vote on that? And if so, is that vote public? 
As stated, all seven FDC members before the meeting asses all proposals 
and write down the sum recommended for each. During the deliberation 
these seven figures are presented  and they can differ very much, even 
that for the same proposal some member recommends full funding, others 
no funding and others partial funding. Seeing these figures, a very 
intense discussion start where we argue and reason, each fully 
paticipaing and often very passionate. If the difference still is wide, 
we then each prepare a new set of figures, which then normally show a 
level of convergence in recommended funding figures.  In some cases 
there is still incompatible positions among the FDC members and in other 
there is mostly then a concern where within a span we should find the 
recommended figures, which also is discussed and argued. In most cases 
we then all agree on a recommended figure, and in other we fully agree 
with some expressing some level of reluctance on the agreed amount. So 
no votes, and the reason why we manage to come to an agreement is, i 
believe, that we are used on the way we reach consensus on Wikipedia.  I 
myself, have in no other of the hundreds of groups I have been involved 
in, seen the same constructiveness of the participants to come to an 
agreement with consensus.


> From the round 2 recommendation[3] we find the following snippet of 
> text. """ We are concerned about the general increase in staff hiring 
> that has been taking place over the last year, in particular where 
> staff are performing functions that volunteers have been leading. We 
> encourage entities to focus on balancing the work done by staff and 
> volunteers in line with the Wikimedia movement's ethos of volunteers 
> leading work, and to focus on having staff coordinate volunteer 
> activities. We are also concerned about the growth rates of both staff 
> and budgets. We would ask entities to consider whether their growth 
> rates are sustainable in the long term, and whether they are leading 
> to the most impact possible. """ Is the FDC commenting on the 
> Wikimedia chapters here or on the Wikimedia Foundation (or both)?

The key word is "coordinating". we want to highlight that employed staff 
should not be seen to  replace volunteers but support/empower/encourage 
their efforts. And this is relevant for WMF as well when hey are 
involved in activities where there are volunteers involved.

Anders
Secretary of FDC