Organization

This page is for documenting specific solutions considered. See the page OSArch_Supporters for some more general links and the more focused discussion Organizational Structure and Governance of OSArch

This page does not represent a consensus among members of OSArch. See the page history to see who has made edits. See the discussion threads on OSArch_Supporters for more.

Assumptions

This page assumes some assumptions about the goals of OSArch.

• We want to change the world in line with our goals as stated at Open-Source_Architecture_Community
• We want to be a sustainable force, socially and economically
• We want to support an ecosystem of software projects, not be a software project
• We want to support promising projects and highlight successful projects

Why?

So why create a formal organization at all? Interpersonal relations are characterized by many things. We have different priorities, different temperaments and different ways of seeing the world. Without some level of structure to reach agreement these differences can create more friction in an organization than is productive. Avoiding a structure completely assumes there is no power imbalance between people. The reality is that quiet people, more polite people, less talkative people and people with less time often are not given the same attention during an informal decision making process. They also have important contributions to make. These contributions must be guaranteed a chance to be heard by a pluralistic and transparent decision making process.

Does this mean we should start voting on everything? No. Quickly moving to a vote is a sure way to stifle a diversity of viewpoints. This is why many government have a system of sending legislation from cross-party committees to a parliament and back to committee several times before a final vote. When this is used honestly it builds broad agreement and results in better and longer lasting legislation.

Does every decisions need to go through a formal process? No. Decisions are made all the time at an individual level and in small groups. This is a form of delegated power based on trust. Any formal organization needs to have clearly defined limits. For example every supporter and member is free to chose their activity in the organization. Anyone can start a project or support a project as an individual.

So what does need to go through a formal process? Something can only be done through a formal process:

• Opening bank accounts as OSArch
• Establishing a legal organization as OSArch

Okay, technically anyone could do this. But then anyone else could do it as well - and then we really have a mess on our hands and a fight for control and influence before we're really going.

Well, that's what we need to find out. Here are some suggestions:

• Decisions on distribution of funds (see )
• Decisions on accepting funds (see )
• Decisions on statements appearing to representing OSArch (see )
• Decisions on terms of membership (see comments by MaartenFrough)
• Decisions on digital infrastructure (see osarch-digital-infrastructure and OSArch_Digital_Infrastructure)

What about all the other important decisions that need to be made? Well, that's also something we need to find out. Here are some examples of issues that might need a structure:

• Branding and online presence (see social-media-posts-to-spread, Outreach)
• Which projects to support, and how to support them

Methods of organization

(see Suggestions by DADA_universe)

• https://www.loomio.org/ "With Loomio, people participate on the web, email or mobile, in their own time. Discussions stay on topic, and Loomio suits a variety of discussion formats and styles. When you’re ready to make a decision, get feedback, or move from talk to action, Loomio’s polling tools are at your fingertips." Lumio TEDx talk

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holacracy

Organizations to learn from

Loomio Co-op

https://resources.platform.coop/resources/the-loomio-co-op-handbook/ "The software we build is open source, and our organisation is open source too. This handbook is where we document how we run an efficient organisation without a hierarchy. We build software for collaborative decision making, used by thousands of organisations and communities around the world."

Loomio is a forum-like system where proposals can be started and managed and peoples reactions can be measured until there is a decision.

Blender foundation

The Blender foundation is funded by the Blender Development Fund

GNOME foundation

The GNOME foundation is funded by Friends of GNOME

KDE e.V.

KDE e.V. is funded by the Join the Game initiative

Parent Organizations to get us started

Open Collective

The OpenCollective or more specifically the Open Source Collective is an organization hosting other collectives and providing technical and transparency support.

Software Conservancy

The [Software Freedom Conservancy https://sfconservancy.org/] says "Software Freedom Conservancy is a not-for-profit charity that helps promote, improve, develop, and defend Free, Libre, and Open Source Software (FLOSS) projects. Conservancy provides a non-profit home and infrastructure for FLOSS projects. This allows FLOSS developers to focus on what they do best — writing and improving FLOSS for the general public — while Conservancy takes care of the projects' needs that do not relate directly to software development and documentation."