[foundation-board] project coordinator role - just want to set down the reasons i'm unhappy about it.

Fri Oct 1 18:13:49 UTC 2010

I've been mostly avoiding email this week, the subject lines have kind 
of flown by. I was surprised to see this publicly appear, so quickly, 
without agreement from the whole of the Foundation board.

http://blog.okfn.org/2010/10/01/okf-is-hiring-could-you-be-the-person-were-looking-for/

You could call this meeting in the middle, if you were feeling very 
charitable. I have shut up about this because i see it as important to 
fix OKF's management problems immediately, and if i can't get any 
mindshare here i should back down rather than stall the process.
However there are still quite a few ways in which i'm unhappy about 
this. Why not write them down for a bit of posterity.

- I would have removed all the references to the Coordination Group - 
coord is an illusion that may be comforting to you, but is not to me.

- I would also remove the rhetoric about quarterly reports to the Board, 
etc. Makes it seem like OKF is a hierarchically run, centrally 
controlled, secretively managed organisation. Doesn't it?

- I think the list of skills etc at the end is at least half-irrelevant. 
Financial management, fundraising, etc should be in the hands of 
specialists or pure administrators. This raises my hackles, makes it 
look like this is a stealth hire of an ED.

- This is probably ego, but given the amount of energy i've put in to 
thinking about this, making task lists to try to assess priorities, 
needs-driven rather than role-driven planning etc, a phone call or a 
quick Skype message to me before posting online would have been polite?

Please tell me:
* What it is the rest of the board have agreed as a pay range for 
successful person
* Where there is a summary of how this is cost-justified, e.g. can we 
afford it and for how long.

In conclusion. I am seriously here. I have decided i am not going to 
flounce off over this. Because i want to be on the inside pissing out, 
and the outside pissing in, both at the same time. It might get splashy.

I should probably consider resigning as Coord Group chair, lest i get 
more voice-only accusations from Jonny and Rufus of causing or creating 
bad vibes, alienating people, saying tactless things on different lists.
I am sick both of being told not to write things down, and of hearing 
others being told not to write things down. I am not happy with the 
direction in which OKF is going generally. I don't think it's in the 
power of any one person to change that - not a project coordinator, not 
me - but watch me try. If i make you feel uncomfortable, remember that 
the reasons why are in your mind, not in mine.

jo
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