Talk:Wikimedia Foundation Board Governance Committee/Appointing someone to the vacant appointed seat

Engagement with the community

I believe it would be helpful to engage with the Community when looking for potential new trustees to consider. In order to maximise the value of that engagement, it would be helpful to be clear about what sort of person you are looking for, and to what extent you view the characteristics you describe as requirements. In particular, are the comments at Wikimedia Foundation Board Governance Committee/Minutes 2016-07-08 still in force, to the effect that you want "an expert in global NGO leadership" first and "an expert in technology and product" second? Are these required or preferred? What exactly do you mean by an NGO? I tend to think of it as something big and global with formal recognition, along the lines of UNESCO or Oxfam – or do you simply mean "Third sector"? Are you really not allowing for the possibility of experience being national or local, or does "global" just mean "not from the USA"? Do you see previous involvement with Wikimedia projects either as a volunteer or in a formal role as being relevant and if so, is it required, advantageous or disadvantageous? What mechanisms do you see yourselves using to improve diversity?

I won't repeat the comments at Talk:Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_Governance_Committee#Vacancies but simply ask that you evolve and publish an effective process for Community members to nominate (will you accept self-nominations – I suggest not doing so).

For what it's worth, I think you need someone with experience and expertise in knowledge management, curation and dissemination; with connections to other non-proft organisations involved in those activities, and open data and data science; and with experience of delivering strategic advice and constructive challenge: I also think it would be most valuable if they had not previously been heavily involved in WMF projects in a formal or informal role. Rogol Domedonfors (talk) 12:30, 6 November 2016 (UTC)