diff --git a/posts/2023-08-30-electing-new-project-directors.md b/posts/2023-08-30-electing-new-project-directors.md new file mode 100644 index 000000000..beb7f7124 --- /dev/null +++ b/posts/2023-08-30-electing-new-project-directors.md @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Electing New Project Directors" +author: Leadership Council +team: Leadership Council +--- + +Today we are launching the process to elect new Project Directors to the Rust Foundation Board of Directors. +As we begin the process, we wanted to spend some time explaining the goals and procedures we will follow. +We will summarize everything here, but if you would like to you can read the [official process documentation][pde-process]. + +We ask all project members to begin working with their Leadership Council representative to nominate potential Project Directors. See the [Candidate Gathering](#candidate-gathering) section for more details. Nominations are due by September 15, 2023. + +[pde-process]: https://github.com/rust-lang/leadership-council/blob/main/policies/project-director-election-process.md + +## What are Project Directors? + +The Rust Foundation Board of Directors has five seats reserved for Project Directors. +These Project Directors serve as representatives of the Rust project itself on the Board. +Like all Directors, the Project Directors are elected by the entity they represent, which in the case of the Rust Project means they are elected by the Rust Leadership Council. +Project Directors serve for a term of two years and will have staggered terms. +This year we will appoint two new directors and next year we will appoint three new directors. + +The current project directors are Jane Losare-Lusby, Josh Stone, Mark Rousskov, Ryan Levick and Tyler Mandry. +This year, Jane Losare-Lusby and Josh Stone will be rotating out of their roles as Project Directors, so the current elections are to fill their seats. +We are grateful for the work the Jane and Josh have put in during their terms as Project Directors! + +We want to make sure the Project Directors can effectively represent the project as a whole, so we are soliciting input from the whole project. +The elections process will go through two phases: Candidate Gathering and Election. +Read on for more detail about how these work. + +## Candidate Gathering + +The first phase is beginning right now. +In this phase, we are inviting the members of all of the top level Rust teams and their subteams to nominate people who will make good project directors. +The goal is to bubble these up to the Council through each of the top-level teams. +You should be hearing from your Council Representative soon with more details, but if not, feel free to reach out to them directly. + +Each team is encouraged to suggest candidates. +Since we are electing two new directors, it would be ideal for teams to nominate at least two candidates. +Nominees can be anyone in the project and do not have to be a member of the team who nominates them. + +The candidate gathering process will be open until September 15, at which point each team's Council Representative will share their team's nominations and reasoning with the whole Leadership Council. +At this point, the Council will confirm with each of the nominees that they are willing to accept the nomination and fill the role of Project Director. +Then the Council will publish the set of candidates. + +This then starts a ten day period where members of the Rust Project are invited to share feedback on the nominees with the Council. +This feedback can include reasons why a nominee would make a good project director, or concerns the Council should be aware of. + +The Council will announce the set of nominees by September 19 and the ten day feedback period will last until September 29. +Once this time has passed, we will move on to the election phase. + +## Election + +The Council will meet during the week of October 1 to complete the election process. +In this meeting we will discuss each candidate and once we have done this the facilitator will propose a set of two of them to be the new Project Directors. +The facilitator puts this to a vote, and if the Council unanimously agrees with the proposed pair of candidates then the process is completed. +Otherwise, we will give another opportunity for council members to express their objections and we will continue with another proposal. +This process repeats until we find two nominees who the Council can unanimously consent to. +The Council will then confirm these nominees through an official vote. + +Once this is done, we will announce the new Project Directors. +In addition, we will contact each of the nominees, including those who were not elected, to tell them a little bit more about what we saw as their strengths and opportunities for growth to help them serve better in similar roles in the future. + +## Timeline + +This process will continue through all of September and into October. +Below are the key dates: + +* Candidate nominations due: September 15 +* Candidates published: September 19 +* Feedback period: September 19 - 29 +* Election meeting: Week of October 1 + +After the election meeting happens, the Rust Leadership Council will announce the results and the new Project Directors will assume their responsibilities. + +## Acknowledgements + +A number of people have been involved in designing and launching this election process and we wish to extend a heartfelt thanks to all of them! +We'd especially like to thank the members of the Project Director Election Proposal Committee: Jane Losare-Lusby, Eric Holk, and Ryan Levick. +Additionally, many members of the Rust Community have provided feedback and thoughtful discussions that led to significant improvements to the process. +We are grateful for all of your contributions.