Not a Candidate (Daniel A. Powers), and some comments...

[dap us ibm com]

Hi All,

I have been reading all the candidacy announcements, a very impressive list
indeed. I was going to submit my name, but I think I would rather be on
GNOME Foundation corporate advisory/sponsor team...As I get more involved
with everyone, I may decide to throw my hat in next year.

I keep seeing many postings that representatives from corporate sponsors on
Gnome Foundation *board* is not goo, that they will be conflicted, etc,
etc... I don't quite agree with this thought process...these folks could be
just as good for board. I believe we need a mix from hacker community,
corporate member community, visionaries, architects, etc...on board...a
broad range of folks, not just one-type of person.

Also...and this is for all folks that do get elected....when you decide to
join a board like this, and I am on the board of a couple start-up
companies...you need to join the board and represent the shareholders. In
this case the shareholders are everyone that touches Gnome (Corporate
partners, hackers, joe smith who downloaded Linux and Gnome to play with @
home, etc....). Basically everyone that touches Gnome, uses Gnome,
contributes to Gnome and sponsors Gnome.

Your job as board member is to increase shareholder value....this means
many things...but it strongly means that you are to act in best interest of
shareholders. On all decisions or votes, the board needs to do due
diligence, investigate (thoroughly all options), and make a informed
decision that is in best interest of shareholders as a whole. You need to
leave all your non-shareholder-interests @ home. Also when you join a
board, you need to abstain from voting on items, if it represents a
conflict of interest with your employer. I have been @ many board meeting,
many times, where they were evaluating major technology purchasing
decisions, I did not comment to influence to IBM, and did not vote on these
items....it is a conflict of interest.

My advice to voters is pick the people who you think will represent the
GNOME shareholders interests the best...regardless of whether they are with
a company or not. Their board responsibilities making sure they are
objective & remove themselves from conflict of interest votes.

Also, if a board member is not performing properly (missing meeting, voting
with corporate interest in mind, not spending the time on due diligence of
decsions)....is there going to be a process, like in corporate board world,
that the board can remove a member?


Thanks,  dp - Dan Powers
Director, IBM Early Stage Internet Technology
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