Re: Board of Directors Election 2014 - Candidacy - Jean-François Fortin Tam

[Jeff Fortin <nekohayo gmail com>]

Le lundi 19 mai 2014 à 16:34 +0100, Ekaterina Gerasimova a écrit :

> As can be seen from the board meeting agenda for 2014-05-06 and will
> be visible from the agenda for 2014-05-20, there is an item called
> "PiTiVi funds statement". GNOME handles money for PiTiVi and this item
> is related to a finer point of the interpretation of the contract
> between PiTiVi and GNOME which was signed by you and two others on
> behalf of PiTiVi. As a board member, you would always be expected to
> take an active role in defending GNOME's interests. How would you be
> handling this issue if you were currently on the board given that you
> have a conflict of interest?

While it is true that I am one of the Pitivi project maintainers, I am,
however, not a direct beneficiary of the fundraiser campaign - I am not
making a cent out of it, it was agreed that Mathieu and Thibault were
the ones that would be the ones undertaking the work depending on the
amount raised. The only "benefit" I get is the experience from having
helped organize it and the enjoyment of the technical improvements that
are to be accomplished as a result this campaign. I do not conceive much
conflict of interest there.

My role is defined as follows: "an authorized representative of which
who is independent from [Mathieu and Thibault] (the “Authorized
Representative”) is a signatory hereto, desires that [Mathieu and
Thibault] and GNOME conduct the Pitivi Campaign as described in this
Agreement". This is what the contract says, and as such I have always
approached this relationship with the outlook of a mediator, or, so to
speak, the "eye of GNOME". I was nominated in this role, I did not
actively seek it - and I have actually been accused of being too much on
GNOME's side during the negotiations ;)

Quite obviously, I would voluntarily abstain from voting on any board
decisions regarding Pitivi or its fundraising campaign. I may provide
context through discussion if this is allowed and desirable (ie:
requested), but would rather avoid what could be considered lobbying.

I hope my clarifications and pledge above are sufficient.



> As the board is rarely involved in the development and technical
> aspects of the Foundation, how would being a board member help you
> achieve this?

Ah yes, I may have gotten carried away there and forgot that the board
is generally removed from technical matters. I mentioned those topics as
they are areas of interest to me - if activities as part of the
Foundation Board allow me to spend some time interacting with other
teams, thinking and discussing ideas for potential "GNOME Goals", I'll
be happy to do so - if the opportunity or scope does not allow it, well,
too bad.

On the other hand, even if one is not directly involved in the
implementation, having an understanding/affinity with technical matters
is certainly beneficial.



Regarding financial analysis:

> As the current treasurer, I have had to do something to this effect
> during my year on the board. I would like to know how you would aim to
> get to know the process without disrupting the workflow of our
> employees, especially given that our administrative assistant's
> workload is currently very high.

Beyond the publicly visible annual report and 2013 financial summary,
certainly there are many internal documents that the board members have
access to for such analysis purposes, without requiring complicated
procedures/administrative overhead? Having to answer to the IRS' audits,
surely there is a wealth of information out there that can help one have
a more fine-grained assessment of the situation?

And hopefully, as a new board member, I would be able to ask senior
board members (if they are willing to bear with me) for a bit of their
thoughts and guidance on these matters, to avoid overburdening the
administrative assistant? Besides asking individuals directly, these
inquiries might also be brought to board meetings if considered
relevant.

Basically:
1) Read and study the documents newly available to me
2) If #1 is insufficient, ask some questions,
   sharing the load between closely-involved volunteers
   and the employee(s).