A leadership change is always momentous, and the Fedora Project is no exception to this rule. I wanted to share some thoughts about being the Fedora Project Leader, tell the community about the person who will be taking over that role soon, and to let you know what to expect over the next few weeks and months. * * * I joined the Fedora Project in 2003 so I could give something back to a free software community from whose work I had benefited for a long time. Fedora gave me the chance to bring my skills and experience and use them to help people I'd never get a chance to meet personally. I had no inkling at the time that one day I'd have the opportunity to serve the community beyond helping write some documentation. When Max Spevack called me in late 2007 to let me know he was considering stepping down, and was interested in having me succeed him as the Fedora Project Leader, I was surprised and humbled. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to both serve the community and to contribute as an employee at Red Hat, where I had already made many friends while working on Fedora -- an opportunity I was happy to take. Over the past two and a half years, through many challenges and changes, not once have I regretted that decision. * * * One of the hallmarks of Fedora leadership is that it's open to change. The FPL is not a semi-benevolent dictator for life, but rather a position to which new people can regularly bring their passion for making Fedora better. And so, just as previous FPLs announced their readiness to search for the next leader, I did so a few months ago, in the spirit of openness and transparency that's a hallmark of the Fedora community. The FPL job is a salaried position at Red Hat, and the Fedora Board members as well as many other stakeholders have been informed and involved with the process of selecting a new FPL. The job posting brought in numerous applicants from throughout the community. Through the hiring process we identified a few best qualified candidates. >From them the next FPL was selected, based on the qualifications and experience our entire community expects. At every juncture during that process, the panels were focused on the needs of the Fedora Project, to ensure the next FPL would be a good listener, speaker, and writer; thoughtfully consider solutions to difficult problems; and most importantly, lead effectively. So it's with great pleasure that I announce Jared Smith will be joining Red Hat in a few weeks as the new Fedora Project Leader. * * * Some of our community already knows Jared, but I want to take a moment to tell everyone a little more about his background. He doesn't like to trumpet his own qualifications, but since he happens to be away on personal business this week, I'll just do that for him. :-) Jared's been a long-time user of both Red Hat and Fedora, and an active participant in the the Fedora community since 2007. He's primarily spent his time working with the infrastructure and documentation teams. He's helped with the development of Fedora Talk, our community VoIP telephony system. Fedora Talk allows various Fedora developers and contributors to communicate verbally for free across the internet. Jared has also participated in community events such as various FUDCons and Fedora Activity Days. In addition, he has assisted with toolchain development, release materials, and steering duties as a member of the Fedora Docs team. Jared also brings a wealth of of both technical and community relations expertise from his prior job history. His previous employer is Digium, the commercial sponsor of the open source Asterisk software. While at Digium, Jared worked as Community Relations Manager, as well as an instructor, lecturer, and training department manager. Before working for Digium, Jared was a Network Operations Manager for the web analytics company Omniture (since acquired by Adobe Systems), where he managed a network of over 6,500 Linux machines. These experiences as a speaker, evangelist, practitioner, and collaborator make Jared exceptionally well suited for the position of FPL. On a more personal note, I've come to know Jared well over the past several years. He cares deeply about community and family, not the least part of which is the Fedora community and family. His honesty, integrity, good humor, patience, intelligence, and good old-fashioned common sense will serve him and our growing community well, as we try to take Fedora to the next level. * * * Although Jared is away on personal travel right now, Max and I have already started including him in some important conversations, and the community can expect additional exciting news shortly. Over the next few months, part of my changing responsibilities in Red Hat will be to ensure a smooth runway for Jared, as he takes over the duties of the FPL job. Max Spevack will also continue to assist, especially where his role as the manager of Red Hat's Community Architecture team brings strategic benefits to the Fedora Project. Over time, I expect to spend more time on work that's internal to Red Hat, but I will continue to be involved in Fedora to some extent as an individual contributor. That transition will allow Jared to effectively bring his own vision and energy to Fedora, and I look forward to helping him in whatever ways I can. I hope the entire community will join me in welcoming Jared to Red Hat as the FPL, and that you'll gift him with the support and friendship I've enjoyed and treasured over the past two and a half years. -- Paul W. Frields http://paul.frields.org/ gpg fingerprint: 3DA6 A0AC 6D58 FEC4 0233 5906 ACDB C937 BD11 3717 http://redhat.com/ - - - - http://pfrields.fedorapeople.org/ Where open source multiplies: http://opensource.com -- announce mailing list announce@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/announce
