WPSmith | WordPress

Since I’ve been apart of the WordPress community, mostly as an unknown person ~~contributing where I can and where I am able~~ rather trying to contribute where I can and able. I doubt many even know who I am, except maybe, just maybe in the niche I find myself in WordPress. I even doubt that many will even read this post, or the entire post. I have the added benefit that WordPress development is mostly a hobby and passion of mine rather than being my livelihood, though I would love this.

I started to tweet some comments. I even considered commenting on Tony Perez’s blog post, WordCamp San Francisco 2012 Sponsorship Packages–Kettle Meet Pot, which is a great title. However, when I started to tweet, I ran out of characters. When I started to comment, I realized I had too much to say.

So…to me the drama boils down to a few things, really one thing: Leadership. First, the WordPress community is made of leaders and entrepreneurs, some great ones too. Second, change in an ever-changing world, especially among startups and entrepreneurs can be difficult and unsettling. Also, branding, messaging and change leadership from the WordPress Foundation and/or Automattic has had glimmers of excellence but it also has been somewhat confusing and at times misleading. Third, internal inspection both personally and corporately (pun intended) is integral to growth. And finally, the WordPress community is the trophy of WordPress, and as such the community needs to feel heard and action taken (and yes no action is an action).

Wow! This is long, take me to the recommended solution.

The WordPress Community Consists of Leaders and Entrepreneurs

WordPress developers and designers and companies that profit from WordPress are used to being entrepreneurs. They have an entrepreneurial spirit. They are visionary leaders and have a plethora of ideas on how WordPress should do things. WordPress even encourages the creativity and innovation in the community.

Most companies are run by one or two individuals and are relatively small, even Audrey Capital fits the bill. Automattic is not even that big of a company with 108 dispersed (dare I say semi-autonomous) employees. And even those employeed by companies do freelance on the side. As such, many are their own bosses. They are the kings of their castles and the lords of their ~~serifs~~ serfs. Some have even said that they started their own companies because they didn’t want to report to or work for the Man (generally speaking and not about Matt). However, these chiefs are being told by another Chief (and a CBBQTT at that) what they can and cannot do, and that could even be miscommunication, misperception, and misunderstanding. And some times, many times, these decisions on the direction of WordPress are not very popular. That’s the stark nature of leadership. However, as the saying, “As iron sharpens iron,” so does one leader sharpen another leader, where there is sharpening, there will be sparks flying.

With WordPress, Matt is still the King. He heads the Foundation, started Audrey Capital, and AutoMATTic. He is THE co-founder. And as such, he pretty much controls and commands the future of WordPress until some sort of successful mutiny occurs, which I doubt the WordPress community would even allow. Thus, Matt is the Leader of everything WordPress, whether he wants it or not (and like most leaders, at times he probably doesn’t want it). So it’s a leadership clash. It’s a test of leadership fortitude.

The outcry is really an expression of feelings of unfairness and/or misunderstanding—sometimes jealousy. And no one, though they will try, can say that those feelings are wrong, bad, and/or misplaced. They simply are. However, Matt, Jane (just because she’s the most outspoken), and the other WordPress leaders, whomever they may be, can choose to lead and lead well through this—or not. Yet, I must remember that Matt was/is first a coder, ~~a blogger~~ a photo blogger. As Matt grows, so does Automattic. And so does WordPress, and the WordPress community benefits. So in summary, there are three groups of leaders: (1) One group (consisting of mostly the WordPress community) saying that something is not right, let’s talk, discuss, and move forward for the benefit of the WordPress community; (2) One group (consisting of both the WordPress community and the Foundation) fighting back point for point trying to dismantle each other; and (3) The WordPress Foundation sponsoring and putting on WordCamp San Fransisco and moving on with the business at hand. And frankly, it’s the third group that has the power (right now) and the other group (the vocal ~~minority~~ dissenters) are willing to respond, discuss, negotiate, and understand the Foundation. Really the community is asking for clarification from the Foundation.

Wow! This is long, take me to the recommended solution.

Change Leadership from the WordPress Foundation

While WordPress is OpenSource and has grown as a result of the community, it doesn’t mean that there is some sort of group conscience or anarchian (I don’t even believe that’s a word!), even democratic movement and decision-making. No, there are processes. There are principles. There are people. And there is an organization and a network. These processes and principles are sometimes public and sometimes private and sometimes known, sometimes unknown, even by the ones making the decisions. There are principles in play that are very present among the community but not among the leadership and vice versa. There are the rules and there are unwritten rules. In organizations, processes change and principles change because the leader and times change. While we can debate and argue freely about whether the process and/or principles should have changed, should change, should change back, or even how it changed, the fact of the matter is that change happens. Good. Bad. Or indifferent. Simply, yes. It is what it is, and as an adult, I have a choice and the ability to respond, not just react.

So change is to be expected and even welcomed as it shows growth (or sometimes decay). For most people, though, change is difficult, hence the importance of communication, messaging, and discussions. Change leadership from the WordPress Foundation and/or Automattic has had glimmers of excellence, but it also has been somewhat confusing and at times misleading though I am sure that was never the intent. WordCamps probably did need some level of constraints placed on them, which was probably initiated by risk management and lawyers. Yet the risk one lawyer is willing to take is different from another. Likewise, the legal risk one company is willing to take is different from another. Thus, the WordPress Foundation responded according to the advice they were most likely given as well as what was most comfortable in regards to risk management.

And then WordCamp San Francisco (WCSF) suddenly announces their sponsorship packages. And that’s exactly what we have with WordPress SF: a sudden change. It’s a quick, unannounced, an precendented shift from what’s been communicated by the Foundation since the last WCSF as well as the many assumptions made based on what was said explicitly and implicitly. There was nothing said or implied to the community that this would happen. Anyone who has worked in communications or public relations would have seen that this would cause a stir in the community. Then if the WordPress Foundation, i.e. Matt, decided that he wants to move in that direction, change communications could have been planned and communicated. And it would have been received better than it was.

However, I bet (I’m hoping) that no one at Automattic, WCSF, Audrey Capital, or the WordPress Foundation even thought this would be an issue. Why? Well in their minds, there is a separation between WCSF and the “other” WordCamps. It has been said that the community knows that WCSF is different, and thus needs no justification. Apparently this is probably not the case, especially among WordCamp organizers. Several WordCamps probably see themselves as incredibly important. Some that have taken the attention of the community. However, even my involvement at WordCamp Atlanta, I see so much more potential and believe that WordCamp Atlanta could easily bring in an international audience and be over 1,000 people. It’s airport is perfect for it as is NYC, Chicago, and San Diego. So the point of the community is not necessarily the sponsorship levels even. That’s just the last straw for one person. It’s the the inconsistent, discretionary application of the constraints upon WordCamps, rather and apparently non-SF WordCamps v. WCSF. The measures and constraints placed on the various WordCamps may have been needed, may still be needed; however, the leadership has not given good answers to why WordCamps are being limited financially and even physically. It’s really an us v. them environment, which is surely not the goal of the Foundation or anyone involved with WordPress. Instead, proper and open lines of communications could have easily prevented this.

Simply, “What we’ve got here is (a) failure to communicate.” The WordPress Foundation have not stated explicitly and officially that WCSF is different (even though Jane has written her piece last year), why it is different, and the rules that WCSF will follow. If the WordPress Foundation sees “local” WordCamps (e.g., WordCamps that are not in SF) as WordCamps on a smaller scale and want to keep them small, then the decision as well as the rationale needs to be communicated. It needs to be declared that these are really not that much different than WordPress Meetups. Simply, the Foundation would need to answer the questions like, “Why can’t we put on a WordCamp just as good in ___?” And really this is more about the vision of WordCamps than anything else. And “where there is no vision, the people perish.” Really that proverb is more about where there is no captured, received, and accepted vision, the people will fall off. They will do what’s right in their own eyes if there is no vision and/or mission. And because WordPress, as an open source project, is a sociological loose confederation of sorts with many, many autonomous groups and sub-groups, it is imperative that there be some vision. Hence the talk, the State of the Word is so important and is received at WordCamps again and again.

Wow! This is long, take me to the recommended solution.

Self-Inspection

Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” The same can be said of companies and of WordPress/the Foundation. The unexamined company is not worth pursuing, leading or developing. WordPress does a good job of continuous improvement with Trac and the community. However, the leadership side of the coin is another matter.

I don’t know Matt from Adam, and Matt does know me from Adam. Though we have met, he probably doesn’t remember, nor do I expect him to remember as our meeting was unremarkable. And I seriously doubt that a blog post in the deep blue ocean will make any difference in that (I even doubt he’ll read it) and that is not my intent either. However, that does not mean that Matt doesn’t know me…that he won’t read this post…that’s just my perception and my expectation. Likewise, many of us have expecations and perceptions that just may not be true. We see only dimly. We see what we want to see. We see things how we were raised to see them. Our personal experiences, perceptions, principles, and expectations highlight ourlives, as well as darken them.

If we look at ourselves and our own companies, designs, developments, products, outputs, etc, many of us have the same or similar reaction that the WordPress leaders have reacted when our stuff is criticized. Some of us say nothing. Some respond rather loudly. Some respond acutely and cogently. Some respond quickly. Some don’t respond. Some stoic. Some indifferent. Some bitter and resentful. Some become the Honey Badger. Simply take a look at Tony’s post to see, and notice the Twitter reactions there about as well.

The outcry, the expressed frustration by many well-known WordPress leaders (Carl Hancock, Gravity Forms; Lisa Sabin-Wilson, WordPress for Dummies; Brad Williams, author of Professional WordPress; Dre of Sucuri) is not threatening to WordPress and the leaders–though it can be misconstrued as such. The frustrations and emotions rise and fall, and frankly it’s been a while since the last WordPress drama, well unless you consider the comic drama by the Honey Badger or Pink Pony. In all seriousness, I believe the last bit of drama was when Kevinjohn Gallagher left the WordPress community rather publicly. But these things are not threatening to the WordPress Foundation, nor are they meant to be. Instead, they serve as opportunities to change and grow even more, even if we/I disagree with that change in direction. That’s the prerogative of the leadership.

My only hope is that the WordPress leadership is more aware and proactive in their leadership.

Wow! This is long, take me to the recommended solution.

The WordPress Difference: The Community

The thing that sets WordPress apart from many organizations is that the WordPress community is a living, breathing community in a state of constant flux. Even Matt has said that WordPress will walk to the beat of its own drum adapting when it’s ready, not when the Silicon Valley dictates that it should.

The WordPress community is great. It’s self policing. It’s responsive. It’s growing.

I’ve heard individuals say things like, “Matt/WordPress shouldn’t forsake the people that have made it.” While that is true, the flip is also true: The community that has made WordPress shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds it. However, if we drop the finger pointing, bickering, and look at the reality of the situation, then the community can change, can grow, and can flourish even more.

Everyone has a choice. Everyone has a choice to use WordPress or to abandon WordPress. Everyone can choose to follow the WordPress licensing or not. Everyone has a voice, and you can use that voice however you’d like. You can talk publicly or privately. You can blog, share photos/graphics/infographics, create sites, etc. to express your voice. You can do it entertainingly. You can do it shamefully. You can do it however you want.

Yet it is very true that the community has made WordPress in more ways than WordPress has made the community. However, it should never be an us v. them mentality as many real life community organizers and leaders do. Instead, the Foundation exists to serve the community (“the public good”). And as such the WordPress Foundation’s leadership can be measured against a servant leadership model, which essentially asks, is the foundation serving the public good or the Foundation good?

Wow! This is long, take me to the recommended solution.

The Reality & a Proposed Solution

WordCamp San Francisco sits apart, yet it sits with the “local” WordCamps. It’s both preeminent and ordinary. Other WordCamps (like Chicago, Atlanta, NYC, even London, et. al.) could be just as big and just as powerful as WCSF, if the Foundation allows. Some WordPress leaders simply do not like this and have abandon WordCamp leadership (sometimes, even involvement and participation). Some have begun to do their own thing.

The request that Automattic and WordPress Foundation needs to respond is simple: Will they allow other WordCamps to do something similar to WCSF? And/or will WCSF consider lowering their sponsorship levels to something less dramatic but inline?

Frankly, to me it’s more about their leadership than anything else. This is all really symptomatic to the real underlying issues of the WordPress ecosystem and network. Maybe, just maybe…it would be worth it for the WordPress Foundation to gather the many WordPress leaders into a real, facilitated roundtable conversation (not by someone at the WordPress Foundation or Automattic) at WCSF or immediately subsequent. Get all the issues on the table for the WordPress Foundation to respond officially at a later date. So here’s how I would recommend it happening.

The WordPress Foundation invites leaders representing various locations, users, and interests.
No one employed by the WordPress Foundation and/or Automattic be invited to the conversation OR, they are there but not allowed to speak (in response to anything) unless directed by the facilitator (which is extremely difficult). They are simply to listen actively for the purpose of understanding, not speaking/responding under the guise of understanding, but seeking true understanding whereby the person talking feels understood entirely.
The brainstorming session is facilitated by a third party (whether the person is part of the community or not) in a profitable/constructive, non-griping format. Griping is just complaining with no proposed solutiosn, so all ideas, complaints, etc. brought must also have a proposed solution (however immature/undeveloped the solution), preferably multiple possible solutions. The axiom applies well here: Don’t be part of the problem but be part of the solution.
These ideas, etc., are then taken to the WordPress Foundation and/or Automattic for further discussion, investigation and/or decisions. These subsequent discussions can then occur via chat, webinars/conference calls, blog posts, forum discussions, etc., however, they wish to deal with whatever issues. I am willing to bet that the majority of the issues can simply be resolved by good communications, solid leadership, and a vision. “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

What say you WordPress Foundation?