Proposal: Launching a Microcks Steering Committee (SC)

[yada]

As part of the ongoing discussions and feedback from the CNCF TOC regarding the Microcks Incubation application, we are proposing the creation of a Microcks Steering Committee (SC).

This initiative is directly aligned with the ongoing improvement efforts referenced in the TOC review:

• TOC issue: [Incubation] Microcks Incubation Application cncf/toc#1552
• Related comment and feedback: [Incubation] Microcks Incubation Application cncf/toc#1552 (comment)

Context

The CNCF TOC review has started, and we are actively addressing the feedback and suggested improvements. One of the key areas identified is strengthening governance, visibility, and community structure as part of our Incubation journey.

To support this, we believe it is time to formally establish a Steering Committee for Microcks.

Inspiration & References

We have identified the following projects as strong and pragmatic sources of inspiration:

• cert-manager Steering:
  https://github.com/cert-manager/community/blob/main/STEERING.md

• AsyncAPI TSC model:
  https://www.asyncapi.com/community/tsc

We will use these as references and adapt what makes sense for Microcks. The goal is not to replicate complexity, but to start with something simple, effective, and fit for purpose.

Objectives

The Steering Committee will aim to:

• Improve overall project visibility
• Strengthen governance clarity
• Increase contributions and involvement
• Encourage diversity across the Microcks community
• Provide strategic guidance aligned with CNCF and project expectations

Community Discussion

We will open the discussion during the next community meeting:

📅 Thursday, Feb 26
Details: https://github.com/microcks/community/blob/main/JOIN-OUR-MEETINGS.md

Everyone is welcome to join the conversation.

Call for Participation

We warmly invite:

• Microcks adopters
• Contributors, code-owners, and maintainers
• CNCF projects and ecosystem partners

If you are interested in joining the Steering Committee and taking a seat, please raise your hand in this issue or during the community meeting.

This is still a work in progress (WIP), but we would like to move forward quickly and establish the Steering Committee as soon as possible.

Let’s build the next phase of Microcks governance together 🚀

[yada]

@kinlane @hguerrero 👀

[yada]

This issue was discussed during the latest community meeting. The recording is available here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Je8ssUgczm0?si=ELP3yyDZnfEFkcER&t=2

[yada]

First initial version of the "Microcks Steering Committee Charter" is now online, please comment, update...
https://github.com/microcks/community/blob/main/steering/STEERING.md

[lbroudoux]

First initial version of the "Microcks Steering Committee Charter" is now online, please comment, update... https://github.com/microcks/community/blob/main/steering/STEERING.md

Thanks, Yacine, for putting this all together. The document is clear, and I only have 2 questions:

• Regarding the frequency and timing of the meetings. It is written: "Meetings will occur at least once per quarter." but it's not specified at what period of the year. As one of the steering committee's goals is to provide guidance on the roadmap, I think it could be useful to synchronize the meetings around the beginning of the Design phases of our new Release Process. See Defining the Microcks release process microcks#1954 (comment)

• Regarding the decision-making process. It is written: "The Steering Committee operates primarily by consensus. [...] or vote [...]". However, it does not mention the nature of the items that should be agreed upon or voted. Do you talk about features to add? New specification to cover? New direction or scope redefinition for the project? New communication or partnership opportunities? If my understanding is correct, technical decisions are excluded and fall under the maintainers' authority, but what bout all the other things? I think we should at least try to define the nature of items to be agreed upon by the committee.

[yada]

First initial version of the "Microcks Steering Committee Charter" is now online, please comment, update... https://github.com/microcks/community/blob/main/steering/STEERING.md

Thanks, Yacine, for putting this all together. The document is clear, and I only have 2 questions:

• Regarding the frequency and timing of the meetings. It is written: "Meetings will occur at least once per quarter." but it's not specified at what period of the year. As one of the steering committee's goals is to provide guidance on the roadmap, I think it could be useful to synchronize the meetings around the beginning of the Design phases of our new Release Process. See Defining the Microcks release process microcks#1954 (comment)

Excellent point, thank you, Laurent. I will update the STEERING.md file accordingly after the RELEASE.md has been merged. (ref PR 1954 ;)

• Regarding the decision-making process. It is written: "The Steering Committee operates primarily by consensus. [...] or vote [...]". However, it does not mention the nature of the items that should be agreed upon or voted. Do you talk about features to add? New specification to cover? New direction or scope redefinition for the project? New communication or partnership opportunities? If my understanding is correct, technical decisions are excluded and fall under the maintainers' authority, but what bout all the other things? I think we should at least try to define the nature of items to be agreed upon by the committee.

I believe the “Steering Committee Responsibilities” section already addresses some of the points you mentioned. Steering Committee members have influence, but they do not override the broader community interest, decision-making processes, or the open governance principles we apply.

That said, it is true that the Steering Committee can help bring more visibility to certain topics across all areas related to the project and foster open discussions within our governance framework, which I believe is both healthy and appropriate.

For now, I suggest we keep the charter as it stands. We can revisit and refine it once the first Steering Committee members have joined and after the initial meetings have taken place.

[yada]

The STEERING.md charter has been updated with @lbroudoux ’s latest comments. I believe we now have a solid initial version.

We will review it with the Steering Committee members and revisit it during the first meeting to determine whether any clarifications or adjustments are needed.

For now, I’m closing this issue so we can move forward with the next steps:

• announcing the first three SC members and formalizing the nominations
• updating the charter with their contact details.