Re: [libreoffice-design] Team organization

Hi Sophie,


2014-06-19 15:15 GMT+02:00 Sophie <gautier.sophie@gmail.com>:

> Hi Mirek,
> Le 19/06/2014 14:48, Mirek M. a écrit :
> > Hi guys,
> > Sorry for my lack of involvement lately, I've been very busy.
> >
> > I've been thinking about our team lately and I'd really like to rethink
> the
> > way we work. I feel like we don't have the basics down, and that's a
> > gigantic issue that also reflects on our work. Part of the problem is
> that
> > the team doesn't have a clear structure -- we need leads to resolve
> > controversies and bring consistency to the whole of LibreOffice. As
> Theodor
> > Nelson writes (and Jan Borchardt reiterates [1]), "The integration of
> > software cannot be achieved by committee, where everyone has to put in
> > their own additions (featuritis again). It must be controlled by
> > dictatorial artists with full say on the final cut. " Not only that --
> > having leads means having clear go-to people for design-related problems
> > and allows more effective communication -- the communication chaos that
> we
> > currently have would be reduced.
> >
> > I'm thinking we could have these positions:
> > * UX lead
> > * Visual design lead
> > * User testing lead
> >
> > The *user testing lead* would see to it that whatever needs to be tested
> > gets tested and that the tests are carried out well. The lead wouldn't
> have
> > to personally take part in tests -- as we have volunteers all over the
> > world, that would sometimes be impossible -- but they would have to make
> > sure that the tests get done and are sufficiently accurate to be useful.
> > The *visual design lead* would oversee all visual design related work.
> That
> > means making sure that all graphical elements that are needed get made
> and
> > follow a certain style. It also means creating visual design and branding
> > guidelines and style guides when they're needed.
> > The *UX lead* would care for the general UX of LibreOffice. That means
> > bringing attention to important UX bugs, watching over their progress,
> and
> > cooperating with the user testing lead, the visual design lead, and
> > developers based on what each bug requires. It also involves refining the
> > design process, from the bug report stage all the way to implementation.
> >
> > It should be noted that these positions would pertain only to the
> software,
> > not to related projects such as the websites, social networks, branding
> > material, etc., to keep the workload lighter. However, rules and
> guidelines
> > for the software would apply to these projects when relevant. To further
> > lighten the workload, larger projects (e.g. Android remote, color
> > management, etc.) could have their own lead as well. The project lead
> would
> > report to the three leads listed above.
> >
> > Having these three positions would change only the way we work within the
> > design team. The relationship of the team with other teams would not
> change
> > -- devs would still get the final say and leads would have no special
> roles
> > or privileges within TDF.
>
> Sorry to jump in with a side question about the other aspects out of the
> product. How can we reach your team when we need visual or design
> specifics for events or any action organized by the other projects. Are
> you too short in volunteers and we need to help you grow this part of
> the community or is it something you're not invested in?

Yes, I would say we're short on volunteers, and those volunteers tend to be
short on time.

Motivation might be a factor -- I think the organizational chaos that there
is now can be discouraging and I'd like to try to fix that.


> Would it be better for your team that we have two separate projects: one
> dedicated to the product design, the other one to the designs needed  by
> the community projects?

I'm not sure. I guess ideally leads would cater to all TDF-related projects
and would act as managers.
Right now, though, I'm afraid a lot of the design work will fall on the
leads themselves, or just not get done.

Perhaps that's not relevant, though? Should we just have leads take care of
all the projects and be responsible for finding the necessary volunteers?

Actually, and please don't take it as a criticism, it seems very
> difficult to get some designs done for events or items and I really
> would like to help to solve this :)

Yes, I know, sorry; though huge props to KJ, who tends to save the day.

Please chime in with any organizational ideas you might have.

> Cheers
> Sophie
>
>
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