PROCESS CHANGE: Introduction of Office Hours

[prajjwalyd]

One of the recommendations for enhancing the contributor experience in Knative, as outlined in the Contributor Experience Research 2024, involves implementing scheduled office hours.

Here's a breakdown of the proposal:

Scheduled Office Hours

• Regular Sessions: Schedule weekly office hours at consistent times to provide a reliable opportunity for contributors to seek help. Ensure that these sessions are well-publicized and open to all contributors, seeking guidance and mentorship or facing challenges while contributing.
• Diverse Mentorship: Rotate the hosts for these sessions among different maintainers and experienced contributors to provide diverse perspectives and expertise. This also helps distribute the mentoring load and gives attendees the chance to interact with various members of the community.

Why is it needed?

• Comfortable Environment: Some contributors may feel uncomfortable asking questions in public forums or Slack channels due to fear of judgment or just lack of confidence. Office hours provide a more supportive environment where they can seek help without hesitation.
• Immediate Support: Real-time interaction during office hours allows contributors to get immediate feedback and solutions to their problems, reducing delays and enhancing productivity.
• Community Building: Regular interactions through office hours foster a stronger sense of community and collaboration. Contributors get to know each other and build relationships, which can lead to more effective teamwork and knowledge sharing.
• Adoption by Other Projects: Many open-source projects have adopted office hours as a best practice to enhance collaboration and support.

Implementation:

• Scheduling: Establish a regular schedule for weekly office hours at convenient times for contributors.
• Duration: Start with a 30-minute weekly call and increase it over time if demand requires.
• Promotion: Publicize the office hours through various channels such as Slack and social media.
• Session Host: Have 1 or 2 maintainers present in a single session, rotating the hosting responsibilities every week to prevent anyone from feeling burdened.