I would like to outline a few things we have done on the A*Team over the last 2 years.
Good First Bugs:
In the past we have done pushes to create good first bugs, this is a rewarding process and it seems as soon as you create bugs, they get picked up. Problems we have had here fall into “what else can I do” and “lack of people exciting about mentoring”.
Good Next Bugs and Projects:
Iterating on Good First Bugs, we found that after setting up to work on a project, it would be nice to keep working on the same project, module, feature, file. This meant that we pushed hard on specific projects and mentors to create a set of bugs (a few Good First Bugs, then many Good Next Bugs). This approach had success and solved the “what else can be done” problem from above. In fact we still use this approach somewhat. The main problems we had here were “lack of people exciting about mentoring” and “how to keep up to date”
Quarter of Contribution:
The latest version of our hacking was after brainstorming what brought the most value out of the mentor/contributor equation. The big problem of “lack of people exciting about mentoring” has to do with mentors having the perception that mentoring is not a productive use of their time and that people will come, not finish a bug, and then disappear. Yes, this is true, it happens all the time. The QoC is designed to allow for a mentor/contributor relationship to build up and for something more substantial to be built. This is not a program for everyone, but this does address many of the concerns about mentoring. While logistics are getting easier with each iteration (we are on the 2nd instance of this), the process of selecting a project or a larger set of bugs remains doable in a day or two of work. We find that contributors can get a lot more done that we imagine. After completing the original work, they bring great ideas to the table and we can let it grow naturally.
Other things to consider:
- Mentoring is not for everyone, lets not force people, rather lead by example
- We should nudge, but not help too much- people want to learn
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There is a need for mentor training- I would like to see that in 2016.
- Every team has a dynamic that works differently- what we have done is working for us, the more we share the more we can try
- We are looking to only do 2 QoC/year on the A*Team, the other quarters will be focused on good first bug pushes and making our projects more accessible.
- Setting quarterly goals or deliverables around community will ensure it gets done and that others understand your priorities (and can help!)