About Me:
I first got involved in the Drupal community ten years ago. I run a web development agency called Evolving Web in Montreal. My partner and I decided to start using Drupal because we were excited about open source software and needed a platform that would work for our non-profit clients and that supported multilingual. After attending our first Drupal meetup, we caught the Drupal bug and got involved in organizing the first Drupal Camp in Montreal. Angie Byron was living in Montreal at the time and conversations with her inspired us to get involved in Drupal more and more. Since then, our company has been actively participating in the Drupal community, through code contributions, community organizing, and creating blog posts, presentations, tutorials, and free trainings about Drupal.
Through Drupal, I have developed a strong interest in user experience, front-end development, and education. I give a lot of presentations at DrupalCons and Camps. Through this experience, I've come to love public speaking and now run a very active Drupal training program as part of Evolving Web.
Statement of Candidacy Video:
Board meeting attendence:
2-4
Have you served on a board or committee?:
Yes
If so, tell us about it.:
I have experience serving on various volunteer boards, which gives me some insight into the importance of governance, organization and assignment of responsibilities, and a clear vision and mission to prioritize the board's objectives so it can be effective.
Drupal Association of Montreal - founding member and served as treasurer on the board for 5 years
McGill Young Alumni Association - president for 2 years, board member for 8 years
Choeur Maha - a community choir and charitable organization - vice-president for 1 year
What perspective will you bring to the board when discussing strategic topics?:
My background is fairly broad. I'm active in the local Drupal community in Montreal and am often involved in other camps, so I bring that community-organizer experience. I'm also a Drupal developer and train/work with many developers, so am able to understand and articulate the perspective of developers working with and contributing to Drupal. I have been running a small Drupal company for 10 years, so I understand the challenges of the business of Drupal. As a trainer, I talk to a lot of people who are brand new to Drupal, people with all kinds of backgrounds, so I have an understanding of their challenges and priorities as well.
What existing board topics are you most passionate about? and why?:
I'm particularly passionate about Drupal adoption, at both the individual and organization level. As a Drupal trainer, I see a lot of people on their journey to using Drupal (or not) and it's apparent how important good communication is to increase adoption.
I see opportunities for Drupal growth through more targeted and consistent communication and marketing tools. I also think that focusing on growing Drupal adoption will help with some of the other priorities: strengthening the sustainability of the association in making its value/role more apparent and in providing a strategic direction to Drupal.org and DrupalCon.
What additional strategic topics would you like to introduce?:
I am also passionate about making Drupal more accessible to people. There are many initiatives in place to help with this. I think the role of the association could be to help coordinate/facilitate these initiatives and to communicate the value that Drupal places on user experience and accessibility.
What unique skills would you bring to the board?:
My perspective as a Drupal trainer gives me a lot of insight into how newcomers perceive Drupal.
Other skills I can contribute: public speaking, writing, familiarity with finances (from running a company and being a treasurer)
How have your past contributions to Drupal prepared you for board candidacy?:
I have volunteered on the board of my local Drupal association - planning annual Drupal camps, setting up a bank account and legal entity, and managing the needs of the Montreal Drupal community
I regularly organize and teach Drupal workshops as part of Drupal Global Training Days
I speak at DrupalCons and Camps on a regular basis and also share blog posts and videos about Drupal
I have volunteered on the grant selection committee for DrupalCon
I have organized and participated in code sprints
I am volunteering on the admin UI initiative to help organize user testing for Drupal’s core content editing interface
My experience in the Drupal community gives me insight into why people value Drupal and spend their time contributing to the project. It has also given me a perspective into the challenges of an open source community, how it can take extra time to come to a consensus or a compromise because people are volunteering their time, because of the diverse priorities of community members.
Why should we vote for you?:
I believe in the value of the Drupal association in supporting the community and the project and promoting Drupal outside the Drupal sphere and that’s why I’m putting forward my nomination to volunteer as a board member
I want to help the Drupal association encourage involvement from more groups of users around the world and help communicate the values and benefits of Drupal to organizations and individuals outside the Drupal sphere.
I think the most important thing that I can contribute to the board is my passion for the Drupal project and talking to people about Drupal. Six years ago, I started a Drupal training program and I give a lot of community trainings at Drupal camps, online, and during global training days and also create lots of blog posts and tutorial videos about Drupal. Teaching Drupal means that I get to introduce tons of people to Drupal, and I get to hear about their journey through learning Drupal, using the project, and getting involved in the community. I also participate in a lot of Drupal events as a speaker and organizer and get to talk to people who contribute to Drupal in many different ways.
I care a lot about the Drupal experience, the experience of everyone from long time contributors to brand new users.
I’ve been involved as a local Drupal organizer for many years, and I would love to put my time and energy and all the skills and experience I’ve gathered over the years towards helping the Drupal association as a board member.
Questions for the Candidate