As open-source projects continue to grow and become more complex to many, the importance of community management is likely to increase. In particular, community managers will be needed to manage the growing number of contributors and users, ensure clear communication between parties, and facilitate strong collaboration and innovation. In other companies they have financial capital or even intellectual capital because they have people they pay to work for them but in open source what we've got chiefly is social capital; these are people who are there to help you to contribute to the project. So, if all we have is social capital, how are we managing that?
Open-source projects have become increasingly popular in recent years, allowing developers to collaborate and create software that is openly accessible and modifiable by anyone. However, managing these projects can be time-consuming, especially as they grow in popularity and attract a larger user and contributor base. This is where a community manager can prove to be an invaluable asset.
So, why do open-source projects need a community manager? Here are a few reasons:
Creating a seamless onboarding process: Open source projects rely on user contributions to thrive, which means having a seamless onboarding process is crucial. 70% of contributors who experience poor onboarding are liking going to leave the community/project. Contributors want to know how best to contribute to a project, the number of hours to dedicate to the project, where to find what to work on, who to speak to, what are resources available to them, and whether there are good-first-issues. An onboarding process can achieve these and more if done rightly
Creating a positive user experience: A community manager can help to ensure that users have a positive experience by responding to feedback timely, addressing issues, and providing support. By doing so, the community manager can help to build trust and loyalty among users, which is essential for the long-term success of the project.
Engaging with the community: One of the primary responsibilities of a community manager is to engage with members. This involves identifying and reaching out to potential contributors and walking them through any confusing part of the project. By doing so, a positive, friendly and supportive environment that encourages collaboration and contribution is fostered.
Improving project communication: A community manager can help to improve project documentation and communication. By working with contributors and users, the community manager can ensure that there is clear communication between the project maintainers and the community, helping to prevent misunderstandings or miscommunications. Also, making sure there's a clear code of conduct to help guide the community from inappropriate behaviours.
Gathering and analyzing feedback: Feedbacks are an essential part of building a healthy community. A community manager can gather and analyze feedback from users and contributors. By doing so, areas for improvement or new features that would benefit the project can be identified. Additionally, this feedback can be used to prioritize development efforts and ensure that the project is meeting the needs of its users.
Organising and hosting events: Events are also a better part of open source. Through this medium, the project is known and talked about among developers and techies. A community manager can plan events based on trends and community needs. Well-planned events generate a high level of word-of-mouth response. Events help gain public trust and foster partnerships between open source organisations.
Centring DEI in open source project: The average open source project owner may not necessarily care about diversity, equity and inclusion, which is why a community manager is needed to make sure these project communities are welcoming. Open-source projects can benefit a lot from having a diverse and inclusive community of contributors. A community manager can help to encourage diversity and inclusion by reaching out to underrepresented groups and creating a welcoming environment for all. This can help to attract a wider range of contributors and lead to a more robust and innovative project.
Project visibility and awareness: Finally, a community manager can help to increase the visibility, understanding and awareness of an open-source project. This can be done through working to build relationships with other organizations and communities that may be interested in the project to be a part of the movement, helping to increase its visibility and reach.
Community management has been a thing for the longest time now. We could argue that people of the old that built communities around what they do might not necessarily know what it was but they pulled it off. The need for digital communities has increased over time, the world learned from the 2020 global pandemic the true value of having a solid digital community. As a result, we’ve seen a major shift and investment toward digital spaces, especially as more people continue to work from home. In these changing times, companies need to maintain a strong digital presence to keep employees and end-users engaged. And this is no different from the Open source space since the bulk of work is done digitally. Truth is, the companies that will prevail will be the ones that are focused on investing in the future. That future is community.
In conclusion, a community manager is an essential component of any successful open-source project. These are just a few of the many benefits a community manager can bring to an open-source project. If you are an open-source project owner or maintainer, hire a community manager today to help manage your project and build a thriving community around it.
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