OpenStack Project Technical Leads (PTLs)

I'd like to quickly precise what will be expected, from a release management perspective, from the Project Technical Leads (PTLs) some of us will nominate and elect in the following weeks.

PTLs, like it says on the tin, will have to technically lead each project. That comes with a few rights, but also with a lot of duties that the candidates shouldn't underestimate...

Rights include the ability to decide between conflicting opinions on a technical debate, or the authority to set the theme for the next release. Exercising those rights will only be possible if the technical opinions of the elected lead are widely respected in the project.

Duties of the PTLs, from a release management perspective, mainly include coming up with a plan for the next release(s). That means staying on top of what everyone proposes, selecting (and rejecting) blueprints for a given cycle, setting priorities, approving designs (potentially with the help of other project drivers), or making sure we don't duplicate work. The PTLs should also be very impacted by the design summit preparation, making sure we have sessions for what we need to discuss, and encouraging people to submit corresponding blueprints.

As release manager, I can help with the process, but the decisions must come from the PTLs, who have the legitimacy of being elected. During the cycle, I will then help in making sure the defined plan is on track.

With a well-established project like Swift or a relatively-small project like Glance, the PTL work can certainly be done at the same time as regular development. For Nova however, the PTL should expect project coordination work to take a large part of his time, so he could find himself not being able to write as much code as he would want. That should be kept in mind before you accept nominations :)

Hoping this helps in clarifying expectations... Happy nominating and voting !