How do you lead software teams where everyone is a volunteer, can't commit for long periods, and new people join all the time? Here are 14 leaderships hacks we use at http://OpenOakland.org at our civic hack nights. We build apps that make the lives of Oaklanders better and help Oakland City Hall innovate. Over pizza.

1. OpenOakland leadership
14 Volunteer Experience choices you might see at
OpenOakland Civic Hack Nights in 2015
Phil Wolff"
@evanwolf, OpenOakland.org, pwolff@gmail.com

2. Geeky, digital DIY, service minded, "
Civic Hacker volunteers

4. Builds apps like a studio"
Fosters innovation like an incubator

5. Geeky, digital DIY,
service minded, "
Civic Hacker
volunteers
Builds apps like a studio"
Fosters innovation like an incubator

6. We build apps for the public
• About six a year
"
We host civic innovation events
• Hackathons
• CityCamp Unconference
• Regional Confabs

7. Startups – Lean, Fast, Growth
Maker Culture – DIY; Small, local, groups
Civic NGOs – Change that matters
Enterprise Tech – Adult supervision
Design Thinking – Empathy, Evidence
Occupy Oakland – Consensus, Action
Flavoring our culture

8. What will you see at a hack night?
We host 50 hack nights a year!

9. Buddy Leadership.
• People come and go. So it's a great idea to
share jobs.
• Especially leadership roles where others
depend on you.
• We've had co-captains from the start and
other roles have been shared.

10. Do-ocracy.
• We give respect and authority to those who
do something, to those who produce results.
• Very OccupyOakland (the other OO).

11. Adhocracy. Swarming.
• We'll form new teams at the drop-of-a-hat
(instantly, as needed).
• And disband just as fast when the need
passes.

12. Wirearchy.
• Adding new connectedness to our minimal
hierarchy.
• People connected by interests, by informal
relationships, by Community of Practice.
• Podularity.

13. Forgiveness.
• With a very few exceptions, we've stayed out
of trouble.
• When we do muck things up, we're a kind
and forgiving bunch. Error is part of learning.
• This lets people dive in without much fear,
tolerating risk.

14. Director of Joy.
• The person who makes everyone welcome,
who makes sure people are having fun, that
teams are clicking.
• Not a formal role (yet) but several of us
actually talk to newbies. #tummler

15. Goad.
• You know the guy behind you at the craps table
shouting in your ear to bet it all and roll the dice?
• We like those people.
• And the gamblers who roll the dice.
• We need volunteers to make lots of calculated
bets. "
This leads to learning and winning. "
Sometimes to loss (see forgiveness).
• Even better when tests produce actionable
knowledge. When learnings are shared. "
See institutional memory and community of
practice.

16. Less.
Big believers in doing less.
• We're volunteers, nearly all of us giving less
than three hours a week (one hack night).
Even together, that's not much time.
• So we're attracted to simple and small
projects, with clean edges and defined
releases. Something that can be finished.
• We appreciate teams saying “not now, some
day” to wishlists. So focus.

17. Caring more.
We respect the fervent.
• You may not be able to code
but you have passion for the
subject matter, enthusiasm for
solving problems, and a strong
will to make a difference.
• We love these people on teams;
harnessed to a work process,
they keep projects going
through the rough patches
when others might abandon
hope.

18. Design the role around the
person.
• Everyone is so different; nearly impossible to fit
someone into a predefined job description.
• So help them craft the role to suit their own idea
of the job, to exploit their strengths, sidestep their
weaknesses, pique their interests, and build their
professional capacities.
• They are happier, do more, and their work makes
more sense.

19. The volunteer is the customer.
• to make a difference as an Oaklander,
• to belong to something larger,
• to learn through action,
• to accomplish and feel proud,
• to amplify their hopes and dreams,
• to build relationship capital,
• to be more effective together than on their own,
• to have fun doing it.
What they're “buying” with their time and talent
is the ability…

20. The volunteer is the customer.
Designing the volunteer experiences –
our meetings, our projects, our ways of
working – for the volunteer ensures we're
able to help Oakland innovate, solve
problems, and do the other lovely things
we accomplish together.

21. We compete for volunteer time
every week.
• We’re not the only place in town.
• Minecraft beckons. So does every other way
to volunteer. Or entrepreneurial side projects.
• We must be a more convenient, productive,
enjoyable, meaningful way to spend scarce
disposable time.

22. Minimize volunteers’ "
cognitive burden.
• Be the High Signal organization.
• Avoid adding too many communication channels "
(or communications).
• Avoid wasting time on less-productive activities.
• Hide organizational sausage-making unless they
express a strong desire to know.
• This makes backchannels and private email/slack
threads the norm for project, functional team, and
organizational work.

23. Feed the people.
• You can’t meet for hours after work without
feeding the volunteers.
• Pizza, burritos, tacos, and candy on the menu.
Mostly pizza.
• Eating is social, vital for newbies, "
great for informal statusing
• Our Pizza Pro Forma calculator.

24. This is just part of our truth
• Still learning
• Not consensus
• Stream is never the
same twice
• We’re very f2f for a
tech/innovation group
• We’re affected by
changes to Oakland
• Economy
• Culture
• Government

25. To recap…
• Buddy
Leadership
• Doöcracy
• Adhocracy/
Swarming
• Wirearchy
• Forgiveness
• Director of Joy
• Goad
• Less
• Caring More
• Design the role
around the
person
• The Volunteer Is
The Customer
• Compete For
Volunteer Time/
Attention
• Get Out Of The
Way
• Feed the people

26. OpenOakland leadership
Phil Wolff "
@evanwolf pwolff@gmail.com OpenOakland.org
Caveats lector: My observations alone, may not represent the opinions of OO.