Open Stack

> Mark wrote: 
>
> Defining which companies have made a "strategic commitment" to
> OpenStack is really tough. Is it based on the funding provided?
> The number of employees dedicated? The impact of those employees?
> How do we take into account the size of the company? How do we
> value contributions to the ecosystem or the marketing of the
> project? How do we do all that while keeping the numbers down to
> 6-8 without appearing to undervalue the contributions of some?


Yep, the danger here is shutting out smaller companies which may
have made a lesser contribution in absolute terms, but are still
being disportionately impactful compared to their size and the
resources available to them.

Ways to avoid that kind of shut-out might include:

- reserving say 1-2 strategic board seats for the representatives
  of small-to-medium-sized contributors (self-defined as such)

- allowing smaller contributors to pool their influence, partner
  up and leverage their aggregate "weight" in order to gain a board
  seat between them, giving voice to their common positions/concerns 

Cheers,
Eoghan