Title: Discussion: How to handle conflict of interest situations Author: Timi Wahalahti Published: August 15, 2019 --- [ ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [Timi Wahalahti](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) 5:48 am _on_ August 15, 2019   # Discussion: How to handle conflict of interest situations Recently, I realized that communtity organizers do sometimes face conflict of interest situations ,but the team does not really have clear guidelines about how to avoid them, nor best practices for when there is one. To give an example of my idea about what kind of conflict of interest situation we might have: Digory is from Narnia. They are also Community Team DeputyProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/)., MeetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face- to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). and WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). organizer. Someone who has been working with Digory in previous WordCamp team, applies to have WordCamp Archenland _(_[_a city in Narnia_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narnia_%28world%29#Archenland)_)_. Digory notices the application and does the vetting for it. Another example: Eustace works for Acme Inc., and is also a WordPress Meetup organizer in the city of Harfang. Now Acme Inc. would like to sponsor meetupsMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). in Harfang and pay for the delicious baked apples served to attendees. Sometimes it is necessary that a person close to the situation (part of the local community, for example), is involved. But sometimes, that person might be just too close to the situation or to others who are involved or impacted. I’d like us to have a discussion about few questions; 1. What different kinds of conflict of interest situations we have now and what we might encounter in the future? 2. How to work around those? 3. Can we accept the conflict of interest in some situations? 4. What would be the best approach to disclose situations where someone notices a conflict of interest? This is a large topic, but very important considering the future of our growing Community program and how it will look. That’s why I’m asking everyone to take a good long time to think about the possible situations, consider them, and discuss in the comments. Commenting will be open until September 9th, after which I will draft a proposal about handling conflict of interest situations, or publish a new blog post for further discussion. ### Share this: * [ Threads ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=threads) * [ Mastodon ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=mastodon) * [ Bluesky ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=bluesky) * [ Facebook ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=facebook) * [ X ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=x) * [ LinkedIn ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?share=linkedin) * [Login to Reply](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fmake.wordpress.org%2Fcommunity%2F2019%2F08%2F15%2Fdiscussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations%2F%23respond&locale=en_US) 1. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f98513a1df4f806f7a19678341f9bc8a6957f9cb7b2974f509a3e2bd063dc2e7? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 2. [remediosgraphic](https://profiles.wordpress.org/remediosgraphic/) 11:25 pm _on_ August 15, 2019 3. In the first situation (Narnia), when a deputyProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). vett a event, several deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters ( formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). are involved, is always open on central and notes are added to the instance, finally the majority of deputies usually ask for second opinions and after that events are approved or rejected. My personal opinion is that vetting a event that is organized by the same deputy is not very transparent unless there is a barrier to language or communication. Now take into account that Narnia as a large region may have other sub regions, land of elves, humans, centaurs. If any region has a deputy with some experience and this adds notes or redflags in the event, these should be considered thoroughly, as she or he is a person directly involved in the local community, culture and reality of the region. If any other deputy who has never been in Narnia or close, does not believe that in the work of his partner and does not agree with the contributions of his colleagues (the application may have more than one deputy involved) and decide to take a diferent action to the recommended, It will be better to make a clear rule that no deputy of narnia can comment on a local event. So, noone from the United States can vett an event in the United States, or as applicable. So you as deputy know what to expect and avoid conflicts. Now in the second situation, there are currently a lot of community members sponsored by companies that live from the WordPress ecosystem. Not admitting a meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). organizer, camp organizer or contributor, would leave the project abandoned, just take a look on the actual chapter of community leads (super deputiesProgram Manager Program Managers (formerly Super Deputies) are Program Supporters who can perform extra tasks on WordCamp.org like creating new sites and publishing WordCamps to the schedule.) 85% of them are 100% sponsored by one company or another. What I think is important is to analyze the behavior of this members and the companies, how much control they exercise over the meetup, camp, or the same WP .org and if their employees work for the common interest of the community or the interest of the company itself . I believe that as a community we should have a regulatory body that is diverse, inclusive and efficient so that the minimum action taken in favor of a company can be identified (clear corruption) and take action on the consequences that these companies or representatives should have when incurring a dishonest act like favoring Acme Inc. 4. > What different kinds of conflict of interest situations we have now and what > we might encounter in the future? > How to work around those? Can we accept the > conflict of interest in some situations? What would be the best approach to > disclose situations where someone notices a conflict of interest? 5. 1 – We can’t imagine how many conflict we can find, it will be a very long and restrictive list. 2 – We can work on some governance and have a inclusive, diverse and open group, not the same from the last 10 years, new blood it will be good. no more than 25% of one specific company, this will create a conflict. 3 – Accept conflict of interest is accept corruption, there should be just one goal, the benefit of the community. 4 – No idea what would be a good approach to disclose situations where someone notices a conflict of interest, but we as group should work on this. 6. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/15c1992340b393e287c6050901b6c4a5a10204d854c84ee8be6be84aca77de95? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Timi Wahalahti](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) 7:02 am _on_ August 16, 2019 * > In the first situation (Narnia), when a deputyProgram Supporter Community > Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who > review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep > things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in > our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). > vett a event, several deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters( > formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and > Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at > WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). > are involved, is always open on central and notes are added to the instance, > finally the majority of deputies usually ask for second opinions and after > that events are approved or rejected. > […] It will be better to make a clear > rule that no deputy of narnia can comment on a local event. * I think commenting to the application from the viewpoint of knowing the local community is sometimes very valuable, because like you said, there might be a language barrier sometimes for example. So I wouldn’t ban comments. * But instead, should it be mandatory to ask the second opinion if the WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). or meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). application is from the same region or otherwise close to the deputy? * > just take a look on the actual chapter of community leads (super deputiesProgram > Manager Program Managers (formerly Super Deputies) are Program Supporters > who can perform extra tasks on WordCamp.org like creating new sites and publishing > WordCamps to the schedule.) 85% of them are 100% sponsored by one company > or another. * _Full disclosure: I’m super deputyProgram Manager Program Managers (formerly Super Deputies) are Program Supporters who can perform extra tasks on WordCamp. org like creating new sites and publishing WordCamps to the schedule., but not 100% sponsored._ * [Super deputy](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/the-deputy-program/super-deputies/) is not a community lead. It’s just a role with few extra capabilities on wordcamp. org, like creating new WordCamp sites, adding WordCamps to schedule and work on various things that organizers sometimes need help with their site. * > I believe that as a community we should have a regulatory body that is diverse, > inclusive and efficient * Do you mean that we should have this kind of board inside the community team( which my post is about) or in WordPress project in general? As a project, there is a movement happening to more that way, check [this](https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2019/07/23/proposal-a-wordpress-advisory-board/) post from Josepha. - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 12: 32 pm _on_ August 16, 2019 - > I believe that as a community we should have a regulatory body that is > diverse, inclusive and efficient - > Do you mean that we should have this kind of board inside the community > team (which my post is about) or in WordPress project in general? As a > project, there is a movement happening to more that way, check this post > from Josepha. - The Advisory Board concept that Josepha’s post refers to — at least as I understand it — would **not** be a regulatory body. I think the purpose of that Advisory Board is to share information and insight with project leadership, to better inform short-term decisions or long-term strategy. - [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) if you intended, in your post, to call for the formation a group that would review & clear possible conflicts of interest… then I missed it in the post. 🙂 It’s an interesting idea, but I’m not sure we’ve established that there’s enough of a wide-scale problem to warrant a dedicated group just to address this issue long-term. But maybe if we create some clear documentation on how to recognize, avoid, and navigate conflicts of interest, we’ll fine that we have a much bigger problem than we think! * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/15c1992340b393e287c6050901b6c4a5a10204d854c84ee8be6be84aca77de95? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Timi Wahalahti](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) 8:57 am _on_ August 17, 2019 * > The Advisory Board concept that Josepha’s post refers to — at least > as I understand it — would not be a regulatory body. * You are correct. I’ve should have worded the comment a bit differently to avoid possible misunderstanding. * > @sippis if you intended, in your post, to call for the formation a > group that would review & clear possible conflicts of interest… then > I missed it in the post. * Nope, I didn’t. I think we don’t need a group or board with that kind of assignment. * > But maybe if we create some clear documentation on how to recognize, > avoid, and navigate conflicts of interest, we’ll fine that we have > a much bigger problem than we think! * I hope we won’t find that, even if we create documentation for conflict of interest situations. My intention is to think about possible situations, ways to navigate those and write some kind of documentation, targeted especially for organizers. I think the deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). have situations covered quite well, as said before. - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f98513a1df4f806f7a19678341f9bc8a6957f9cb7b2974f509a3e2bd063dc2e7? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [remediosgraphic](https://profiles.wordpress.org/remediosgraphic/) 8:13 pm _on_ August 16, 2019 - > Full disclosure: I’m super deputyProgram Manager Program Managers (formerly > Super Deputies) are Program Supporters who can perform extra tasks on > WordCamp.org like creating new sites and publishing WordCamps to the schedule., > but not 100% sponsored. - I know i mention 85% based on this list: [@francina](https://profiles.wordpress.org/francina/), [@hlashbrooke](https://profiles.wordpress.org/hlashbrooke/), [@kcristiano](https://profiles.wordpress.org/kcristiano/), [@camikaos](https://profiles.wordpress.org/camikaos/), [@bph](https://profiles.wordpress.org/bph/), [@_dorsvenabili](https://profiles.wordpress.org/_dorsvenabili/), [@andreamiddleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) [https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/06/17/deputy-discussions-raising-concerns-and-resolving-issues/](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/06/17/deputy-discussions-raising-concerns-and-resolving-issues/) * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a7873a730eebbbf667e941eaefba2f3f16ee7fe49a5661507569ada7f46b94dc? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Birgit Pauli-Haack](https://profiles.wordpress.org/bph/) 6:07 pm _on_ October 6, 2019 * I am not a 100% sponsored. As an independent business owners, the time I spent on the WordPress projects is self-funded. * AFAIK [@kcristiano](https://profiles.wordpress.org/kcristiano/) is also self-funding his contributions to WordPress community. 7. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/5022aefae4facbf0d0992d39e0c5c109b942122c628aff8ad80908a02692bbdf? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 8. [Jenny Wong](https://profiles.wordpress.org/miss_jwo/) 6:08 am _on_ August 16, 2019 9. If I was from Narina, I would not review the application or comment on it. I may highlight that it needs attention if it has been sitting around for a while but ultimately I would ask another deputyProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters( formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). to approve it. 10. I also would do that for any location where I am close friends with the lead organisers, purely to be fair and ensure that my friendship does not cloud my judgement of the application. 11. I have in the past been asked for cultural context and character reference. When giving cultural context or character reference, i state clearly my relationship with the location or person. This way, the person making the judgement call can understand the context of the comments fully. 12. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f98513a1df4f806f7a19678341f9bc8a6957f9cb7b2974f509a3e2bd063dc2e7? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [remediosgraphic](https://profiles.wordpress.org/remediosgraphic/) 8:09 pm _on_ August 16, 2019 * this is the more transparent behavior, agree that vett your own city can cause a conflict. 13. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1dba75a903be8eb13bae6f961d81a99e5c76d5ca8c327a18bc25e96df2417b99? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 14. [Hugh Lashbrooke](https://profiles.wordpress.org/hlashbrooke/) 8:06 am _on_ August 16, 2019 15. I see it similar to what [@miss_jwo](https://profiles.wordpress.org/miss_jwo/) is saying – I no longer vet, approve or do budget reviews for South African WordCamps( even if they’re not in the same city as me) – partly because I’m actually friends with many of the organisers, and also because I’m biased towards events in our country. My personal bias may cloud my judgement, but another reason is that on paper it can look bad even if I have been 100% impartial. 16. So if WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). Johannesburg (for example) gets given a much higher community sponsorship grant than they should have been granted, if I’m the one who did it then it looks like obvious favouritism, even if it was just an honest mistake. 17. I would happily give cultural/contextual info on a South African camp, but it’s too much of a perceived conflict for me to be involved in the decision-making seat for them. 18. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f98513a1df4f806f7a19678341f9bc8a6957f9cb7b2974f509a3e2bd063dc2e7? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [remediosgraphic](https://profiles.wordpress.org/remediosgraphic/) 8:10 pm _on_ August 16, 2019 * 100% agree vett your city is not good practice, maybe a comment and talk with other deputyProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). if they have a urgent request. 19. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/15c1992340b393e287c6050901b6c4a5a10204d854c84ee8be6be84aca77de95? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 20. [Timi Wahalahti](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) 8:19 am _on_ August 16, 2019 21. Thank you for your input [@miss_jwo](https://profiles.wordpress.org/miss_jwo/) and [@hlashbrooke](https://profiles.wordpress.org/hlashbrooke/)! 22. As you both feel that you should not be involved in processes (vetting, budget, etc) that are too close to you, I want ask that do you also think we should make this a rule or trust to deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters( formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). recognize the situations themselves (as we kinda do now)? 23. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c5545907b74e7769b1db330c1bec48f2c94930e99e6f2f51eaff3b3df9ce2d8b? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 24. [Aditya Kane](https://profiles.wordpress.org/adityakane/) 4:20 pm _on_ August 16, 2019 25. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) I think we need to trust deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). to recognise the situations to some degree, as we do tend to use trust as almost a default while giving admin rights. 26. Also we need to be mindful that the longer one has been a deputyProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). and active in the community, the more likely they know a larger number of people. 27. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/fa1675858df18178ecaee955ff16f29142492a5d2973b6461c11d4675f6db69f? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 28. [Morten Rand-Hendriksen](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/) 2:11 pm _on_ August 17, 2019 29. To be able.to make guidelines around how to handle conflicts of interest, we must first define what constitutes conflict of interest in the WordPress community. As far as I know we do not have a conflict of interest policy nor any kind of document clearly defining what is and is not a conflict of interest. Additionally, policy is needed to clearly define who (people, roles, or groups) has power to enforce such a conflict of interest policy, how this is done in a transparent way, how judgements and enforcement can be challenged if it is perceived as unfair, and how conflicts of interest within the enforcement group is handled. 30. Without all of those things in place, it is hard to place any kind of validity on conflict of interest enforcement, and we find ourselves less in Narnia than in the land of moral relativism. 31. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f98513a1df4f806f7a19678341f9bc8a6957f9cb7b2974f509a3e2bd063dc2e7? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [remediosgraphic](https://profiles.wordpress.org/remediosgraphic/) 7:09 pm _on_ August 19, 2019 * based on previous post: [@francina](https://profiles.wordpress.org/francina/), [@hlashbrooke](https://profiles.wordpress.org/hlashbrooke/), [@kcristiano](https://profiles.wordpress.org/kcristiano/), [@camikaos](https://profiles.wordpress.org/camikaos/), [@bph](https://profiles.wordpress.org/bph/), [@_dorsvenabili](https://profiles.wordpress.org/_dorsvenabili/), [@andreamiddleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) are the highly experienced deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters( formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/). we can contact for advice, a second opinion, or to raise a concern. So they are the ones, that know what can be a conflict or not. I have been around + 5 years and i never read any doc about this specific rules. To be honest i find some rules are flexible based on this members decisions. ( i assume they are the top level reps, based on the time they have been around, also as some of them are the ones that work over finances, Camp budgets, payments, etc.) - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/fa1675858df18178ecaee955ff16f29142492a5d2973b6461c11d4675f6db69f? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Morten Rand-Hendriksen](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/) 4:53 pm _on_ August 20, 2019 - I don’t doubt the expertise of anyone involved. What I’m questioning is the lack of an official policy around these issues. Without an established and well-documented policy, any adjudication of conflict of interest becomes ad-hoc or based on the opinions and/or institutional knowledge of those involved in the decision making process. This results in decisions being made on a case-by-case basis without a guarantee of consistency. It also makes it hard for community members to know whether they are in a conflict of interest scenario, and the community cannot discuss what “conflict of interest” means to the community in a constructive way. tl;dr: It’s impossible to enforce a policy if no policy exists. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/15c1992340b393e287c6050901b6c4a5a10204d854c84ee8be6be84aca77de95? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Timi Wahalahti](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) 6:45 am _on_ August 21, 2019 * > What I’m questioning is the lack of an official policy around these > issues. Without an established and well-documented policy, any adjudication > of conflict of interest becomes ad-hoc or based on the opinions and/ > or institutional knowledge of those involved in the decision making > process. * Point of this discussion is to find and identify the conflict of interest situations, so we can make some kind of official policy around those for Community Team. Not for the whole WordPress community, at least not at this moment. 32. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e72fc188fab919764f6350b64bcdb4393b1a7a9b8b88129fa59f57967b841a90? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 33. [Alex Sirota](https://profiles.wordpress.org/asirota/) 8:18 pm _on_ August 19, 2019 34. Conflicts of interest are almost always financially-related situations and are dealt with well documented policies with specific definitions of what conflict of interest is in a context of an organization or project, examples of conflicts to illustrate interpretation, recusation positions, and due diligence reviews. Some organizations even put up a database that can be reviewed for potential conflicts. This is well-trodden territory that has many examples that can be reused. One complication in WordPress is non-financial conflicts of interest where volunteers are in conflict. That makes it a bit more complex. 35. I recently took a stab at drafting a WordPress-oriented conflict of interest policy as part of the WordPress Governance project. I don’t think it’s ready to be shared by any means, but if you have interest head on over to wpgovernance.com and join the [slack ](https://wpgovernance.com/get-involved/)there. 36. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 6:11 pm _on_ August 21, 2019 * Because event organizing is one of the few WordPress contributor roles that involves a financial component, we definitely need to identify financially- related conflicts of interest. WordPress events also deal in some other currencies, like status and influence, and avoiding someone unfairly hoarding those less- quantifiable benefits might be a more challenging task, but worth the try. 🙂 37. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/fa1675858df18178ecaee955ff16f29142492a5d2973b6461c11d4675f6db69f? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 38. [Morten Rand-Hendriksen](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/) 5:01 pm _on_ August 20, 2019 39. To move this conversation forward, and to clarify what is meant by a “Conflict of Interest Policy”, here’s a draft sketch of such a policy for the WordPress Open SourceOpen Source Open Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source** must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL. Project created by some members of the Governance Project. The text is modified from the WikiMedia Conflict of Interest policy. Wikimedia also has a “[Plain and simple Conflict of Interest Guide](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Plain_and_simple_conflict_of_interest_guide)” worth reading. 40. For clarity, this document is not a proposal, it is a working document to start a broader conversation about what a Conflict of Interest Policy can look like for the WordPress community. Comments are open and welcome. 41. [https://docs.google.com/document/d/15T5vtEP3_BMyvG_tMMAhPaaOGvG1aGsDyrOdGpTF80k/edit#](https://docs.google.com/document/d/15T5vtEP3_BMyvG_tMMAhPaaOGvG1aGsDyrOdGpTF80k/edit#) 42. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 6:05 pm _on_ August 21, 2019 * Thanks for sharing those resources, [@mor10](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/)! That Wikimedia example is **particularly** snazzy. I agree with the points in [your earlier comment](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/#comment-27220) as well — clearly identifying what would result in a conflict of interest for a WordPress community organizer is the very first step in identifying how to avoid or address one. 🙂 * Like most people in organizations that are growing, community team contributors have some “gut-reaction” style knowledge of what “doesn’t feel right” — unspoken norms — and I think that Timi is looking to collect some of those on this post. * The community team is no stranger to policies, so I’m confident we’ll end up with a formal-but-easy-to-understand policy in the end. - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e72fc188fab919764f6350b64bcdb4393b1a7a9b8b88129fa59f57967b841a90? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Alex Sirota](https://profiles.wordpress.org/asirota/) 6:23 pm _on_ August 21, 2019 - Thanks [@andreamiddleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/)! When I started to alter the Wikimedia Conflict of Interest policy for the WordPress project it struck me how similar the Wikimedia Foundation/Wikipedia is to the model of the WordPress FoundationWordPress Foundation The WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, GPL software. Find more on [wordpressfoundation.org](https://wordpressfoundation.org/)./ WordPress. I started thinking of WordPress as an “encylopedia” of CMSs. - There are some really well put together clauses in the WikiMedia conflict of interest policy including discerning between bias and a conflict of interest. There is also a very simple statement about “paid” editors of Wikipedia articles. - > The Wikimedia Foundation’s terms of use require that editors who are being > paid for their contributions disclose their employer (the person or organization > who is paying for the edits); the client (the person or organization on > whose behalf the edits are made); and any other relevant affiliation. > This is the policy of the English Wikipedia. - Basically if you are paid for Wikipedia contributions you have to disclose the employer or client even if there isn’t a conflict. 43. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 44. [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 11:53 pm _on_ August 21, 2019 45. This is a really rich topic, [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/)! Thanks for raising these questions. 46. To be annoyingly formal, I’m going to define my terms: A [conflict of interest](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conflict_of_interest) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. This isn’t the same as [bias](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bias), which is disproportionate weight in favor of or against an idea or thing, usually in a way that is closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Both of these can crop up for community organizers. 47. Here are some real-life cases (other than those you mentioned above) where I have seen conflicts of interest arise: 48. a. A community organizer includes a pitch for the new business or service they’re starting up, in an email to the entire meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally- organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis( commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). group. b. A community organizer selects a speaker who talks about a product/company for which the organizer is an affiliate. c. A WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). organizer accepts a speaker’s application because they are applying for a job at that speaker’s company and want the speaker to recommend them to the hiring manager. d. A WordCamp organizer selects a t-shirt vendor that a family member owns, even though their price is not lowest. e. A meetup organizer schedules a “workshop” event in which the participants are asked to test a new product that the organizer’s company will soon be releasing for sale. 49. Most of the time, when advising organizers about how to manage a situation in which there is a conflict of interest, we rely on our stand-by tools of transparency and openness. Occasionally, we’ll recommend that an organizer avoid being involved in a certain decision for conflict of interest reasons (this is why it’s so good to have teams). 50. Many of the recommendations and expectations in our handbooks arose as a way to make conflicts of interest less common, but I think it would be really helpful to have a clear policy about conflicts of interest — something very similar to Wikimedia’s [summary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Plain_and_simple_conflict_of_interest_guide#Summary) with some examples of ways to avoid the more common ones, and information on how to report a conflict of interest that you find concerning. 51. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/fa1675858df18178ecaee955ff16f29142492a5d2973b6461c11d4675f6db69f? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 52. [Morten Rand-Hendriksen](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/) 12:06 am _on_ August 22, 2019 53. > Many of the recommendations and expectations in our handbooks arose as a way > to make conflicts of interest less common 54. [@andreamiddleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) Can you link to the handbooks you mention, ideally to the Conflict of Interest sections, for reference? And maybe also expand on how the handbook recommendations came about, what principles they are based on, and where those principles are defined (if they are)? 55. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e72fc188fab919764f6350b64bcdb4393b1a7a9b8b88129fa59f57967b841a90? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Alex Sirota](https://profiles.wordpress.org/asirota/) 5:59 pm _on_ August 22, 2019 * [@mor10](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mor10/) – the 5 good faith rules on the [meetup organizer handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/meetup-program-basics/#the-five-good-faith-rules) encourage avoiding a conflict of interest, but definitely do not specifically illustrate what a conflict of interest is. * This first rule definitely articulates the spirit avoiding conflict of interest. * > WordPress MeetupsMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get > together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). > Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). > are for the benefit of the WordPress community as a whole, not specific businesses > or individuals. * Much of what I read about WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). organizing and meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). organizing are written in the spirt of “thou shalt do” rather than “thou shall not do.” Once you identify what not to do, it becomes quite easy for individuals to say “well you said not to do that, but I am doing this instead and it should be ok.” A conflict of interest policy definitely is a set of prescriptive policies, no doubt. - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 10: 06 pm _on_ August 26, 2019 - Alex is correct in everything above; the [meetup](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/welcome/) and [WordCamp organizer](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/wordcamp-organizer/welcome/) handbooks are strongly focused on recommending, not forbidding, behavior and techniques. As such, there aren’t any conflict of interest sections, per se. 🙂 - We have a set of principles enumerated in [our deputy training course](https://community-self-training.mystagingwebsite.com/course/wordpress-community-deputy-training/), under the section “The values of the WordPress project: theory and practice.” This course is public but not required for community organizers, just would- be deputiesProgram Supporter Community Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our [Program Supporter Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/community-deputy/).. - One of where the handbook recommends organizers a practice which helps to avoid conflict of interests becoming a problem would be recruiting WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). organizers from all parts of the local community, not just your own business: [https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/wordcamp-organizer/first-steps/the-organizing-team/](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/wordcamp-organizer/first-steps/the-organizing-team/) - That said… I’ve advised on potential conflicts of interest on a 1:1 basis for so many years that I confess, I was surprised to see some of my standard advice _isn’t_ in either organizer handbook! So we definitely have a ways to go here. - One example of this responsive advice that has become a standard for many deputies is around the issue I raised above: what if a community organizer wants to tell the community about a new business or service they’re starting up? Is that allowed? Is there a way to do it that doesn’t benefit the individual over the group? How can you tell? - The answer I always give in that case = most people in local WordPress communities are interested in new WordPress-related developments and happenings in their community. If there is genuine community-based interest in “local WordPress and meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). member news,” then determine how the community wants to get that news — in opening remarks at an event, via a monthly email, on the message boards, on social media, whatever — and then post clear guidelines for what kind of info is appropriate for sharing and/or have an open and transparent way to submit news items for the organizing team to transmit. By relying on the principles of transparency and open access, we can ensure that anyone in the group can share interesting news to others in the group, without it seeming like a marketing channel for the organizer(s) or a benefit that some in the group can enjoy but others can’t. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/5e2aa598b8105c2eca232e09e5f998015a00a615386a8d60430001e02a600673? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Jonathan Wold](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sirjonathan/) 7:28 pm _on_ September 4, 2019 * I just want to add how important it seems to me to work as a community to support the documenting and passing down of the insights gained by folks like yourself and others who have invested so much time and care into the project. * Also, in my experience, this work of documentation can often be made a _bit_ lighter on the subject matter expert (e.g. you in this case) by someone else leading the documentation work and acting as a gatherer of insights / perspective. If it’s at all helpful I’m happy to be a part of such an effort! 56. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/5e2aa598b8105c2eca232e09e5f998015a00a615386a8d60430001e02a600673? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 57. [Jonathan Wold](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sirjonathan/) 7:23 pm _on_ September 4, 2019 58. After reviewing the discussion and the draft policy referenced by Morten and Alex, the question I have is: what’s the problem we’re trying to solve here? 59. That is to say, the conflict of interest topic seems important and I imagine that there _is_ a problem to solve. Exactly what the problem is, though, feels unclear to me. 60. The Wikipedia definition Andrea referenced is a starting point: 61. > A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization > is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest > could involve working against another. 62. Based on that definition and my understanding so far, aspects of the problem as I see it include: 63. * As the Community project / team grows, so do concerns about conflicts of interest regarding decisions made within the Community project / team * These concerns affect the confidence and trust in the Community project / team on the part of participants and observers * Negative outcomes (e.g. abuses of power, actions taken in conflict of interest) hurt the mission of the Community project / team 64. Accordingly, my current best take on defining the problem is: 65. _As the Community project / team grows so do the risks for conflicts of interests and the potential for negative impact to the project. _ 66. The problem, then, as I understand it is risk. Conflict of interest is an area of risk to the overall health of the project and, accordingly, worth addressing. 67. [@Timi](https://profiles.wordpress.org/timi/) or anyone else reviewing – Do you agree? Is this the problem here one of risk to the project or something else entirely? 68. If we’re agreed it’s risk, then I’d love to gain insight into understanding the level of risk and a clear understanding of the potential ramifications (e.g. consequences of not mitigating the risks). 69. I’m in favor of the idea of having a policy covering conflict of interests. I’d just like to make sure I understand the problem we’re solving so I can weigh in accordingly and know best what I can do as an individual to help. ### Leave a Reply 󠀁[Cancel reply](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/discussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations/?output_format=md#respond)󠁿 You must be [logged in](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fmake.wordpress.org%2Fcommunity%2F2019%2F08%2F15%2Fdiscussion-how-to-handle-conflict-of-interest-situations%2F&locale=en_US) to post a comment. # Post navigation [← Organizer Best Practices: How to address panic](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/organizer-best-practices-how-to-address-panic/) [Advisory for wire transfers to Canada →](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2019/08/15/advisory-for-wire-transfers-to-canada/)