Some procedures for handling and closing ISSUEs

Hi Team,


ISSUEs formalise specific questions under discussion in the group.

In order to ensure that we are all on the same page and continue to 
operate smoothly,
I would like to give some info/background on handling of ISSUES.

Questions/feedback is welcome!


Regards,
matthias

--------------------------------------------

STATE of an ISSUE: Each issue has a status that can be
   RAISED: Someone (anyone) believes that this is a topic to discuss
   OPEN: Questions/topics under active discussion
   PENDING_REVIEW: The discussion has concluded and a proposed 
resolution is on the table
   CLOSED: We accepted the proposed resolution
   POSTPONED: We decided not to discuss this issue at this point in time.

GENERAL:
1. - Issues should usually only be closed if there is an documented 
proposal that does not trigger sustained and substantiated objections 
(i.e., everyone can live with this option).
2. - If this is not possible (i.e., none of the proposals is acceptable 
following point (1)), then the chairs may ask for input and decide
       [so far, we only needed executed (2) a single time]

ON OBJECTIONS
- Silence means agreement, i.e., if I ask for objections and nobody 
reponds, I assume agreement and consensus.
- Please only speak for yourself/ your organisation: Do not send emails 
like "I believe that Joe objects". I am likely to ignore such emails in 
the future.
   [Note:  It is OK to send wakeup emails behind the scenes ("hey joe, 
are you aware that Matthias is closing this issue")]
- Try to substantiate your objection/concern and indicate what changes 
you would like to see

CLOSING via EMAIL
- If I attempt to close issues via Email, I send an explicit email 
asking whether anyone sustains and substantiates an objections (the 
emails usually saying "Batch closing...")
- Usually, I only attempt this if I perceive sufficient agreement in the 
group (I may be wrong)
- If you believe further discussion is needed or that I misrepresented 
the status of this issue, please respond.

CLOSING at a F2F:
- We may decide to close issues during F2F meetings
- This will be reflected in the minutes
- In the future, I will do a better job informing all participants 
(e.g., my an email saying that we decided to close issues A, B, C)

Meaning of "CLOSED"
- Once an ISSUE is CLOSED, we believe that we have resolved the question 
at hand - either by answering it or it became irrelevant
- Usually, ISSUEs are only re-opened if we receive new information/insight
- You can still provide new insight / input / observations to convince 
the group to re-open an issue.

Received on Wednesday, 23 January 2013 08:48:21 UTC