<Trying to imagine if he could be any more excited about this news.>

Nope - even with my wild imagination - it is simply not possible for me to be 
more pleased and excited by this news!!!

Congratulations, Katherine! I think this is fantastic news for the Foundation 
and movement!

-greg (User:Varnent)


> On Jun 24, 2016, at 4:56 PM, Peter Southwood <peter.southw...@telkomsa.net> 
> wrote:
> 
> Looks like a good choice. 
> 
> Good luck, Katherine
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Peter
> 
> 
> 
> From: WikimediaAnnounce-l 
> [mailto:wikimediaannounce-l-boun...@lists.wikimedia.org] On Behalf Of 
> Patricio Lorente
> Sent: Friday, 24 June 2016 11:16 AM
> To: wikimediaannounc...@lists.wikimedia.org
> Subject: [Wikimedia Announcements] Board appointment of Executive Director
> 
> 
> 
> Dear all, 
> 
> 
> 
> It is our great pleasure to share that during the Board meeting at Wikimania 
> 2016 in Esino Lario, we unanimously voted to appoint Katherine Maher as 
> Executive Director of the Wikimedia Foundation. This is effective as of our 
> resolution dated Thursday, 23 June. 
> 
> 
> 
> Katherine served as interim Executive Director for the past three months, 
> during which time she consistently and repeatedly demonstrated the kind of 
> leadership our organization needs. She is deeply committed to our movement’s 
> values, and brings expertise in civic technology and international 
> development that will be an asset to the Wikimedia Foundation and the 
> movement.
> 
> 
> 
> We came to this conclusion after an intensive discovery process led by the ED 
> search committee. Our decision was also informed by direct feedback from 
> staff and community, and our own experience working closely with Katherine. 
> 
> 
> 
> In March, we assembled an Executive Director search committee[1] consisting 
> of four Board members¹ who were chosen to represent different perspectives 
> and capacities.² Additionally, the Board asked the Foundation’s Chief 
> Advancement Officer Lisa Gruwell to represent the executive team, and 
> Foundation staff member Katie Horn was selected by her peers as someone who 
> could represent staff perspectives. The committee was charged with keeping 
> the process on track and on time, engaging important stakeholders, and 
> facilitating transparency in communications. Their first tasks were to 
> identify a search firm, and define the position description. You can review 
> the committee’s updates on Meta.[2]
> 
> 
> 
> The committee recruited Viewcrest Advisors,³ to identify our leadership needs 
> and design a hiring process. Kathleen Yazbak of Viewcrest worked with the 
> committee to conduct interviews with every Foundation department, the 
> executive, the Board, and nearly 20 additional one-on-one interviews with 
> staff. Kathleen attended the Wikimedia Conference in Berlin, collecting 
> feedback from community members and affiliates. The committee launched a 
> community survey in June, receiving more than 1,600 responses about the 
> qualities needed in the next ED; they also asked for feedback on Meta.[3] 
> Taking all of this into account, the transition team developed a profile and 
> requirements for the next Executive Director that reflect our values and our 
> communities.
> 
> 
> 
> Throughout this process, the Board and the transition team received very 
> clear and often unsolicited feedback from both staff and community members 
> that Katherine embodies the values of our movement and the traits needed in 
> our next ED. This feedback was only reinforced by the latest Foundation 
> engagement survey results, which showed a strong shift toward renewed trust 
> in leadership. After taking this all into account, and considering what the 
> organization needs at this moment of transition, we moved to appoint 
> Katherine now. 
> 
> 
> 
> In just three months as interim ED, Katherine worked with the organization 
> and community to make huge strides in management, execution, and 
> transparency. She brought much-needed clarity to our strategic direction, and 
> mobilized the organization to clearly communicate that direction through this 
> year’s annual plan. 
> 
> 
> 
> After her appointment, she worked with the leadership team to swiftly 
> identify the organization’s priorities during the transition period and 
> execute against them, setting ambitious but reachable targets. Under 
> Katherine’s leadership, the Foundation submitted its annual plan to the Funds 
> Dissemination Committee, leaving ample time for community feedback and 
> discussion.
> 
> 
> 
> Katherine is an excellent fit for our movement. She is longtime advocate for 
> global open communities, culture, and technology. She was the Foundation’s 
> Chief Communications Officer from April 2014 until she was appointed interim 
> ED in March. Throughout her career she has focused on freedom of expression, 
> access to information, and digital rights; supporting the efforts of people 
> around the world to deepen participation, advance transparency, and 
> strengthen their communities through her work with UNICEF, National 
> Democratic Institute for International Affairs, and the World Bank.  If you 
> don’t already know Katherine, you can learn more about her on Meta.[4]
> 
> 
> 
> With this appointment, we feel strongly that the Foundation has the 
> leadership and clarity to move forward. We wish Katherine the very best in 
> this role, and the Board looks forward to continuing to work with her. 
> 
> 
> 
> We would also like to thank the many community members and Foundation staff 
> who actively shared thoughtful, highly valuable feedback. Without that, we 
> would not have been able to come to this decision.
> 
> 
> 
> Please join us in congratulating Katherine!
> 
> 
> 
> Patricio Lorente, outgoing Board Chair 
> 
> Christophe Henner, incoming Board Chair 
> 
> 
> 
> 1.    Alice Wiegand (Committee Chair), Dariusz Jemielniak, Guy Kawasaki, 
> Kelly Battles. 
> 
> 2.    For example, community and governance experience, appointed and 
> community-selected seats, and US and non-US perspectives.
> 
> 3.    The committee reviewed 7 different firms and unanimously picked 
> Viewcrest. 
> 
> 
> 
>  _____  
> 
> 
> 
> [1]  
> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016>
>  
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016
> 
> [2 ] 
> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016/Updates>
>  
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016/Updates
> 
> [3]  
> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016/Community_input>
>  
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Executive_Director_Transition_Team/2016/Community_input
> 
> [4]  <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Katherine_(WMF)> 
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Katherine_(WMF) 
> 
> -- 
> 
> 
> 
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