#release-private slack channel

[steering]

Hello SIG Release folks,

It’s come to our attention that there is a private slack channel “#release-private” that may not be in line with our policy on Slack channels.

In reviewing the history of this channel, it appears that it was originally created in 2019 for the purpose of coordinating embargoed security releases. This function seems to be superseded by the #security-release-team channel now and has for some time.

As a matter of policy, we don’t permit private channels unless absolutely necessary for a number of key reasons:

• Code of Conduct enforcement is difficult in private channels due to the nature and limitations of Slack as a tool
• Private channels work against our values of inclusivity. They tend to create “in groups” or “cliques” within the broader project which can lead to contributors not feeling their opinions are valued or considered.
• Decision making in private prevents healthy debate on an issue and doesn’t allow for a transparent understanding of how decisions are made.

Recent discussions in this channel, including things like enhancement liaisons or moving the enhancements freeze deadline are beyond the original approved intent of this channel.

As this Slack channel is not in line with our Slack guidelines and is no longer serving its original intent, the Steering Committee would ask that SIG Release engage the Slack Admin team at your earliest convenience and request that the channel be archived.

We hope that these types of conversations will not just move from one private venue to another. We would like these conversations to be moved into the open, in support of those project values.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

Regards,
The Kubernetes Steering Committee

Christoph Blecker
Derek Carr
Bob Killen
Jordan Liggitt
Paris Pittman
Nikhita Raghunath
Davanum Srinivas

[Stephen Augustus]

Hi Steering,

I'm running between a few things to tie off the week, so I can't respond to this in the detail I would like at the moment.

I guess my question to Steering is "Do we feel there was an opportunity to discuss with SIG Release leads in a psychologically safe way instead of calling us on the carpet on a public mailing list?".

-- Stephen

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[sig-release-leads]

Steering Committee,

SIG Release would like to respond to the matter concerning the use of a private Slack channel for release-related discussions:

• SIG Release acknowledges that the use of a private Slack channel to conduct release-related discussions was not in accordance with the Kubernetes Slack policy and project governance.
• SIG Release acknowledges that the use of this channel for discussions that could have otherwise been handled in a public venue undermines community trust and limits community participation and inclusiveness.
• In order to repair community trust: SIG Release apologizes for the use of the channel and will conduct all further discussions in an appropriate public venue to ensure community participation and to avoid the appearance of any violation of governance policies.
• In order to facilitate open communication: SIG Release will conduct all discussions around release date changes, milestones, and exceptions in an open and inclusive manner. Additionally, we will work to ensure that all participants can feel comfortable discussing these matters in a public venue.
  

We look forward to working with Steering more to ensure that incidents like this can be avoided in the future and to ensure healthy communication and discussion around release-related activities.

More info about SIG Release can be found at the following locations:

• SIG Release and Release Engineering meetings: https://git.k8s.io/community/sig-release
• Documentation (which includes info about the Release Team meetings): https://git.k8s.io/sig-release/
• Release Managers: https://kubernetes.io/releases/release-managers/
  

We welcome and encourage everyone to engage with us across these forums.

— SIG Release Leads

[steering]

SIG Release Leads,

Thanks for your thoughtful response. We are glad this issue was resolved, and we look forward to working together towards our shared goals of community trust and open communication. 

We intend to work on processes to make course corrections like this a more normal, low-key part of project life while staying open and transparent. Let's find some time around KubeCon or the Contributor Summit to reconnect and discuss how we can improve mutual collaboration over project communication channels to ensure continued project success in the future.

Regards,

The Kubernetes Steering Committee

[steering]

To follow up, we apologize for not reaching out privately ahead of a public communication about the channel. We recognize that it could have been handled better, and we know things have been tense with the long back and forth. Our intent was to model open and transparent decision making and communication. We commit to work towards better communication, and to learn from this to inform how we handle similar situations in the future.

Regards,

The Kubernetes Steering Committee

[Stephen Augustus]

Thank you for the apology, Steering!

-- Stephen

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