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KERI Foundation Roles and Organization

Integral documents

This KERI Foundation Roles and Organization document is an integral part of the governance documents of the Foundation:

  1. Multi-Member LLC Operating Agreement, Manager-Managed
  2. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

A. Organizational Structure and Roles

I. Board of Directors

  1. Chairman of the Board - Also CEO Executive Team
  2. Technology Lead – Inventor - Also CTO Executive Team
  3. Community Lead - Also Chairman of the Advisory Board
  4. Finance role - (TBD - Taken by Chairman in phase 1)

II. Executive Team - Operational Roles

A. Executive and Administrative Roles

  1. CEO/COO - Also Chairman of the Board
  2. Finance and Administration Manager
  3. External Relations and Fundraising Manager
  4. Communications and Public Relations Manager
  5. Human Resources Manager
  6. Legal Affaires
  7. Internal IT, Web and Infra

B. Technical Roles

  1. Chief Technology Officer – Also Technology Lead of the Board
  2. Lead Developer(s)
  3. Full Stack Developers (Python, RUST, Others)
  4. Security Specialist
  5. IP and Licensingen

C. Project and Community Management Roles

  1. Project Manager
  2. Community Manager
  3. Documentation Specialist

III. Advisory Board | Community Council

  1. Chairman Advisory Board - Also Community Lead Board of Directors
  2. Representatives Funders
  3. Representatives Developers Community
  4. Partnering Organizations

IV. Working Groups

  1. RUST
  2. Reference Implementation
  3. Swiss EID

B. Detailed Description of Roles and Competences

I.1 Founding Chairman

Responsibilities:

  • Provide overall leadership and strategic direction of the KERI Foundation.
  • Oversee board meetings and ensure effective governance.
  • Ensure alignment with the foundation’s mission and objectives (as set by the CTO).
  • Represent the foundation in public and high-level meetings.
  • Ensure the foundation’s goals and objectives are met.
  • Also CEO of the executive team.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Proven leadership experience in a similar role.
  • Strong understanding open source development, identity management and security.
  • Excellent communication and strategic planning skills.
  • Strategic thinking and decision-making abilities.
  • Excellent English language skills.

I.2 Technology Lead

Responsibilities:

  • Guide the strategic technical direction and development.
  • Ensure the adoption of best practices line with the KERI vision.
  • Mentor the technical leadership and prioritize developments.
  • Also CTO of the executive team.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • KERI visionair.
  • Strong knowledge of the KERI vision and technology.
  • Technological leadership aligned with real World requirements.
  • Ability to communicate complex ideas effectively.

I.3 Community Lead

Responsibilities:

  • Be the voice of funders, community and partners in the Board.
  • Manage consensus and priorities from all stakeholders.
  • Maintain relationships and organize community meetings.
  • Communicate the foundation's vision and principles to the cummunity.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Good understanding of the KERI vision and technology.
  • Ability to communicate complex ideas effectively.
  • Ability to create consensus with various stakeholders and interests.

I.4 Financial Lead - Phase 1 by Chairman

Responsibilities:

  • Oversee financial and strategic planning for the foundation.
  • Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and best practices.
  • Provide guidance on budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting.
  • Manage relationships with major financial stakeholders.
  • Also CFO of the executive team.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Understanding of financial management, accounting, and auditing.
  • Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Knowledge of financial regulatory requirements.
  • Master's degree in Finance, Accounting, or a related field.

II.A.1 CEO / COO

Responsibilities:

  • Oversee and manage daily operations, ensuring alignment with the foundation's mission and strategic objectives.
  • Develop and implement operational strategies to improve efficiency, productivity, and quality across the organization.
  • Lead cross-functional teams in project management, planning, and execution of key initiatives.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Proven success in driving operational excellence and leading cross-functional teams.
  • Ability to think strategically while focusing on operational details.
  • Strong problem-solving abilities to identify opportunities.
  • Excellent communication, collaboration, and interpersonal skills to lead diverse teams and build consensus.

II.A.2 Finance and Administration Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Manage financial planning, budgeting, and reporting.
  • Manage the allocation of funds to various workgroups.
  • Monitor and report on fund usage and project progress.
  • Ensure transparency and accountability in fund distribution.
  • Ensure compliance with financial regulations and reporting requirements.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Degree in finance, economics, or a related field.
  • Attention to detail and financial acumen.
  • Strong organizational and analytical skills.

II.A.3 External Relations and Fundraising Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Build and maintain relationships with external stakeholders.
  • Represent the foundation at events and conferences.
  • Identify and pursue funding opportunities.
  • Develop partnerships with relevant organizations.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Experience in stakeholder management and public relations.
    • Strong negotiation relationship-building skills.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

II.A.4 Communications and Public Relations Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Develop and implement communication strategies.
  • Manage media relations and social media presence.
  • Create content for press releases, newsletters, and reports.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Degree in communications, journalism, or related field.
  • Experience in media relations and content creation.
  • Strong writing and editing skills.
  • Proficiency in social media management.

II.A.5 Human Resources Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Manage recruitment, hiring, onboarding, and employee retention processes
  • Develop and maintain personnel policies, procedures, and handbooks.
  • Foster a positive work environment and manage conflict resolution.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • In-depth knowledge of HR practices and employment laws.
  • Strong problem-solving and communication skills.
  • Experience with recruitment, talent acquisition and retention.
  • Ability to adapt quickly to a fast-paced startup environment.

Responsibilities:

  • Advise the executive team on legal matters related to intellectual property, contracts, and regulatory compliance.
  • Manage licensing agreements and other legal documents.
  • Develop legal procedures to ensure compliance with laws and standards.
  • Monitor changes in legal landscape and recommend updates to practices.
  • Collaborate with external counsel on complex legal matters, litigation, and disputes.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • In-depth knowledge of technology law, intellectual property, contracts, and regulatory compliance.
  • Strong communication and negotiation abilities to work effectively with executive team members, external counsel, and other stakeholders.
  • Experience with licensing agreements, and contract negotiations.

II.A.7 Internal IT and Infra

This ITWD role is pluriform. It handles all aspects of the back-office and supporting IT infrastructure of the foundation, its working groups and also its donors. By establishing this role, the foundation ensures that the internal IT is developed according to needs, it's well managed and supports sales and pre-sales. The ITWD should be close to the KERI team and foundation.

Responsibilities:

  • Webdevelopment: Projectmanagement, fundraising and presence/communication.
  • IT infrastructure and role of Chief Information Officer.
  • Website, wiki, discord and back-end management.
  • Manage Github repositories, github actions, git governance.
  • Funding tool (online): direct funding on-boarding and project validation.
  • Certification of working groups.
  • Website: presence, communication.
  • Github: projectmanagement, wiki, scrum, CDCI
  • Identifiers and user rights management.
  • Internal Social Media: Discord.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Strong knowledge of IT infrastructure, network administration, hardware, and software systems.
  • Expertise in web development technologies (languages, frameworks, CMS) and website performance optimization techniques.
  • Experience with data analysis, project management, and collaboration with cross-functional teams.
  • Ability to stay current with emerging technologies, industry trends, and cybersecurity threats.
  • Git -, and GitHub.com specialist, knowledgeable about GitHub Actions.
  • Web front-end and back-end development
  • SCRUM process and deliverables (also for project manager).
  • Communication, expectation management and negotiation with external communication, fundraisers and board.

II.B.1 Chief Technology Officer

Responsibilities:

  • Implement KERI technology strategies aligned with the foundation's goals, objectives, and mission as set by the Board of Directors.
  • Manage the technology team, ensuring effective collaboration and knowledge sharing among members.
  • Ensure the security, scalability, and reliability of all technology systems and infrastructure.
  • Mentoring the Lead Developers and gatekeeper of code repositories.
  • Collaborate with other executive team members on major business decisions affecting the foundation's technology direction.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Proven track record of successful technology leadership in the technology industry.
  • Excellent strategic thinking and planning abilities to drive KERI growth and adoption through technology.
  • Ability to manage complex projects and prioritize tasks.
  • Experience with building and managing high-performing technology teams.

II.B.2 Lead Developer(s)

Responsibilities:

  • Lead and mentor the development team, providing guidance and support.
  • Ensure adherence to best practices and validate coding standards.
  • Oversee project timelines and deliverables to ensure timely completion.
  • Ensure scalable and maintainable codebases.
  • Work with stakeholders to gather and analyze requirements.
  • Proficiency in programming languages and frameworks relevant to the foundation.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
  • Relevant certifications in software development and project management.
  • Several years of hands-on experience in a lead or senior developer role.
  • Experience in planning, executing, and managing software development projects.
  • Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to make sound technical decisions.
  • Excellent communication skills to effectively interact with team members.

II.B.3 Full Stack Developer (per language)

Responsibilities:

  • Develop secure and efficient software solutions using the relevant language(s).
  • Optimize code for performance and security.
  • Collaborate with front-end and back-end teams.
  • Ensure the scalability, security, and performance of applications.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Proficiency in the required language(s) such as Python, RUST or others.
  • Basic understanding of cryptography.
  • Experience with open source development and GitHub.

II.B.4 Security Specialist

Responsibilities:

  • Ensure the security of software applications and infrastructure.
  • Conduct security audits and vulnerability assessments.
  • Implement security best practices and protocols.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Strong understanding of cybersecurity principles.
  • Experience with security tools and technologies.
  • Knowledge of compliance and regulatory standards.
  • Project and Community Management Roles

II.B.5 IP and Licensing

Responsibilities:

  • Develop and implement IP strategies to protect the foundation's innovations, creations, and brands.
  • Collaborate with legal affairs to ensure legal protection on licensing agreements and IP-related contracts.
  • Evaluate licensing deals for partnership opportunities.
  • Oversee the IP portfolio, including tracking, monitoring, and reporting on key metrics.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Excellent analytical skills to assess IP value, identify risks, and develop strategies for protection and monetization.
  • Experience with negotiation, contract drafting, and licensing agreement management.
  • Ability to collaborate effectively with the legal manager and external partners.

II.C.1 Project Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Plan, execute, and monitor software development projects.
  • Coordinate with technical teams and stakeholders.
  • Ensure projects are completed on time and within budget.
  • SCRUM - master role.
  • SCRUM - problem owner role.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Experience in project management, preferably in IT.
  • Strong organizational and multitasking skills.
  • Proficiency in project management tools.
  • SCRUM process and deliverables.

II.C.2 Community Manager

Responsibilities:

  • Engage with the open-source community and other partners.
  • Manage forums, discussions, and community events.
  • Gather feedback and promote community contributions.
  • Collaborate with the community lead on urgent operational issues.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Experience in community management and engagement.
  • Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
  • Passion for open-source projects and collaboration.

II.C.3 Documentation Specialist

Responsibilities:

  • Create and maintain comprehensive documentation for projects.
  • Ensure documentation is clear, accurate, and accessible.
  • Collaborate with developers to document code and processes.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Excellent writing and technical communication skills.
  • Experience in technical writing and documentation.
  • Attention to detail and ability to understand complex technical concepts

III.1 Chairman od the Advisory Board | Community Council

The role's function is to oversee the ethical use of funds and ensuring alignment with the foundation’s vision and principles without implying control over the funds or strategic direction. By establishing this role, the foundation ensures that the interests of all funding partners are adequately represented, promoting trust and transparency among stakeholders while maintaining a focus on ethical behavior and effective fund utilization. The FPCR can be a third party individual or a representative of a council in the Foundation's Board.

Responsibilities:

  • Provide advice to the board on the interests and concerns of funding partners.
  • Participate in board meetings as a non-voting member to represent the interests of funding partners.
  • Facilitate open communication and feedback channels between sponsors and the foundation.
  • Document concerns and suggestions from funding partners and present them to the board.

Skills & Qualifications:

  • Indepent non-executive role assigned by the Foundation and founding pertners.
  • Excellent communication skills to effectively represent funding partners' interests.
  • Ability to facilitate discussions and mediate between different stakeholders.
  • High level of integrity and commitment to ethical practices.
  • Ability to remain objective and independent while advocating for funding partners.
  • Familiarity with the foundation’s mission, vision, and operational principles.
  • Understanding of the open-source software development landscape.

C. Role Allocation Organization and Headcount Phase 1

I. Board of Directors

  1. Chairman of the Board - Henk van Cann (0.1 FTE)
  2. Technology Lead – Samuel Smith (0.1 FTE)
  3. Community Lead - (0.1 FTE)
  4. Finance role - (by Chairman in phase 1)

II. Executive Team - Operational Roles

A. Executive and Administrative Roles

  1. CEO/COO - Henk van Cann (0.4 FTE)
  2. Finance and Administration Manager - TBD (0.5 FTE)
  3. External Relations and Fundraising Manager - (Phase 1 part of 1.A.1 / 1.A.2 / 1.A.4)
  4. Communications and Public Relations Manager - TBD (0.5 FTE)
  5. Human Resources Manager - TBD (Phase 1 part of 1.A.2)
  6. Legal Affaires - TBD ((Phase 1 outsourced - 0.1 FTE)
  7. Internal IT, Web and Infra - TBD (0.6 FTE)

B. Technical Roles

  1. Chief Technology Officer – Samuel Smith (0.15 FTE)
  2. Lead Developer(s) - TBD (0.75 FTE)
  3. Full Stack Developers (Python, RUST, Others) - TBD (>4 FTE)
  4. Security Specialist (Phase 1 part of 1.A.1 / 1.B.1)
  5. IP and Licensingen (Phase 1 part of 1.A.1 / 1.B.1)

C. Project and Community Management Roles

  1. Project Manager - TBD (Phase 1 part of 1.A.1)
  2. Community Manager - TBD (Phase 1 part of 1.A.4)
  3. Documentation Specialist (Phase 1 part of 1.A.7)

III. Advisory Board | Community Council

  1. Chairman Advisory Board - TBD by Board of Directors (0.25 FTE)
  2. Representatives Funders - TBD
  3. Representatives Developers Community - TBD
  4. Partnering Organizations - TBD

IV. Working Groups

  1. RUST
  2. Reference Implementation
  3. Swiss EID
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