Ballot Procedure for Co-Chair: Status and Recommendation

[donald_harbison@us.ibm.com]

Dear ODF Adoption TC Members:

I consulted with Mary McRae today regarding
our intent to move forward and conduct a ballot for the position of co-Chair.
While I did take us all through the required OASIS procedures during our
June 10 meeting, there are several new additional points that need to be
communicated.

First, she advised that we use the Ballot
procedure that Kavi provides on our ODF Adoption TC home page. I will set
up the ballot to reflect our (2) nominees: Zaheda Bhorat and Louis Suarez-Potts.
For now, I will leave the ballot close date open.

 Second, only Voting Members may
vote. OASIS requires that all Voting Members sustain their status by attending
a minimum of (2) consecutive TC meetings prior to any ballot. Mary advised
that I update the roster accordingly. In so doing, the following role changes
were made:

• Aslam Raffee changed from Member to Voting Member
• Bart Hanssens changed from Member to Voting Member
• Marino Marcich changed from Member to Voting Member
  
• Alan Clark changed from Voting Member to Member
• Louis Suarez-Potts changed from Voting Member to Member
• Charles Schulz changed from Voting Member to Member

Mary pointed out that many TCs conduct
frequent ballots, something that is definitely not the case with the ODF
Adoption TC, and one of the reasons I needed to research the procedure
and get up to date on how to correctly manage a ballot. This will be the
first time we will ballot on an issue since the TC formation in March 2006.

For those members who wish to re-instate
their voting member rights, simply attend (2) consecutive meetings. 

I recommend we postpone the ballot until
Alan, Louis, Charles and Zaheda have a chance to attend (2) consecutive
meetings. They have participated and supported the work of the ODF Adoption
TC in many ways for many months. We do not need to rush the ballot.

My suggestion is that we establish the
date of the ballot close during the next TC meeting on June 24. If vacations
begin to interfere, I propose that we adjust the ballot dates accordingly.


If no one objects, I do not have an
issue managing the chair role during this short interim period.

Regards,

Don Harbison
Program Director, IBM ODF Initiative
Business & Technical Strategy
IBM Software Group
tel:1-978-399-7018
Mobile: +1-978-761-0116
email: donald_harbison@us.ibm.com