Leslie Hawthorn

The annual OSPO study examines the prevalence and outcomes of Open Source Progam Offices and similar OSS Initiatives across sectors, including the key benefits, value provided, and challenges ahead.

In our latest report with the TODO group, we tackled the research question: why are Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) valuable from a business perspective? This qualitative study takes the reader through different value propositions that OSPO champions can use to connect OSPOs to business objectives, as well as the challenges to expect on an OSPO's journey.

The report weaves in perspectives from OSPO leaders around the world and from various industries on what makes an OSPO valuable… Mehr anzeigen

In our latest report with the TODO group, we tackled the research question: why are Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) valuable from a business perspective? This qualitative study takes the reader through different value propositions that OSPO champions can use to connect OSPOs to business objectives, as well as the challenges to expect on an OSPO's journey.

The report weaves in perspectives from OSPO leaders around the world and from various industries on what makes an OSPO valuable, how they measure that value, and how they expect their program to evolve with their organization. Whether forming an OSPO for the first time or working with an established program, readers will come away with tools to communicate, measure, and navigate the different value propositions of the OSPO. Weniger anzeigen

Article for the Horizon Europe Grant funded research project ICOS on the value of incorporating innovations created in research projects into open source project code bases to support that code's longevity and increased value for research grant funds

I share my thoughts with the SustainOSS team on the rise of the Open Source Program Office as a vehicle for internal and external collaboration outside of its birthplace in the tech industry, how the calls for digital sovereignty are playing out in Europe, and what makes a good corporate open source officer.

This paper presents the state of play, rationale and context of the emergence of Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) in the public sector. An OSPO is an institutional organisational construct supports and accelerates the consumption, creation, and application of Open Source software. There are an increasing number examples of OSPOs in Governments, but they are already established as best practice in the private sector. Overall, OSPOs boost awareness and technical competence on Open Source… Mehr anzeigen

This paper presents the state of play, rationale and context of the emergence of Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) in the public sector. An OSPO is an institutional organisational construct supports and accelerates the consumption, creation, and application of Open Source software. There are an increasing number examples of OSPOs in Governments, but they are already established as best practice in the private sector. Overall, OSPOs boost awareness and technical competence on Open Source within the organisation they are built in, working strategically to achieve the policy objectives of the institution that intersect with Open Source.

After providing a thorough overview of the uptake of Open Source in the public sector domain, the paper focuses on the role played by OSPOs in enhancing openness, transparency and cooperation within and between public organisations. As such, they can help deliver value for citizens around the world at scale.

Additionally, it presents three case studies outlining best practices developed and the challenges experienced in building an OSPO by public officials at the European Commission as well as at national and local level in France.

Finally, it addresses the ways in which a network of OSPOs can benefit the public sector at large, helping reduce organisational, legal, technical and communication barriers across multiple organisations and stakeholders. Weniger anzeigen

Open Source Program Offices (OSPO) provide distinct value for businesses. But it is the distinctive nature of the work that makes OSPO professionals appear highly specialized or their job role difficult to categorize into traditional role definitions. Further, the industry has a lack of consensus on job titles and job descriptions between OSPO professionals, community managers and developer relations professionals, with similar roles being more or less highly prized depending upon which… Mehr anzeigen

Open Source Program Offices (OSPO) provide distinct value for businesses. But it is the distinctive nature of the work that makes OSPO professionals appear highly specialized or their job role difficult to categorize into traditional role definitions. Further, the industry has a lack of consensus on job titles and job descriptions between OSPO professionals, community managers and developer relations professionals, with similar roles being more or less highly prized depending upon which business is doing the hiring. Combined, these issues can make recruiting junior professionals into OSPOs more challenging, and defining an upward career path for senior talent more of an art than a science.

The purpose of this guide is to help OSPO leaders build a sustainable and rewarding career path for their employees, including helping them gather depth of skills in particular areas so they’re well prepared to develop their careers in more than one area of the business. Weniger anzeigen

While open source software offers many reliable and provable business advantages, sometimes those advantages remain obscure to those who have not looked deeply into the topic, including many high-level decision-makers. This paper, published by the European Chapter of the TODO Group, aims to provide a balanced and quick overview of the business pros and cons of using open source software.

This white paper outlines the benefits and value of open source for financial services across varying degrees of open source engagement including consumption, contribution to existing projects and open sourcing proprietary software. It also looks at the real and perceived risks and challenges to open source participation and ways to address these.

The Open Source Way is an opinionated guidebook to best practices in creating, curating, and leading open source software communities. I authored the chapter on communication norms and best practices, among other contributions to the guide.