You’ve probably heard or read it more than once: Joomla needs volunteers. Without people, new releases take longer and have less exciting features, documentation remains incomplete and bugs take forever to get fixed. But who do we need, and what would they be doing? Read how you can help.

Joomla's entirely staffed by volunteers and powered entirely by their contributions. Volunteers are key to the growth, success and continuity of the project.

Joomla is constantly in need of an influx of new volunteers. Though there's a strong community of core contributors and volunteers that have been with the project since its inception in 2005, there's regularly a turnover of volunteers as their involvement cycles through ebbs and flows day to day life brings.

There are a number of general ways you can contribute to Joomla, with tasks starting as small as contributing translations, answering support requests, writing documentation, or testing patches before they are merged into the codebase. These can take as little as 15 minutes at a time and can be done whenever you have some spare time.

Then there are some bigger ticket items. Several key roles need staffing at the moment - there are a number of upcoming releases that need some leaders and some exciting new  features that need testing and documentation.

Production Department

The Production Department is tasked with overseeing the coding and development of Joomla. Teams in the department also manage Joomla's documentation, framework development, bug testing and related technical projects.

Department Coordinator

At the moment of writing, the call for manifestos for a new coordinator of the Production department is still open. As Production Department Coordinator you’re in charge of this department, which basically involves all the people responsible for the code and everything around it, such as the Security Strike Team, Bug Squad, Documentation, Accessibility and Maintenance, to name just a few of the many teams. You bring all these people together, organise meetings, set goals and budgets, and make sure every team can function at its best. 

As a Department Coordinator, you're also a member of the Open Source Matters Board of Directors. Open Source Matters (OSM) is a not-for-profit organisation, created to serve the financial and legal interests of the Joomla project. 

What can you do?

If the call for manifestos is still open when you’re reading this, and you feel you’re up for the job: submit your manifesto, get elected and coordinate this department as no one has ever done before.

Is it a tech job?

Not necessarily, but it sure helps if you’re a tech.

How to apply?

Submit a manifesto: https://community.joomla.org/blogs/leadership/call-for-manifestos-group2-2023.html 

Framework team

The Framework team is responsible for the lifecycle of the Joomla Framework (the set of classes Joomla is based on). You can read more about this team in this article https://magazine.joomla.org/all-issues/february-2023/meet-the-joomla-framework-team

What can you do?

This team needs a Working Group Leader and seasoned developers who have experience with frameworks. 

Is it a tech job?

You betcha!

How to apply?

Joining the PD Framework channel on Mattermost is a good first step.

Bug Squad 

The Bug Squad tests code changes and reviews reported issues in order to reduce the number of bugs in Joomla. This team scans all kinds of sources for the mentioning of bugs. The team checks if a reported bug is really a bug and if it is, makes sure an issue is created on the issue tracker. 

What can you do?

Help out with identifying and confirming bugs by performing tests. You don’t always need to have coding knowledge for this.

Is it a tech job?

Not necessarily, both techs and non-techs are welcome.

How to apply?

Find the PD Bug Squad channel on Mattermost and join the team there.

Accessibility Team

As you probably know, there’s a set of rules that makes sure all aspects of a website are accessible for people with disabilities (the WCAG 2.1 AA standard). Joomla’s Accessibility Team works on that: making all the Joomla Properties, the CMS, Framework and Portal, compliant with the WCAG 2.1 AA standard. You can read more about this team in this article: https://magazine.joomla.org/all-issues/august-2022/meet-the-joomla-accessibility-team 

What can you do?

This team needs testers who use screen readers or keyboard only and can describe the issues and maybe make suggestions on how to improve a feature.

Is it a tech job?

Nope!

How to apply?

The team will welcome you with open arms in the PD Accessibility channel on Mattermost.

Automated Testing Team

The Automated Testing Team’s main goal is to improve the code quality of Joomla and ensure its stability. The team works on automated tests that are run each time a code change is approved/merged, or proposed in a pull request. Read more about this team here and here. 

The team writes tests for the actual testing, analyses and implements additional code quality tools, and manages and supports the continuous integration system. 

What can you do?

If you know your way around phpUnit or Cypress and want to improve our current test suite, you are very welcome to join the team. 

If you want to look deeper into static code analysis or continuous deployment, there’s work for you to do as well.

And last but not least the team could really use a documentation page where all our form elements in Joomla are properly documented and tested in real-time.

Is it a tech job?

Oh yes, it is. This is your chance to set your tech skills to work and take them to the next level with the help and guidance of others in the community.

How to apply?

Start out by joining the PD Automated Testing channel and see where it goes from there.

Documentation 

The Documentation Team creates and maintains all the official Joomla! Documentation. This includes documentation for end-users, administrators, third-party developers and administrator Help Screens. Additionally, the team also maintains api.joomla.org.

 

The team is looking for new members, but you can help out as well if you're not on the team. Everyone can contribute to the creation, correction and translation of the docs. The team is looking for motivated users who enjoy writing tutorials or help texts, who are interested in introducing other users to the fantastic features of Joomla CMS or who think that Joomla is worth being translated into all the languages of the world.

If one or more of the above statements applies to you, then this is your team!

Is it a tech job?

Not necessarily. If you've ever edited a Wikipedia entry, you have the required skills.

How to apply?

Contact the Documentation Team Leader, Carlos Rodriguez. You can find him on Mattermost.

Also, joining the PD Documentation channel on Mattermost would be a smart move.

Outreach & Operations Departments

The Outreach Department handles many of the human aspects of the Joomla Community including marketing, PR, communications, events and volunteer engagement.

The Operations Department supports the project by managing the organisation's infrastructure, tools and community sites.

Social Media Team - Outreach

Joomfluencers pay attention! Here’s a whole team to take over. The Social Media Team is responsible for all our social channels. Posting, responding, moderating, the works. At the moment this team has a couple of volunteers who would love to take their skills elsewhere, but they can’t because there’s no one to fill their positions. You’ll be working closely with the Marketing Team to devise a strategy and who will provide all the necessary graphics required. Would you like to be in charge of what Joomla posts on their socials? You can! The team needs team members and a team leader, so take your pick. 

Is it a tech job?

Nope. You will be the master of Hootsuite in no time.

How to apply?

Contact Louise Hawkins or Philip Walton on Mattermost.

Community Sites: Service Providers Directory - Operations

One team is responsible for all the Joomla websites: the Community Sites team. At least one of these sites could really use your help.

If you are listed on the Service Providers Directory, you’ve probably noticed things aren’t going entirely right there, and the directory needs to be fixed (or even rebuilt). Unfortunately, the team hasn’t got the people power for that. 

Is it a tech job?

In some ways, yes, depending on the skills of the rest of the team. And if we go with a rebuild, it’s a creative/innovative job as well: we need a way to build a super slick directory, sticking as close to the core as we can.

How to apply?

Reach out to Harald Leithner, Operations DC (you can find him on Mattermost).

Extensions Directory Team - Operations

You know the Joomla Extensions Directory, right? It’s your go-to place when it comes to finding awesome extensions for your Joomla website.

This team also needs new volunteers, for tasks like processing tickets and reviews and checking new submissions, but also for development work on the new JED 4. So there’s something to do for everyone.

Is it a tech job?

The development one is, the processing and checking is more about administration and common sense.

How to apply?

Reach out to Harald Leithner, Operations DC (you can find him on Mattermost).

Volunteer Engagement Team - Outreach

The Volunteer Engagement Team (VET) is responsible for the recruitment, retention, and recognition of volunteers. Over the past 3 years, the team has been working towards creating, improving and implementing processes to help with onboarding new volunteers and helping teams recruit people with skills that are needed.

In the coming year, VET will be starting to run regular information and onboarding "office hours" style drop-in events where new volunteers can have questions answered and socialise in a slightly different virtual environment. A concierge team is going to be needed to deliver these events as an example role, where you'll need to simply know the layout of the virtual event space in order to then direct visitors to where they can then be further assisted.

The VET will also be assisting the Joomla Enhancement Team throughout the year with onboarding activities for prospective students looking at participating in various events Joomla are participating in including Google Summer of Code, where we had over 300 students interested in 2022.

Is it a tech job?

The team itself is best suited to great communicators and those with interpersonal networking skills, ideas and a highly involved interest in the Joomla project, departments and teams, what they do and what they need. Knowing the technical aspects of the project is highly desirable, but not an essential part of being in the VET.

There are a few occasional projects where some technical skills would be great - chances are if you're working in any production or operations teams already you'll have the required skills. VET Projects are usually smaller-scale projects with a fixed scope and brief duration.

How to apply?

The VET recruitment process sees members typically recruited from active members of the community that have exhibited a strong understanding of the community and have had a high level of ongoing involvement - it's a mentoring team for the entire community, so is a little selective in its construction.

The VET does however run Joomla's onboarding service. If you're interested in contributing to Joomla, and either the big ticket jobs above don't call out to you, or you need some advice on any of the ways you can contribute to Joomla, then it's less a case of applying, and more a case of reaching out to the VET to introduce yourself and get your questions answered.

We encourage new contributors to email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. as a starting point. Be sure to include in your email an introduction about yourself, what your skills are, and what type of contribution you are looking to make. That will help us then introduce you to the right people so that you become part of the right team.

What’s this Mattermost you’re talking about all the time?

Joomla changed it's official community communications tool from Glip (Ringcentral) to Mattermost in 2022.

Joomla's Mattermost instance is where teams all conduct their communication and where a lot of the conversations take place between volunteers in the organisation.

There are also a number of general channels hosting conversations for interested Joomla enthusiasts, such as the Town Square for general chat, or channels for IDE tools like PHPStorm or Microsoft Visual Studio.

If you are contributing to Joomla, Mattermost is where the conversation amongst team members is happening. When you join a channel, don't just assume it looks quiet - strike up a conversation, introduce yourself, and ask more about what's happening in the team. You might find your input is the perfect catalyst for getting that area of the project moving.

To get started using Mattermost:

• Joomla Identity Portal.
• Joomla's Mattermost instance.
• Install Mattermost Mobile and Desktop apps to streamline your conversations on other devices.

Philip Walton wrote a comprehensive guide in November's Joomla Community Magazine on the entire process if you need more detail.

Where else to find available positions?

If you’re looking for a Joomla volunteer job, there are several places to watch for job notices.

We have a dedicated board there where you can post your call for new volunteers. Once logged into Mattermost, you will find the board by clicking on

Boards > Joomla Call for Contributors

. Team Leaders should contact their Department Coordinator, or can reach out to Crystal Dionysopoulos on Mattermost to arrange posting permissions.
• Joomla's Leadership Blog regularly has postings for major roles such as Board Members and Department Coordinators.
• Help Wanted section of the Joomla Volunteer Portal.