Community Magazine 
Some faces need no introduction.
Elisa Foltyn has been part of the Joomla family for well over a decade — Design Lead, former Vice-President, member of the Backend Template Working Group, speaker, trainer and writer.
You may even remember her from these very pages, where we once spoke with her as a Joomla user. Last month, the community welcomed her in a new role: President of Open Source Matters.
After a presidency that stayed empty for several months for want of a candidate, Elisa stepped forward. A few weeks into the job, she kindly took the time to answer our questions — about where she's starting from, the challenges ahead, and how she sees the future of Joomla and the work of the board.
After so many years contributing to Joomla, what finally made you decide to stand for President?
The time was right. To be honest, I never actually wanted to be President because I didn't see myself as a good leader or team player. I quit working for an agency 17 years ago and started my own business because I just wanted to be on my own, LOL :-) But as my business grew, I had to hire a coworker and realized that if you have the right people around you, it's better not to be alone. I see the current board as exactly those right people, and they have already proven me right. Also, thanks to my coworker, I currently have a little more time, which I'm happy to donate to Joomla.
Someone - Brian Teeman - recently described the role as "willing to walk alongside everyone else" rather than leading from above. Do you recognise yourself in that vision?
I hope so. But let's talk seriously. Someone needs to take at least some lead on things. We are all volunteers and dedicate our spare time to the project. Someone needs to say: "Come on, let's start that project now." But at the same time, when I say that, I also mean WE and not "them". Starting to work on something includes myself. It's not about nagging about a certain thing, but about offering solutions. Right now I am very enthusiastic that I am able to motivate people. I feel the Joomla spark again that was lost for a while. Now I feel it from the bottom of my heart, and I hope I can ignite it in others too.
You took office at the end of May. What were your first priorities, and what have you already set in motion?
So much has happened that it's hard to list everything. I am now less than six weeks in office and have already been putting in several hours of work per day.
A big part of it was the STF (Sovereign Tech Fund) programme *: I joined the Organisational Team, replied to RFPs, and helped with emails and other organisational tasks. Beyond that, I had many meetings with Joomla Partners, sponsors and potential sponsors, and I travelled to WordCamp Europe to connect with people and potential new partners. I also reconnected with Joomlers we somehow lost when we moved from RingCentral to Mattermost, spoke with volunteers, and worked on concepts for financial support for Joomla.
My priorities now are the upcoming STF project and, at the same time, raising money for Joomla. The funding gives us the power to improve our CMS, but to actually use this power, the association behind Joomla, Open Source Matters, needs money too. If we manage to raise money for Joomla, we will be incredibly strong in two years' time. You cannot imagine. We have a bright future ahead of us if we can stabilize our financial situation.
A few weeks into the role, what has surprised you most compared to what you expected?
That I actually have a badge now that I never wanted, but this badge gives me an invisible superpower to approach people and talk about sponsorships and such things. I didn't know I would be able to approach such topics. I am shy, even if you don't believe it.
What do you see as the two or three most pressing (urgent) challenges facing Joomla in the months ahead?
Well, you already asked about my priorities, and honestly, the most pressing challenges are closely connected to them. First, our financial stability: Open Source Matters needs a solid financial base, because everything else depends on it. Second, delivering the STF programme successfully. Receiving funding is one thing, but managing it professionally is what makes us credible for future funding opportunities. And third, our people. We need to keep our volunteers motivated and win back those we lost along the way. A CMS is built by humans, and without them, no funding in the world will help us.
How do you hope to help the community attract new contributors and support those already giving their time?
A community that loves what it does naturally attracts new people. So let's start by loving Joomla again, being friends again, and igniting that spark. We all need to realize that we share the same goals. We all want Joomla to succeed, so there is no reason to fight each other. People can feel whether a project is fun to be part of. And for those who are already giving their time: they need to feel seen and appreciated. Listening to volunteers, removing obstacles for them, and simply saying thank you goes a long way.
Joomla 6.1 is out and 6.2 is in the works. Beyond version numbers, where do you see the CMS heading (future)?
I think the Joomla 8 Sprint already defined a lot of the steps that show where we are heading. I also like that there is a new concept in the maintainer team where feature requests are discussed and checked to see if they match the scope and goals of our CMS, and then they are either accepted or declined. I love that decisions are being made, that is so important. Even if something is declined, at least you know what to work on and what to focus on.
How is the work shared within the new board, and how will you collaborate with the Department Coordinators?
Everyone dedicates as much time as possible. We pick up work and just do it. Right now it's all a bit wildly coordinated, but that will change soon, because we all agree that we need a proper task management tool, and that will probably be inside Mattermost.
A final word for the community — especially those still hesitating to get involved?
Don't wait for the perfect moment or the perfect skill. Join us, say hi on Mattermost (joom.la/chat) , and you will find something to work on. And if you really have no time: every contribution matters. Just donate $100 right now here: https://github.com/sponsors/joomla
I am not kidding. ;-)
Got your point. Let’s hope our readers take your advice.
Thank you, Elisa, for your time, your enthusiasm and for sharing your first steps with us. Let's meet again in a few months to look back on the road travelled.
* The Sovereign Tech Fund (STF) is an initiative that invests in open source infrastructure, focusing on security, resilience, and accessibility. Open Source Matters, Inc. is working to bring Joomla into the programme, with the goal of funding a professional accessibility audit and followed implementation. Things are moving, and we will have more to share soon. Find out more at opensourcematters.org/projects, and watch for a full update in one of our next issues.
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