[ONLINE] MautiCon Working Group Meeting (12:15 p.m. UK time)

Quick recap

The team discussed the release of Mautic 7 and the upcoming General Assembly meeting, including technical issues and meeting scheduling on the community portal. They planned venue arrangements and capacity requirements for an event featuring two bars and an amphitheatre, with discussions on sponsorship recruitment and budgeting. The team also focused on planning the MautiCon 2026 event, including the creation of job descriptions for various roles, volunteer recruitment, and budget considerations for the conference.

Next steps

• Margareth: Create job descriptions (JDs) for Design Lead, Program Lead, Web Tech Lead, and Sponsorship Lead roles, to be completed by Friday and stored in the MautiCon folder for review.

• Barsha: Create a job description (JD) for Marketing/Outreach Lead for MautiCon, including responsibilities, required knowledge, and tool stack, by Friday in the MautiCon folder.

• Margareth: Share email address with Ruth to be granted edit access to the MautiCon folder.

• Margareth: Create an onboarding document for new team leads.

• Margareth and Ruth: Begin re-prospecting previous year's sponsors (both yeses and nos) from next month, using updated information and a new sponsor deck.

• Ruth: Work on template(s) for sponsor outreach after General Assembly.

• Margareth: Schedule a call with Favour to review the roles and responsibilities sheet from last year.

• Margareth: Put together draft JDs for review in next week's meeting.

• Barsha: Work with Ruth to define a RACI grid (responsible, accountable, consulted, informed) for the marketing team, specifying responsibilities and required collaboration points.

• All (team leads when appointed): Provide weekly updates in Slack on progress and status, especially regarding recruitment of contributors and task completion.

• Margareth: Create a call for volunteers for key roles, specifying responsibilities and expectations, and post with all relevant details.

• Margareth: Work on filling key track lead roles by the end of January so they can begin work in February.

• Margareth: Schedule a call with Joe (previous year's designer) to discuss her potential involvement as designer for 2026.

• Margareth: Review roles and responsibilities for leads as documented in the community portal and incorporate into new JDs.

• Margareth: Create and share meeting invites for upcoming weekly meetings on the community portal, as discussed.

• Margareth: If issues with the Holo PIN link persist, share screenshots in the community Slack channel for troubleshooting.

Summary

Mortic 7 Release and Assembly

Ruth and Margareth discussed the release of Mautic 7 and the upcoming General Assembly meeting. They addressed issues with accessing the Holo PIN link, with Margareth planning to share screenshots in the community channel on Slack. Ruth advised Margareth on creating meetings on the community portal, emphasising the importance of scheduling them 3-4 weeks in advance. They clarified some confusion about meeting times and the portal's time zone support.

Venue Planning for Event Attendance

The team discussed venue arrangements for an upcoming event, with Ruth confirming that the Sunset Bar and amphitheatre would be sufficient for their needs, as they had 80 attendees last year and would need to exceed 100 people to justify using the additional Cucumber space, which would cost an extra £6,500. Barsha, who joined from India, was welcomed to the meeting, and Ruth explained that they would need to use the amphitheatre for sessions if attendance exceeded 60 people, as using the meeting rooms would be too distracting.

Event Layout and Funding Planning

Ruth and Margareth discussed the layout and capacity planning for an event featuring two bars, Sunset and Cucumber, which are located on opposite sides of an amphitheatre. They agreed that the number of attendees would determine whether an additional meeting room would be needed, with Ruth emphasising the importance of early marketing and sponsor recruitment to ensure adequate space and funding. Margareth suggested maintaining an emergency fund of 6,500 euros to cover any unexpected expenses, which Ruth supported as a contingency plan.

Mautic Conference Planning Overview

The team discussed plans for the upcoming Mautic conference, confirming the dates for November 4th (main conference) and November 5th (community sprint). They agreed to create a sponsorship deck by the end of January and to consider developing a theme for the event, which Margareth argued would help with marketing and decision-making. Ruth shared that the 2026 website was already completed, and the team discussed the need to fill various volunteer roles, including a marketing team lead and other leadership positions.

MautiCon Planning and Volunteer Coordination

Ruth and Margareth discussed the planning and budgeting for the upcoming MautiCon event, emphasising the need for careful selection of attendees due to limited travel funding. They agreed that some roles, such as design and marketing, could be handled remotely, with volunteers potentially stepping in to support on-site activities. Margareth proposed reaching out to Favour for a previous volunteer sheet and planning a call for volunteers early on, while Ruth stressed the importance of clearly defining job responsibilities and deliverables for leads to ensure effective task delegation and team management.

MautiCon 2026 Track Lead Planning

Margareth and Ruth discussed the need for track leads for MautiCon 2026, with Ruth emphasising the importance of early involvement of key roles like program lead, marketing lead, and web tech lead. They agreed on the need for clear job descriptions, timelines, and expectations for volunteers, with Ruth noting that previous volunteers had not always met deadlines. Ruth also highlighted that volunteers would primarily receive free event tickets and holo pins, with travel and accommodation covered only in exceptional circumstances.

Job Description Planning Meeting

Margareth and Ruth discussed creating job descriptions for various roles, with Barsha focusing on the marketing team lead position. They agreed to use the MautiCon folder in the community team folder for document storage. Margareth will work on three job descriptions (Design Program and Web Tech) by Friday, while Barsha will create the marketing outreach lead job description. Ruth offered to help Barsha create a RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) grid for the marketing team. The team plans to review the job descriptions in next week's meeting.

Event Planning and Team Coordination

The team discussed progress on event planning, including venue booking and filling key roles. They agreed to offer early bird discounts to sponsors and to revive previous sponsor contacts. Ruth announced she would be away from April to June for a Buddhist ordination retreat, with Ekke likely to cover her duties. The team set goals to create job descriptions for various roles by Friday and to focus on recruiting and onboarding new team members in January. They emphasised the importance of maintaining good communication for remote team members.