source/newpmcmember.md

---
title: Inviting a New PMC member
tags: ["pmc", "pmcmembers", "election"]
---

This document describes a typical Apache project's process for handling the
vote to add a new PMC (Project Management Committee) member - when it is
separate from becoming committer.

Templates mentioned in the process appear [#NewPMCMember-EmailTemplates](later in 
this document). If your PMC adds automatically committers as PMC members, the process
for doing both at the same time is described in the [New 
committer](https://community.apache.org/newcommitter.html) advice.

The [Contributor Ladder](https://community.apache.org/contributor-ladder.html) helps 
explain different roles.

{{% toc %}}

<a name="NewPMCMember-Summary"></a>
## TL;DR - Inviting a new PMC member

1. Discuss the proposed PMC member.  (Use [this template](templates/pmc-member-discuss.txt).)
1. If the discussion seems to be going positively, call a vote. (Use
   [this template](templates/pmc-member-vote.txt).)
1. Close the vote. (Use [this template](templates/pmc-member-results.txt).)
1. If the result is positive, invite the new committer. (Use [this
   template](templates/pmc-member-invite.txt).)

If they accept, then:

1. If the new PMC member is already is already a committer, and they have Apache id,
   you should grant them appropriate PMC privileges. Use the 
   [committee roster tool](https://whimsy.apache.org/roster/committee/) (or
   [ppmc roster tool](https://whimsy.apache.org/roster/ppmc/) for
   incubating projects) on Whimsy to update the roster.
1. Announce the new PMC member. (Use [this
   template](templates/pmc-member-announce.txt).)

<a name="#NewPMCMemberGuidelines"></a>
## Guidelines for inviting a new PMC member

Frequently adding new PMC members to your project helps to ensure the
sustainability and longevity of your project, and brings new ideas into
the discussion.

As a PMC member, you should frequently look at your
project's active committers and contributors (including non-code
participants) and consider whether having their voice in the
decision-making process would better serve your stakeholders, and
contribute to the Foundation's mission of providing software for the
public good.

<a name="NewPMCMember-Discussion"></a>
### Discussion

Any PMC member may propose a potential PMC member.
This is **not** the sole responsibility or right of the PMC chair.

We do the discussion and vote on the `private@` mailing list to enable a frank
discussion. But do keep in mind that if the candidate is elected, they
will be able to inspect the archives, so keep your discussion respectful
and professional, with that in mind.

We invite people to join as PMC members, not github ids. It is
fine to refer to the candidate's github id for context, but the person should
be referred to by their name. It is not necessary to have their full legal
name (that will be kept private) but it is important to use their name, as
they refer to themselves in email. If a person is known only by their github
id, it is ok to ask them for their real name prior to holding a VOTE.

### Vote

Start a separate [VOTE] thread for each new person. This makes it much easier
to review the email archives.

We need to be sure that they are committed people with whom we can work.
They will be our peers. We will have already observed that they are
committed to the project and graceful toward users and other developers.

Don't wait too long before proposing and don't be too hasty. There is a
trade-off and something about timeliness. A point is reached where it
becomes obvious that we should invite them. This encourages them and keeps
them enthusiastic. If we leave it too long, then we risk them becoming
disillusioned.

Let the Vote thread run for one week.

A positive result is achieved when there are at least 3 +1 votes and no vetoes,
as per the [ASF voting process
document](https://apache.org/foundation/voting).

### Invitation and welcome

After a positive result, record the result on the PMC list with a `[RESULT][VOTE]` subject
and then invite the candidate. We give candidates a chance to decline PMC membership in private.
They can post a reply to the PMC mailing list.

After we reach a decision on the `private@` list, and after the steps above, we
announce the new PMC member on the `dev` list. We can then each follow up with
our praise and welcome messages in public.

Other notes about the process are available on the main [Apache site](https://www.apache.org/dev/pmc.html#newpmcmember).

<a name="NewPMCMember-EmailTemplates"></a>
## Email Templates

* [PMC member vote](templates/pmc-member-vote.txt)
* [PMC member vote results](templates/pmc-member-results.txt)
* [PMC member invitation](templates/pmc-member-invite.txt)
* [PMC member announcmement](templates/pmc-member-announce.txt)
* [PMC member welcome](templates/pmc-member-welcome.txt)