Status: LIVE

Activity Bootstrapping Protocol

All things that the company undertakes can be thought of as an "Activity". Building the app for our customer SummitLynx is an Activity. Opening an office in Zagreb is an Activity. Building our corporate identity is an Activity. Doing our office interior is an Activity. Even ongoing things like accounting can be thought of as an Activity.

Each Activity must be bootstrapped before it can begin. Activity require a Team (people), need an AL (Activity Lead), a set of goal, budget, etc. This guide describes how Activities should be bootstrapped.

• Anyone can propose an Activity.

• Activities must be approved by a Clan/School Leader before they can start.

• Customer project Activities must be approved by the HoP. Typically, it will be the Sales Clan that will bring in a customer project and submit it to the HoP for approval.

• Internal projects must be approved by Management.

• All Activities must have clearly defined Roles at the start including the AL: Activity Lead, key stakeholders and the Team members' individual roles. Not all Activities will have a PM, know the difference between Activity Lead vs PM.

• However, all customer facing projects must have a PM involved, even if they're not the AL.

• Every project containing software development must have a designated TL: Tech Lead.

• Every project containing design must have a designated DL: Design Lead.

• At the beginning of every project, the process that will be followed must be announced and explained to all members of the Team by the AL.

• If you need people for your project (the usual case), then you must request resources from the Clan leaders, e.g

  • From CEO for: CRO, CTO, Hod, HoP, HoF, HoM, HoHR, OM

  • From HoP for: PM, Eng, Des, QA

  • From CRO for: AE

  • etc.

  • The source of truth for this is the Clan Roster here: Clans & Schools Roster.

• You cannot go directly to an Engineer, Designer, etc. and ask them to do something for you. Regardless of whether you're the CEO, or whoever, and regardless if you just want something quick (e.g. an estimate for a project). Please stick to this to protect people's sanity. For example, if you're the CRO and you regularly need time from Engineers for estimation, then ask the leader of their clan (Engineers are in the Product Clan so that would be the HoP) to grant you a recurring block of e.g. 5h/week.

• Resources can be requested decisively (I definitely need them), or provisionally (if the project gets signed, then I will need them, otherwise not). Support both.

• Sometimes people outside of the PM Group will manage projects. If that's you, then you're the AL: Activity Lead and you assume all those responsibilities.

• If it's your first time being the AL, ask for an intro into the basics from the HoP.