Wikimedia Foundation board summary 2015

The Board passed two resolutions relating to how the staff handles money. It approved the Annual Plan and two rounds of the FDC's recommendation, the second of which contained pointed criticism of the Wikimedia Foundation itself. The Board amended the scope of the Ombudsman Commission, established a standing Elections Committee to handle Board elections, and empowered the Board Chair to invite visitors to Board meetings at his or her own discretion.

The Board passed changes to the bylaws which made all Trustee terms three years, and limited most Trustees to six consecutive years.

The Board also engaged with staff dissatisfaction with the Executive Director, most notably during its meeting in November, but took no related action in 2015. The Board removed James Heilman (a community-selected Trustee appointed in July) from its ranks in December. The appointment of Arnnon Geshuri (see below) was short-lived; he resigned in January 2016 without attending a meeting. These events are all covered here:

• Revolution of 2016
• Molly White's timeline

The Board discussed the value of the Advisory Board, but passed no related resolutions. It seems that the Advisory Board has been disbanded as a consequence: this 2013 resolution would have required prior members to be reappointed at the first in-person meeting of 2015 in order to continue. These are the people who had been appointed in 2014.

Resolutions passed

Resolutions not related to board composition:

May

• Second amendment to the Delegations of Financial and Spending Authority
• Updated Brokerage Account Authorizations

June

• Annual Plan 2015-16
• Board approval of FDC recommendation (2014-15, Round 2)

November

• Amending the Scope of the Ombudsman Commission
• Elections Committee
• Inviting visitors to a Board of Trustees meeting (2015) (Chair may invite "staff, experts, or other guests ... as needed")

December

• Board approval of FDC recommendation (2015-16, Round 1)

Board composition

Trustees as of January 1, 2016:

• Patricio Lorente (Chair; chapter-selected)
• Alice Wiegand (Vice Chair; appointed)
• Denny Vrandečić (Interim Treasurer; community-selected)
• Kelly Battles (appointed)
• Frieda Brioschi (chapter-selected)
• Arnnon Geshuri (appointed)
• Dariusz Jemielniak (community-selected)
• Guy Kawasaki (appointed)
• Jimmy Wales (founder's seat)
• vacant (community-selected)

Non-trustee officers:

• Executive Director: Lila Tretikov
• Secretary: Geoff Brigham

Left the Board in 2015: Phoebe Ayers, James Heilman, Samuel Klein, Maria Sefidari, Jan-Bart de Vreede, Stu West

Board committees and liaisons

As of January 1, 2016:

• Governance Committee: D. Jemielniak (Chair), F. Brioschi, G. Kawasaki, A. Wiegand
• Human Resources Committee: P. Lorente (Chair), D. Vrandečić
• Audit Committee: D. Vrandečić, A. Wiegand
• Affiliations Committee liaisons: A. Wiegand
• Funds Dissemination Committee liaisons: D. Jemielniak, D. Vrandečić