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The strength of your community is the best predictor of your project’s long-term viability. What happens when that community is gradually infiltrated by assholes, who infect everyone else with their constant negativity and personal attacks? Although someone may be a valuable technical contributor, that person will never contribute as much to the project as the many others who are scared away and demotivated. This talk will teach you about the dramatic impact assholes are having on your organization today and will show you how you can begin to repair it.
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Assholesare
killingyourproject
Community is critical
Reputation
Contributors
Results
Your ability to get results depends on your community.
What makes a great community?
Assholes The best
Most of us
Proving the problem: Gentoo
Ubuntu launches
Ohloh
Proto-assholes start receiving complaints
Assholes removed
Proving the problem: Glibc
Ohloh
Drepper leavesMove to Git
What isn't an asshole?
Conflict is good
What is an asshole?
Look for patterns
Assholes who look noble on the surface
● Cookie licking● Manipulative behaviors for “community good”● Backchannelers
What is an asshole? Two tests
1. After talking to the asshole, does the target feel oppressed, humiliated, de-energized, or belittled?
2. Does the asshole target those less powerful?
How many good interactions does it take to cancel out one bad one?
Sutton
Sutton
Sutton
Sutton
Sutton
Nuancing Impact
● Assholes don’t vex equally● Serious impact on community diversity leads to
further degradation of community health
Fight
Flickr: undergroundbastard
Men tend to
Pearson & Porath
Flight
Flickr: noeluap
Women tend toward
Pearson & Porath
Problems assholes cause to targets
● 48% decreased their effort● 47% worked less time● 38% dropped their quality● 66% declined in performance● 80% lost time worrying● 63% lost time avoiding● 78% became less committed
● 25% quit; 20% of witnesses quit!Sutton
Cascading effects amplify the problem
Flickr: wsdot
Problems assholes cause to projects
● Reduced innovation & creativity● Reduced cooperation & cohesion● Cost of targets' retribution toward project● Impaired cooperation from external projects &
people
● Impaired ability to attract the best & brightest
● Recruiting more assholesSutton
TCA: Total Cost of Asshole
Team lead
Developer relations team
Project leadership
Recruiting & training new developers
Targets & witnesses__________________Total Cost of Asshole
+
+
+
+
Sutton
An asshole is incompetent
Flickr: escapo
Dealing with Assholes
a.k.a. How to Steel
Your Spine
How do you fix it? Flickr: trp0
Flickr: kalandrakas
Flickr: hashir
Flickr: shannonmary
How do you prevent it?
Flickr: redefyne
Flickr: koenvereeken
Be quantitative
Flickr: soldiersmediacenter
Keep your standards high
Flickr: mount_otz
Provide expectations
Want to learn more?Read these
In the long run, dealing with assholes
is never worth it.
Donnie Berkholzdberkholz@redmonk.comTwitter/IRC: dberkholz
Leslie Hawthornhawthorn@redhat.comTwitter: lhawthornIRC: lh
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