SIP-161: Core Contributor Committee

Simple Summary

This SIP proposes the introduction of the Core Contributor Committee (CCC) to help coordinate and govern the Core Contributors. The CCC will be comprised of existing Core Contributors elected to the role by the other Core Contributors.

Abstract

This SIP introduces the Core Contributor Committee which, if ratified would be responsible for

• Managing the Core Contributor road-map and prioritizing protocol work
• Processing in-bound potential Core Contributor candidates and determining compensation (salary and equity)
• Manage Core Contributor incentive packages and compensations on a regular basis
• Negotiate partnerships with external protocols within the ecosystem

Motivation

The Core Contributors are a critical component to the Synthetix Protocol, allowing the protocol to have quick access to resources for protocol contribution. Up until now, the structure of the Core Contributors has been very flat with most of the Core Contributors self-organizing and self-prioritizing protocol work.

This has worked in the early stages of the protocol, where most of the Core Contributors worked in the same timezones and offices with only one or two main SIPs that ran in parallel, however has been a huge hinderance to scaling of the Synthetix Protocol as it becomes more and more decentralized.

On the topic of scaling and decentralizing the Synthetix Protocol, the onboarding process of new Core Contributors has always remained ill-defined and opaque with only a few OG core members making those decisions. To bring this process in-line with the rest of the Synthetix Governance system, the Core Contributor Committee is in the best position to take this responsibility in managing both new and existing Core Contributor incentives.

Specification

Overview

• Define roadmap and priorities, handle compensation to core contributors, packages (salary and equity)
• Enforcing resources, since they handle the compensation they ensure that the core contributors are aligned and focussed on their task at hand
• Core contributors are able to non-bindingly signal what they think is important to be worked on out of the SIPs waiting to be done
• CCC also vouch for new hires and vote on the new hires

The Core Contributor Committee will be made up of three senior members of the Core Contributors, elected by the other Core Contributors. This committee decides (via a ⅔ majority) on a variety of decisions all within the context of:

• Core Contributor Engagement
• Core Contributor Compensation
• Core Contributor Prioritization
• Protocol Road-map and Vision

Core Contributor Engagement

The onboarding of new Core Contributors would be handled between the existing Core Contributors and the CCC members. For a candidate to be eligible for consideration as a new Core Contributor, the candidate would need to have 3 existing Core Contributors vouch for them, once this has happened, the 3 Core Contributors who have vouched for this individual organise a meeting with the CCC and the candidate. The CCC members will then have the final say (by a super majority vote) on whether that candidate will be engaged with the Synthetix Protocol and propose a salary and/or a token package.

Core Contributor Compensation & Cost

The Core Contributor Committee will be empowered and held responsible for conducting quarterly reviews on the Core Contributors compensation and packages to provide a systematic way of ensuring that the Synthetix Protocol and Core Contributors are aligned.

The CCC will also provide budget to the following:

_Core Contributor misc costs such as travel, work equipment and tooling _ The CCC must ensure they have sufficient budget to pay for all CC ancillary costs like computers, software and travel.

Office rents and other ancillary expenses Any other costs required to support the CCs, including office rent and equipment must be allocated from the quarterly budget approved by the TC.

Major Partnership costs Given historical precedent the CCC is best positioned to negotiate and manage external partnerships and relationships, these partnership costs can be requested from the TC on an ad hoc basis outside the approved quarterly budget if neccesary.

Core Contributor Prioritization

The Core Contributor Committee will become the main connection between the Core Contributor resources and the Spartan Council. They will conduct weekly meetings with the Spartan Council to discuss the urgency and priority of SIPs in the "APPROVED" backlog and then interface with the Core Contributors. To further the accountability and responsibility of the Core Contributor to be focussed on the priority SIPs, the CCC will appoint a "lead" from those interested and suitable in championing the SIP.

The lead will be responsible for organizing a timeline, plan and a "squad" of Core Contributors who will be working on this SIP.

The CCC will then have the discretion to appoint further bonuses to the "lead" and the "squad" depending on their performance and efficiency.

In terms of prioritisation, the Core Contributors will also be able to signal on a platform such as canny.io on which SIPs they think are most important, this will help foster a collaborative relationship between the Core Contributors and CCC members.

Protocol Road-map and Vision

For the long-term sustainability of the Synthetix Protocol, the Core Contributor Committee will be responsible for collecting and discussing feedback and ideas for the management of the long-term road-map and vision of the Synthetix Protocol. This means interacting with the different DAOs, community members and also ecosystem partners to help synthesize the future of the Synthetix Protocol.

Rationale

The Core Contributor Committee ratification has been formed from a variety of considerations

Voting System the CCC members are voted in by the Core Contributors as they are the ones who are directly influenced by the decisions that are being made, the Core Contributors are also selected because they are the ones who have the most context making the relationship between the Core Contributors and CCC members symbiotic and accountable.

Core Contributor Engagement the Core Contributor Committee is in the best position to understand which resources are lacking within the Core Contributors and the budget capacity while the existing Core Contributors themselves understand which candidates would be most suitable for the role they are applying for, this vouching system ensures that both parties are responsible for what they know best.

Core Contributor Compensation the CCC have full discretion over the budget provided by the Treasury Council so they are able to ensure that the Core Contributors incentives are aligned with the Synthetix Protocol vision.

Core Contributor Vision and Prioritisation since the Spartan Council is voted on by the Synthetix token holders which means they are positioned to serve in the best interest of the token holders, there needs to be a mediator between the Spartan Council and the Core Contributors. By position the CCC as this mediator, the Spartan Council can have more transparency and discretion over the performance and prioritization of the Core Contributors ensuring they serve in the best interest of the token holders.

Configurable Values (Via SCCP)

• The # of members on the Core Contributor Committee
• The frequency of core contributor reviews
• The # of vouches required for a candidate to be considered eligible for consideration

Copyright

Copyright and related rights waived via CC0.