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Maximize Your Open Source Participation - a new Eclipse Foundation Working Groups eBook

Wednesday, October 13, 2021 - 08:24 by Paul Buck

A critical part of open source software is collaboration. At the Eclipse Foundation, we’ve found that participating in working groups helps organizations get the most out of this collaborative spirit.

Our new Working Groups eBook explores how the structure of working groups and services like vendor-neutral governance and ecosystem development enable organizations around the world, of all sizes and industries, to maximize their open source participation and benefit.

By joining an open, collaborative ecosystem, member organizations benefit from different perspectives and areas of technical expertise. This lets members align on common interests, and develop a shared vision for open source software contribution.

Companies decide to join working groups for a variety of reasons, as growing start-ups can find value in having a seat at the table with multinational, industry leaders, while some larger businesses are able to participate in the same working groups as their customers, letting them build software that aligns with their needs.

It is clear that no matter what your motivations are for joining a working group, you can benefit from active involvement in the ecosystem. Todd Moore, VP Open Technology at IBM told us “The more you get involved, the more you’re part of driving the foundation. By participating directly in the committees and taking part in the sponsorship opportunities, you help bring all users’ requirements together into those projects. You shape them and make sure that what they produce has value, which accelerates your business and your opportunities. As a result, you’ll become an important player and others will want to work with you.”

In this ebook, you will hear from members of various working groups, including Eclipse IoT, Edge Native, Jakarta EE, Eclipse Cloud DevTools, and OpenADX, and discover why working group membership is a key part of their business strategies.

You’ll also learn how companies with an Open Source Program Office (OSPO) make themselves more efficient and accelerate their ability to drive innovation through membership in a working group.

You can download a copy of the  How Open Source Working Groups Drive Collaboration and Innovation eBook and learn more.