In our latest incorporation to the nest, Ruth joined Bitergia the Consultancy team as Junior Open Source Consultant. In this blog post, we’re exploring the current situation of our Consultancy services, why Bitergia wants to grow in this area, and why Ruth is a good fit for the team. We will also present her professional path, first impressions about us, and her ideas for the next steps.
To present Ruth and talk about the work of Consultancy, Igor Zubiaurre, Director of Consultancy -or sense maker as he prefers 😉- wanted to explain and talk more about it.
What is the current situation in the Consultancy department at Bitergia?
In short: we needed to fill the gap left by my predecessor last spring. If I take his role, I need someone to take mine.
Why did we choose to work with Ruth?
We knew her as a leader of the African community of CHAOSS, so when I saw her LinkedIn profile marked “open for work,” I asked her. Then I saw her speaking at conferences and smelled raw potential. Later, we learned that she’s also Microbiologist and a GitHub star.
As a scientist, she needed an understanding of data and how it depicts quantitative models that resemble reality, its traps, limits, techniques, etc. As an open source community manager, she walks in our customers’ shoes. And as an open source activist, she has the motivation and focuses we need.
Hoot Hoot! Welcome, Ruth!
For this section, we talked with Ruth about why she wanted to be part of our team, her background and experiences, and how this experience will help Bitergia with these new challenges.
What is your background?
I transitioned from a non-technical background (as a Microbiologist) and have worked in the tech industry as a Software Developer, Technical Writer, and Open Source Advocate for the past three years. My tech journey began as a Backend Developer using Python (Django). I also worked as a Technical Content Manager at Animalz before pursuing a full-time career in open source.
My involvement with open source from the beginning of my career helped me achieve my goal of shaping the experience of newcomers in the open source communities. My contributions have been to organizations such as the GNOME Foundation, Layer5, and the CHAOSS Project. Furthermore, I advocate for these projects through public speaking and workshops in my local communities.
Have you heard about Bitergia before?
Yes, I have. I’m an active contributor to the CHAOSS community, and I learned about Bitergia from the first week I joined CHAOSS. I’ve also connected and worked with Bitergians like Georg Link.
Why did you want to work with us?
I’m passionate about Open Source, and Bitergia’s commitment to open source community health caught my eye. As a result of the decision to work full-time in open source, I learned about Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs), which align with my dream of creating actionable ways for organizations to support open source. So this was the best opportunity for me.
First impressions & future actions
In the first weeks at Bitergia, I enjoyed working with my colleagues and learning more about Bitergia. The reception was warm, and working with people passionate about open source technology was lovely.
I have experience creating metrics at the CHAOSS Project. My goal is to hone this skill and apply it to using software to analyze the existing efforts of companies in open source communities and create metrics to measure their open source initiatives.
I am also learning many new things like InnerSource Program Offices (ISPOs), which apply Open Source methods and principles in a proprietary company.
I look forward to the awesome things I will do with my team and in Bitergia!
You can connect with Ruth and talk on LinkedIn or drop a message by email. She will be happy to answer any questions!
