Compensation Adjustment Justification: Demonstrating Tangible Progress

[Illuminfti]

Hey there community!

This is Illuminfti, reaching out to talk about the progression of my role within the GWG. When I first stepped foot into this exciting journey, my responsibilities were tightly linked to executing OKR 3 during Q2. At that time, I was on a part-time arrangement, with a six-week worth of work, compensated at $4,500 per month.

Nonetheless, in line with the dynamic nature of our work, my role underwent significant growth, necessitating an adjustment in both my time commitment and remuneration. Presently, I dedicate between 65 to 80 hours weekly to breathe life into NDC v1.

In the spirit of transparency - an ethos we firmly uphold - I believe it’s essential to thoroughly walk you through this transition. Let’s delve into the stages of my journey, the consequential expansion of my role, and the tangible, measurable outcomes this evolution has culminated in.

Specific Objectives

For reference, these were my initial OKR 3 responsibilities:

Objectives:

1. Help each work group create a unique charter and budget for each of the 5 workgroups.
2. Ensure all charters and budgets adhere strictly to NDC Core Principles and Objectives.
3. Aid in the revitalisation of existing communities in line with NDC Core Principles and Objectives.
4. Work along side the Legal Work Group to assist in legal entity guidance for the 5 work groups
5. Create Documentation of charter, budgets, and legal entities guidance for all workgroups.

Navigating Through Responsibilities

This is a summary of my journey within the NDC so far, and you can find detailed information in the individual weekly transparency reports linked below.

Week 1: Establishing the Pillars (Week 1 Report)

My initial focus revolved around OKR 3, which encompassed:

• Laying the groundwork for our five core constellations - Amplify, NFTs, DeFi, Gaming, and Regional Communities - for successful funding applications post the NDC v1 elections.
• Tracking the readiness and advancement of all workgroups with their charters, budgets, and legal entities.

Week 2: Scaling New Heights (Week 2 Report)

The second week witnessed a growth in my responsibilities to encompass:

• The finalization of charters for all five core workgroups.
• Coordination of the Election GTM Process.
• Creation of a comprehensive Work Group Overview Document.
• Contributing to the inaugural WorkGroup Summit.
• Laying the groundwork for the NFT WG elections and designing the nomination and election process in collaboration with the work group champion.

Week 3: Steering Through Complexities (Week 3 Report)

By the third week, my role further diversified, centering on establishing new functions within the NDC and refining processes across the GWG and the broader NDC.

Embracing New Responsibilities

In addition to my OKR3 responsibilities, my expanded focus is now:

• Taking charge of the Polling and Amplification Process.
• Initiating the Planning and Strategy Work Group.
• Collaborating with the Compensation Work Group.
• Owning the Processes and process flows for the GWG.
• Working closely with the GWG and the Elections Work Group on the Election and Voting Process.
• Collaborating with others in the GWG on the Budget Standardisation Process
  • This will be piloted within the GWG and then rolled out as best practice to the wider NDC.

Compensation Adjustment: Aligning with Industry Standards

In light of the significant achievements and the expanded role I’ve adopted within GWG, it seems just to propose a revised compensation of $10,000 per month. This adjustment is not a reflection of vanity, but an acknowledgement of the level of responsibility, dedication, and effort that I invest in our shared work.

The proposed compensation aligns with industry standards. My research shows that the Operations Manager role at similar organizations averages around $87,000 to $153,000 annually, which translates to approximately $7,200 to $13,000 per month. Considering the unique challenges and extensive role within our decentralized organization, the proposed compensation is suitable and leans towards the lower end of the industry scale.

Understanding and Addressing Risks

I fully recognize that a proposed increase in compensation might trigger questions or concerns. Upholding our culture of transparency and dialogue, I aim to address these points:

• Equity: We each contribute uniquely to the growth and success of GWG. This adjustment does not undermine anyone’s contributions. It is an alignment with industry standards and mirrors the escalated responsibilities and time commitment of the Operations Lead role.
• Justification: I pledge to offer regular updates and reports showcasing the progress we achieve under my guidance. This report serves as an instance of such efforts to quantify and highlight our progress.
• Contextualization: The proposed adjustment is not whimsical; it is guided by industry standards and the magnitude of the responsibilities I shoulder. I am open to discussion and debate on this topic, highly valuing your thoughts and feedback.

As we advance, I remain steadfastly dedicated to nurturing our community, achieving our objectives, and relentlessly pursuing transparency and efficiency. I encourage everyone to voice their thoughts, feedback, and concerns. Collectively, we can continue to cultivate an ecosystem that rewards diligence, commitment, and demonstrable progress.

In deepest respect and gratitude,
Illuminfti

[Kariv]

Hello,$10000 for work which NDC WG leaders already did? If you increase your payment, all other NDC WG and GDAO leaders should increase their payments to $10000 a month. And what is the value of NDC right now? How does it help to reach 1B users? NDC is dead.Thnk

[Illuminfti]

Thank you for sharing your perspective; it’s valuable to have a diversity of viewpoints within our community. I understand that the proposed adjustment may seem substantial, and I’m glad you’ve brought this up.

It’s important to note that the complexity, responsibilities, and time commitment of roles within the GWG and other Work Groups can significantly differ, and thus reflects this variation. My role as the Operations Lead has grown to include tasks and responsibilities that stretch beyond those initially outlined. This adjustment aims to account for the expanded role I’ve taken on.

As a way to understand the breadth of my responsibilities and how they extend to the entire NDC, I invite you to reach out to the leaders of all the relevant workgroups. They can shed light on how much I’ve assisted them in their journey to going live, and what that contribution means for the efficiency and effectiveness of their respective Work Groups.

As we navigate these challenges, let’s continue the conversation and work together towards creating a balanced and equitable ecosystem. I appreciate your engagement and look forward to your continued involvement.

[Roizlive]

Hello,why was the data taken from the US market? We have a lot of talented people in India, where the median project manager’s salary is $20 000 a year. $4500 is a great paycheck, even more than the average salary for NDC leaders who do more work than you.

[Illuminfti]

@Roizlive

Hello,why was the data taken from the US market? We have a lot of talented people in India, where the median project manager’s salary is $20 000 a year. $4500 is a great paycheck, even more than the average salary for NDC leaders who do more work than you.

Thank you for your insightful comment. You’re right, we’re indeed a global community with talented members from all around the world, including India. When assessing compensation, it’s important to consider multiple factors including, but not limited to, geographic location, living costs, market dynamics, and of course, the specific role and responsibilities associated with the position.

I chose to reference the US market data as it often serves as a globally recognized benchmark due to its broad range of organizations, roles, and compensation structures. However, I am based in London, another high-cost area similar to the US. The economic realities of these regions form part of the context in which this salary adjustment was proposed.

As for the comparison with the salaries in India, while it is true that the median salary there is lower, we must remember that economic circumstances, living costs, and market conditions vary greatly from one country to another. It can be challenging to compare salaries across different countries and roles because of these differences.

Regarding your point about the current compensation being higher than the average salary for NDC leaders, it’s vital to note that each role within our collective has its unique set of responsibilities and challenges. The proposed compensation reflects the increased scope, impact, and demands of my specific role rather than forming a comparison between individuals. The increase in bounties comes with an expansion in responsibilities that extend beyond my original assignment.

To further provide insight into the value of my role, I invite you to reach out to the leaders of the relevant workgroups. They can shed light on how I’ve assisted them with their charters, and what that contribution means for the efficiency and effectiveness of our operations.

I highly appreciate your perspective, and I believe in the importance of having these open dialogues. They ensure that we maintain an environment of fairness and transparency, and foster the continued growth of our collective.

[atrox1382]

Hey Illuminifti, first of all hats off to you for being transparent in all of your steps at the GWG. We need leaders like you to make the NDC a success and to turn eyes back to NEAR and its innovative approach in all aspects.

As a core contributor, I have really enjoyed working more closely with you and I’m impressed with all the positive change you have brought so far, both in professionalising operations in the NDC & GWG and in supporting various constellations.

Compensation is a tricky subject and adjustments should never be taken lightly; they should be weighed against delivery and value brought to the purpose and NEAR in general. The significant increase in Illuminfti’s tasks, closely resembling those of an Chief of Staff or a Head of Ops, warrants such an adjustment in my opinion.

Ultimately, our collective goal is the growth and success of the NDC. This is only possible in an environment that recognizes, appreciates, and fairly compensates all contributions. I believe that Illuminfti’s proposed compensation is a recognition of his tireless work and an investment in his continued leadership. I’m sure I speak for others as well in saying this.

[sarahkornfeld]

@Illuminfti Thank you for posting this (and having the stomach to bear up the ridicule). I will be posting my report tomorrow when I get the new numbers on our KPI and impact.

You have been an amazing addition to the GWG. You are transparent, honest, hardworking, and huge-hearted. Anyone from the NFT community will sing your praises, and we named you the “Charter Whisper” because you have a great sense of the business of collaboration and Web3 and are getting everyone who has stepped forward to develop workgroups ready for primetime.

As to the point that the NDC is dead? How so? It’s just gotten started and has its own Community Treasury. It’s here, in fact. Additionally, the NDC is a movement for self-governance that will empower the millions of people and projects that will join NEAR. So, that’s actually not correct (that our OKR is 1 Billion people for the NDC/GWG), the NDC movement – which will gain more and more awareness now – hopefully will become a draw for millions of people as well as support our leadership position in the market.

So, back to the idea that you don’t work hard – 8:00 am to 12:oopm every night, overseeing up to 20+ workgroups, refining our budget, and keeping us all in line is not “nothing”. You’ve taken the task and run with it. Thank you.

I really wish our community can learn that knocking someone down does not make you powerful. Also, we don’t have to make someone the “bad guy” in order to feel good about our own work. Everyone is working hard, and thank you to all who are doing it without punching the other guy in the mouth.

[Bella]

Hello Sarah, you disappeared from NDC many months ago, but still continue to receive bounty. I think it’s a great idea to take over your paycheck to Illum. What do you think about it? atrox1382 you can also donate your paycheck because community hasn’t seen any reports from you.

[sarahkornfeld]

Hi Bella,

I’m not sure what you are referring to. NDC is a decentralized movement so I don’t know where I would need to “be” – we are decentralized, correct? I am on TG groups, Twitter, public calls, and public community meetings every Tuesday…I’m here! Will be reporting tomorrow on the past few months. William is doing the same soon. More to come!

[krikkraktrak]

Thank you for leading the way for transparency, we would not be knowing what is going on at 5WGs and would have no ideas about your compensations if you have not issued these reports. I am not at a position to comment on fairness of the amounts as we do not have ideas about other peoples’ compensations, bounties and their KPIs& achievements. I hope your reports will be model for creating fair, transparent, inclusive, decentralized ecosystem.

[Yuen]

Really as NDC keeps on saying that we will be transparent, illuminfti has set an example of making weekly reports for the community to know what he has done for the NDC and goals he have set for next week.

He has been in every Working Group helping with their charter and budgets as well as helping setting standards for the NDC like his Workgroup charter guide, workgroup budget guide and role creations. He has guided the 5 pillar WGs the Gaming, NFT, Defi, RCWG and Distro WG on their budget and charter. He is also helping create the elections guidelines.

If you haven’t really been in the NDC that much, I would have to ask you to jump into this rabbit hole and see what he has done for the NDC as a whole that lead him asking for the increase of pay. He has done so much and is still trying to do more.

Hoping that he keep pushing the NDC to greater heights of transparency, development and accountability. If any of you still haven’t join please join the NDC community hub and contribute to the development of the NEAR ecosystem.

[satojandro]

Thanks for your ongoing posts that add to transparency.

After our lengthy call, you joining GWG - along with a couple other highly talented individuals, give me hope that many of the grievances that people on this thread, and community members broadly, express about the NDC will be addressed in an adequate manner.

For me, in order to make room and justify properly the increase in salary, it is these concerns that must be addressed first;

• How can we view the increase in your salary in terms of reducing overall spend of NDC (Grievance: too many people getting paid too much for little work.) I am in favour of doubling down on people who deliver results, but need to see progress in the realm of removing poor performers (and grifters)
• I do worry that failure to address the point above will lead a contagion effect - an ever increasing amount of people who do not perform the same amount of work or deliver the same results feeling entitles to the same compensation. This is a cancer that is spreading, led me to step down from MDAO and will eventually kill NDC if not tackled soon.

The second point is around the compensation method:

Would you be open to receiving part of the compensation in unlocked NEAR tokens and part of the compensation in locked NEAR tokens? I find the idea of all community contributors dumping hundreds of thousands per month unsettling, yet the idea of having really strong, long term alignment (a core team of savages who will do anything to see NEAR succeed and have their locked bag be worrth something) much more compelling.

AVB

[Illuminfti]

Thank you for your thoughtful response and the constructive feedback you’ve provided. I’m glad to hear that my contributions to GWG, along with those of my talented colleagues, have given you hope for the future of the NDC. We are all committed to resolving the concerns raised by you and other community members, and I fully agree that addressing these issues must be a top priority as we move forward.

With regards to your first point, I wholeheartedly agree that we must strive to optimize the NDC’s expenditure and ensure that funds are being used in a manner that yields tangible results. Rest assured, I have been and will continue to be dedicated to enhancing efficiency and driving performance within our Working Group. The emphasis is always on quality over quantity. Each member of our team is expected to deliver value and contribute meaningfully to our collective success. We are continually striving to improve performance and accountability, and poor performance is not something we take lightly. Please understand that I do not see this as a reflection of our current team not working hard enough, but rather an ongoing process of continuous improvement and optimization.

Regarding the ‘contagion effect’ you’ve mentioned, it’s a valid concern. In any organization, there’s always a risk of such dynamics. But it’s my belief that by setting clear expectations, maintaining transparency, fostering a culture of accountability, and continually recognizing and rewarding merit, we can prevent this from happening.

In terms of my compensation, I appreciate your suggestion and understand your concerns regarding the potential for misalignment between the NDC and the broader NEAR ecosystem. I’m open to the idea of receiving a part of my compensation in locked NEAR tokens in the future. I agree that such a model can create a stronger alignment with the long-term success of the NEAR ecosystem. I must mention, though, that in order for me to transition to such a model, I would need to ensure that my immediate costs are covered in a tax-efficient way. But given that, I’m absolutely open to this suggestion.

Finally, let me reiterate my commitment to transparency, efficiency, and the overall success of the NEAR ecosystem. I’m grateful for your feedback and will continue to do my best to address these concerns. I believe that by working together and maintaining open and honest communication, we can overcome these challenges and build a more robust and successful NDC.

[blaze]

Please find deets here:

MyMadness is onchain - SEMI DAILY REPORT

Hey, everyone. We are in the midst of a monumental movement of the NEAR Community. Governance is moving onchain! The GWG is now actively transitioning to be part of the broader NDC and is moving governance reporting, interaction, and decision-making onchain and, along with this, moving decision-making to the Humans on NEAR. In terms of transparency, I do not believe a weekly report is necessary, and this will, in the long run, will create tremendous overhead. Again I ask. What is transparency?…

[TroveLabs]

These are two very great points. While it is extremely important to incentivize the early/core members of the NDC to contribute, we need to ensure that the budget the NDC is responsible for lasts and is used efficiently and responsibly. I feel that while there are checks in balances created in the NDC structure and various workgroup charters designed to prevent bad actors and poor performers, NEAR governance does not have enough adoption/involvement from the community to effectively stop potential “contagion” (As AVB describes it) in an effective manner.

From what I can tell, @Illuminfti seems to be providing substantial value to the NDC at this time.

Also @Illuminfti , I would appreciate it if you could answer a few questions. As the NDC project Manager , will the workload for this position remain consistent over the next few months to justify the increase in salary, and how long will you be receiving this proposed salary for?

[Illuminfti]

Currently, my role within the GWG is evolving due to the increasing needs of our development cycle. However, this is likely only for a few more months. As tasks grow and become more specialized, they may require a full-time role, at which point we’d recruit specifically for that position, allowing me to shift to the next set of tasks within the NDC.

As the NDC goes live, some of my responsibilities will likely be transferred to other working groups. This is a natural part of the NDC’s evolution, ensuring operational efficiency and effective utilization of our diverse talents across different groups.

The duration of my proposed salary aligns with this timeline and the responsibilities of my role. It’s important to emphasize that this is a temporary arrangement to support the intensive work required during this crucial development phase of the NDC. As always, I am committed to transparency and accountability within our community, and welcome any further questions or feedback.

[TroveLabs]

Thank you for the quick response. As I stated before, Its is important to incentivize an compensate the right individuals in order to keep up progress in the development of the NDC. If @Illuminfti is willing to step up to a role like this, and complete the work described consistently, then the compensation should be appropriate and fair according to the position (operations Manager.

Maybe with the locked token payment method, along with a clearly defined timeline for the increased salary amount would allow the community to better gauge the impact of the new compensation for your position on the treasury, and allow us to move this forward?

[blaze]

This conversation aligns with what the NDC Comp huddle is discussing, including lockups and incentives for NDC Core Contributors. The NDC Comp huddle is looking for experienced Eco Leaders to join and help shape what rewards look like in NDC. HR, Finance, and leaders with experience managing large budgets are welcome to join, and it is a closed invite with published findings made public.

[sarahkornfeld]

My update HERE

Thank you.