Wikimedia Foundation Chief Executive Officer Transition Team/2021/26 March 2021 update
The search for Wikimedia’s next CEO/ED has been underway for just about four weeks.
The prospectus is linked here; it highlights the CEO/ED position as well as leader experience we are seeking. Briefly here:
Overseeing an operating budget of $100M+ and partnering with a talented and passionate team of 500+ (60% building tech and products) based in 40 countries, Wikimedia’s CEO must inspire thousands of stakeholders globally, promote and defend Wikipedia’s values in all interactions and marshal the talent and financial resources necessary to effectively support the growth and aspirations of global Wikipedia communities. In our challenging world, the CEO must be a truly global citizen who galvanizes, is collaborative and embraces diversity and equity in all dimensions.
While it is early days in the effort, we are pleased to report that there is interest in the opportunity on multiple continents, including in the Global South and other emerging communities.
We could still use your suggestions and recommendations. For at least the next month, the critical work is to expand networking, ensure awareness of the opportunity, and engage with leaders who might be interested in becoming our next CEO/ED. Given this, please share the prospectus broadly; we appreciate all that you can do to spread the word in your community.
We welcome all applications and expressions of interest. Also, please forward any ideas or reach out confidentially with nominations or questions to our search partners at Viewcrest Advisors: wikimediafoundation
viewcrestadvisors
com
We’ll continue to share periodic updates; the next one will be after mid-April. Overall timing for the search remains unchanged from prior communications, notably that we hope the search will conclude later in the year, ideally in September-October.
All the best,
The Board Transition Committee: Maria Sefidari, Shani Evenstein Sigalov, Tanya Capuano, Dariusz Jemelniak and Raju Narisetti.