OpenStackers,

I would like to submit my candidacy to serve on the TC.

Back in 2010, I was sitting in the rally room at Rackspace Blacksburg when our
leaders told us that we were going to open source some of our cloud software
along with Nasa. At the time; I was starstruck. Open source software had given
me the opportunity to have a career, and now, I was getting to see a new
project born. It'd be 2014 before I would actually get to work on OpenStack,
but that moment is seared in my memory as something special.

Twelve years later -- eight of them spent working in and around OpenStack, I
find myself in a position to serve the project that I looked at with such wide
eyes early in my career.

One of OpenStack's true strengths has always been diversity of ideas and
contributions. My main motivation in running for TC is to ensure that we hang
on to that strength for as long as possible. I believe that having more
independent voices on the TC is one way we can do that.

What enables me to be an independent voice? My employer, G-Research Open Source
Software, supports the operation of OpenStack without it being a part of their
core business. OpenStack is a tool used, just like so many other companies, as
part of their workflow to get things done. This is important because it
demonstrates what they're not: a vendor, hosting service, or reseller of
OpenStack -- but just a company that is built with OpenStack as an
infrastructure piece. This means I can leave my "upstream hat" on 24/7 -- a
luxury that is rare in open source.

The last eight years working on OpenStack, and Ironic specifically, have been
formative to my career, and to me personally. I have made and connected with
friendships that will hopefully outlast the computers we all provision
together. The OpenStack community has always been kind to me, and if given the
opportunity, I'll do everything I can to repay that kindness and ensure the
community remains welcoming during my tenure on the TC.

Thanks for reading,
Jay Faulkner
IRC: JayF