What's the difference between a Forum and a Project?
- Forums are open discussion boards that are available to all TM Forum Members. Any member can view discussions in the forum, start a new discussion, reply to an existing debate or subscribe to the forum.
- Member projects are collaborative projects available to all TM Forum Members.
- Instead of general discussion and debate, the projects are closed spaces where members collaborate on updates and extensions to TM Forum's Code + Frameworks suite of best practices and standards.
- The outputs and deliverables of collaborative projects become part of Code + Frameworks.
- In contrast to a forum, you must join a member project before viewing discussions and contributing to the project deliverables.
- Joining a project is a FREE member benefit but requires that you accept the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) terms.
What's the difference between a Catalyst project and Member Project?
- Member projects are collaborative projects leading to the enhancement of Code + Frameworks best practices and standards.
- Catalysts bring innovation to life. They are rapid-fire proof-of-concept projects for co-creating innovative solutions to significant industry challenges.
- The work of Catalysts impacts multiple vertical markets and connecting ecosystems.
What are the roles within a Project?
| Project Chair | This individual or group of individuals is responsible for planning, executing, and promoting a project's activities. |
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| Project Co-Chair | This individual or group of individuals is responsible for planning, executing, and promoting a project's activities. |
| Author | This individual or group of individuals is responsible for contributing a high volume of original material which forms the asset/artefact being produced as part of the project. |
| Editor | This individual or group of individuals is responsible for ensuring that the content being produced is accurate, of the highest quality and formatted professionally. |
| Key Contributor | This individual or group of individuals has contributed a high volume of key points and content which, if removed, would impact the value, quality and validity of the asset/artefact being produced. |
| Additional Input | This individual or group of individuals has contributed key point(s) and content which has contributed valuable additional content to the asset/artefact being produced. |
| Reviewer | This individual or group of individuals has formally reviewed and corrected all, or a section, of the asset/artefact being produced. |
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How do I join a Project?
- Follow the instructions in 'Joining a Project'
- To maximize the value of participating in a project, we recommend that you also attend TM Forum Action Week, where teams meet face-to-face to kick off and advance deliverables. While many tools have made remote collaboration possible, nothing beats face-to-face!
How do I leave a Project?
The ability to resign from a project is available. Simply click to the project home and click the RESIGN button to leave the project. You will no longer have access to the project and will no longer receive automated emails regarding the project.
What is the commitment when I join a Project?
The commitment when you join a project depends on your role. Several types of participation roles exist and are outlined below:
Chair/Co-Chair (For more on Team Leaders, see: Chair/Co-Chair role):
- Ensure the project is in line with TM Forum IPR policy
- Encourage all participants to take an active part in the project
- Ensure participants have a clear understanding of what they need to complete and when
- Drive the project team for on-time delivery
- Lead the design, planning, and execution of validation activities
- Identify key companies required to position for industry adoption
- Articulate the Industry User Story
- Act as a Champion for the team
- Drive adoption in own organization by championing deliverables as beta versions of solutions to be developed
Workstream Chair/Co-Chair:
- Ensure the project is in line with TM Forum IPR policy
- Assist project team lead in having all participants take an active role in the project
- Ensure participants have a clear understanding of what they need to complete and when
- Drive the project team for on-time delivery
- Lead the design, planning, and execution of validation activities
- Identify key companies required to position for industry adoption
Participant:
- Develop collaborative solutions following the developed charter and in line with the Collaboration process
- Participate actively in sprint activities
- Join weekly project calls
- Complete tasks as agreed with the team or workstream leader
- Seek out expert resources to help as required
- Review all outputs from the team and provide quality, timely feedback
- Participate in validation activities; these may be online or face to face
- Monitor Collaboration Events & Activities page for all the latest review activities
- Participate in validation activities. These may be online or face to face
- Attend team action week
- Monitor Collaboration Events & Activities page for all the latest review activities
- Invite new people to the projects
- Promote deliverables
- Actively utilize the tools provided to ensure projects work agile (be empowered to self-serve)
Can I start a new Project?
- Any TM Forum member can suggest a project or propose an idea for a project.
- The best way to do that is to find the related forum, the one most likely to include people who would be interested in your idea and that community's leader, or post your idea as a new discussion.
- You will need at minimum one service provider and three participating companies (vendors, software companies, etc.) to join. When you have gathered support for the new project, develop and submit a Project Charter for approval.
How can I become a Chair/Co-Chair of a Member Project?
- To get started with leadership positions, we recommend that you begin by taking on the role of Workstream lead.
- In this role, you will drive a workstream of a project, encouraging active participation and leading the design and execution of validation activities for the workstream.
- This helps you build experience in leading a member project and is an excellent way to meet and work with the other project participants
- For more on Team Leaders, see Chair/Co-Chair role.
Where can I find TM Forum templates for deliverables?
- Templates for standard types of deliverables are available right in Confluence! Once you are in the Confluence space for your project, click the red CREATE button. From there, you can choose the appropriate template and begin work.
I have a question that wasn't answered in this FAQ?