Leadership lessons from Mautic’s journey to open source sustainability
Open source sustainability thrives on more than just code—Ruth Cheesley’s leadership at Mautic shows how diverse skills and inclusive leadership drive lasting success.
Inspiring leadership for open source sustainability: lessons from Ruth Cheesley and Mautic
In the open source world, sustainability is a constant challenge. Projects thrive not just on great code but on strong leadership, vibrant communities, and the ability to adapt to emerging challenges. Ruth Cheesley, the Mautic Project Lead, embodies these qualities and offers invaluable lessons for open source governance. Her journey and leadership provide a blueprint for building sustainable, inclusive, and innovative open source ecosystems.
Congratulations, Mautic Community!
As we publish this blog post, the Mautic community is relaunching their community home at Mautic.org. We will be publishing a few post and interviews to celebrate this milestone for open source marketing automation. Stay tuned!
About Mautic: a tiny marketing automation case study
Since most of our conversation with Ruth focused on leadership, open source, industry trends, and Ruth’s journey, we should set the stage first. Here’s a tiny case study about how Mautic marketing automation transforms business.
Ruth told us how a fire extinguisher manufacturer, “back in the mists of time,” used Mautic to improve customer satisfaction. The implementation process included mapping customer behaviors to specific sales pathways, ensuring, for example, that inquiries went directly to the right salesperson immediately, significantly reducing delays and providing customers with tailored product datasheets, streamlining their decision-making process. “The time savings and improved customer experience were transformative.”
Check out the Mautic Project’s Community Partner Case Studies page for more Mautic marketing automation success stories.
Ruth Cheesley’s journey to leadership
Ruth Cheesley’s story with Mautic began in 2015 when she was running a full-service Joomla! agency and heard about Mautic. She quickly became an active user and contributor to the project. Initially drawn to the project’s vision of open source marketing automation, she encountered a platform that was, in her words, “very buggy…clearly written by developers, not quite thought through from the marketer’s perspective in places.” Undeterred, Ruth began contributing by providing feedback, writing documentation, and organizing meetups. Her commitment was unwavering despite challenges.
Before Ruth assumed the role of Project Lead, the Mautic community was grappling with several critical challenges. Contributions had stagnated due to uncertainty following the project’s acquisition by Acquia in 2019. Governance structures were unclear, and the separation between the company’s interests and the open source community’s needs was poorly defined. Contributors grew frustrated with the lack of direction, and fears of the project becoming overly corporate or even closed-source were widespread. These tensions culminated in a significant decline in community engagement and trust.
Ruth was inspired to step into leadership because she recognized the urgent need for action to prevent stagnation and decline in the Mautic community. She described feeling a personal sense of responsibility to ensure that her contributions were meaningful and impactful, sharing: “I wanted to contribute in a way that mattered. I wasn’t going to keep working on a project where my efforts wouldn’t see the light of day.” Initially, she became Community Manager, hired by Acquia to help establish and grow the open source community.
Over time, the project’s founder became inactive, and it was clear that Mautic needed a stronger hand at the helm to have a future as an open source project. Ruth believed that the project could thrive and saw an opportunity to bring a different perspective to leadership, asking the community directly if they would support her—as a non-developer—in the role of Project Lead. “I had lots of conversations with people about how it would be to have a project led by someone who’s not a developer. I asked, ‘Do you feel like you could still give me your confidence?’” This inclusive, open, and transparent approach to leadership fostered trust and set the stage for her eventual promotion to Project Lead in 2020 with strong community support.
Governance and sustainability in open source: Mautic leading by example
Ruth’s leadership highlights critical governance lessons for the open source ecosystem. Here are some takeaways from our conversation with Ruth.
Transparency and documentation I
Ruth Cheesley’s blog is an essential open source resource and a textbook in open source governance. It meticulously documents her journey and the processes she has implemented in the Mautic project. These include introducing a new governance model, leveraging tools like Open Collective for financial transparency, and Open Startup reporting. “Having the right tooling and infrastructure for elections, team meetings, and transparency inspires confidence and trust,” she explained.
Transparency and documentation II
The Mautic Community Manifesto. The community created a manifesto to articulate their expectations for how Mautic would maintain its open source values and ensure continued collaboration and alignment between Acquia and the community.
The manifesto was critical during the 2019/20 transition period when the project faced significant challenges. Following Acquia’s acquisition, contributors were widely concerned about the project’s direction. Many feared that the open source community’s needs might be overshadowed by corporate interests, leading to tensions and a decline in contributions.
Ruth noted its importance during this period: “The manifesto was fundamental to the development of governance model v1.0 in collaboration with Acquia in 2019/20. At the time, it helped to clarify what the community expected from Acquia, raising their concerns which could then be addressed…and ultimately avoided a fork, which was a very real possibility at the time.”
Although people reference the manifesto less today, its role in preventing a split and establishing foundational governance practices underscores its historical significance. It reflects the power of a clear, collective vision to stabilize and unify a project during uncertain times.
Inclusive collaboration
Mautic’s latest governance model emphasizes community involvement. “The project needs to move forward, and it’s not going to happen without activity and collaboration,” she explained. Democratically elected councils and team leads ensure that decisions reflect the community’s collective vision. The community used Decidim, a participatory democracy platform, to support transparent and inclusive election processes. This overhaul replaced informal decision-making with structured roles and responsibilities, providing the community agency and clarity. Community members expressed renewed enthusiasm after these changes, with increased participation in decision-making and contributions. One contributor noted, “It finally felt like our voices mattered, and we were part of something bigger.”
Adaptability and resilience
Mautic has faced significant transitions, including its acquisition by Acquia and subsequent spin-out as an independent open source project. Ruth was instrumental in navigating the heavy seas of reorganizing governance, diversifying funding sources, and building community trust. “We explored several options for Mautic’s future—creating a nonprofit, operating under an umbrella organization, or going fully independent. Some paths could have been easier but were not aligned with our long-term vision,” Ruth explained. Her commitment to making thoughtful, community-driven decisions underscores her ethics and ability to guide the project through uncertainty while upholding its core values.
We find Ruth’s resilience and adaptability inspiring. They are essential qualities for a servant leader to sustain long-term open source success.
Sustainable funding (Work in Progress)
Under Ruth’s guidance, the Mautic community has prioritized diversifying its funding base. While major sponsors like DropSolid remain critical, Ruth is committed to reducing reliance on single entities. “We’re working toward not having a dominant funder, but practically speaking, we need more sponsors at the same level to make that happen,” she noted.
Sidebar: Leveraging AI for open source innovation
At the time of writing, no tech article should fail to mention AI ;-) So, of course, we asked Ruth about AI in marketing automation!
Mautic, as an open source project, is embracing emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) through community-developed plugins that are beginning to add specific functionalities. “One area we’re exploring is using machine learning to tell marketers the best days and times to send communications based on their own data set,” Ruth explained. Features like these empower marketers by leveraging their existing data to make smarter, data-driven decisions.
However, Ruth emphasizes a thoughtful approach to AI adoption. “From the user’s perspective, it’s more valuable if you have your own model trained on your tone of voice and content,” she said. This perspective aligns with her broader philosophy of tailoring innovation to meet user needs while preserving open source values. She added, “The important part is considering how [AI] enables the marketer to better serve their user, rather than churning out buzzword-filled content that isn’t actually contributing towards helping your customers or furthering your business goals.”
The broader impact of Ruth’s leadership
Ruth’s leadership also demonstrates that open source projects benefit from diverse leadership backgrounds. Her journey as a non-developer stepping into a technical leadership role reminds us that skills like communication, organization, and inclusivity are just as critical as technical expertise.
Ruth’s dedication has transformed Mautic from a promising yet struggling project into a thriving open source community. Her focus on governance, collaboration, and innovation has empowered businesses worldwide.
Beyond Mautic, Ruth’s journey offers lessons for the entire open source ecosystem. Her commitment to inclusivity, transparency, and sustainability provides a model for other projects striving to balance innovation with community-driven governance.
Lessons for the open source ecosystem
Mautic’s challenges and Ruth’s guidance and solutions hold many valuable lessons for open source projects:
- Governance matters: Clear structures and transparent processes build trust and enable effective collaboration.
- Community involvement: Inclusive leadership fosters a sense of ownership and engagement.
- Sustainable funding: Diversifying revenue streams reduces dependency on single sponsors, ensuring long-term viability.
- Responsible innovation: Mindfully leveraging AI and other emerging technologies can enhance functionality while staying true to open source principles. And here’s an open source freedom bonus: All open source projects let you experiment with new solutions. You don’t have to ask anyone for permission to change the code, invent new things, or add new integrations.
- Inspiring new leaders: Open source projects benefit from diverse communities, leadership, users, and contributors. Technical knowledge is only part of the story. All of us have something to offer to our communities.
Open source leadership best practices for sustainability and Mautic’s big future
Ruth Cheesley’s leadership exemplifies the principles of sustainability, adaptability, and collaboration that are vital for open source success. Her journey—from agency owner to Project Lead—and her relentless dedication to Mautic’s growth and governance offer inspiration to open source communities worldwide.
Open source projects thrive with strong governance and clear communication. Leaders like Ruth highlight the path to making a sustainable, meaningful impact in the world. A commitment to transparency, a focus on community, and a willingness to embrace innovation responsibly—backed up by the right frameworks and strategies—can transform a project’s trajectory.
Looking ahead, we think Mautic has a tremendous opportunity to claim a much larger slice of the estimated $50 billion marketing automation market. With its open source foundation, focus on privacy, data sovereignty, and innovative features like machine learning-driven marketing insights, Mautic is well-positioned to compete against proprietary solutions. Ruth’s vision of financial stability and a product-focused strategy further reinforces the project’s potential to grow and thrive.
More resources from Mautic's journey
- The Mautic community embraces transparency in its operations through the Open Startup initiative. The project fosters trust and collaboration by openly sharing financial and operational metrics. To learn more about this approach, explore Mautic’s Open Startup updates.
- To ensure financial transparency and sustainability, Mautic uses Open Collective, a platform that provides clear visibility into the project’s funding and expenses. This approach empowers contributors and sponsors alike to see exactly how resources are allocated. Visit the Mautic Open Collective page for details.
- Ruth shared valuable insights into redefining governance models for established open source projects during her talk at FOSDEM 2024. Her presentation explores how Mautic’s governance evolved to prioritize inclusivity, transparency, and community alignment. Watch her talk on the FOSDEM 2024 archive.
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