Message from Mark

(originally sent via email June 3)

Hi all,

The Whistler work week is coming up soon. I can't say enough about how much I look forward to being together and connecting in person.

It's been a good year so far. Really. We started strong with a record end to our 2014 fundraising and a victory on net neutrality. Our learning networks work is unfolding exactly the way we hoped -- working with emerging leaders to grow Hives and Clubs. We're about launch the Webmaker app in Bangladesh, Kenya, Brazil and Indonesia. Our fellowships and the communities around them are expanding into new places. And we've got a newly powered up ops, finance and HR team that is helping us grow up as well run organization. I'm proud. And grateful.

The Whistler work week is an opportunity for us to check in and add to this momentum on a number of different levels: in our immediate teams; across MoFo and across Mozilla as a whole. It’s going to be an important moment for us to reconnect, look around the room and remember that is is *all of us* that make up Mozilla.

Our goals for the week

Concretely, our goals are:

1. Dig into our relationships goal.

'Growing relationships with Mozilla that advance the web' is our topline KPI for all of Mozilla. We all build and steward relationships like this. It's our business. In Whistler we will look at these relationships together in Whistler, everything from with large numbers of people on our activist mailing list to deep networks that connect educators in a city. Each of us will leave with a framework for talking about and measuring the relationships with the people we work with most.

2. Shape the core thinking our Mozilla Learning (aka Academy) plan.

We have accomplished a lot over the last five years. There is so much to be proud of -- and there is also a a lot of complexity and confusion about what our core story is. We've started work on the 2016 Mozilla Learning strategy with the aim of harvesting our best work, making our programs simpler and easier to deliver on and developing a clear story of the kind of impact. In Whistler, we'll each have a chance explore how each of us can shape where we take Mozilla's learning and leadership work as we move into the next five years.

3. Get shit done. Together. In your teams.

The majority of the time is set aside for you and your team to work together. There will also be ample time to work across teams -- and we'll be helping you schedule that.

Scheduling

We know that everyone has a lot that they want to accomplish individually, in their teams and across Mozilla. We also want to take this opportunity to reconnect as a group. Our goal this time is to find a better balance of 'work week' and 'everyone'.

For an overview of how we plan to use the various slots throughout the week, please see a MoFo-specific version of the general schedule here: http://mzl.la/mofo_agenda

More coming soon

More detail will be coming soon. We'll also be gathering logistical information on a dedicated wiki page and adding updates regularly in the lead up to Whistler.

Between now and June 22, we have planned two MoFo all-staff meetings: one on June 8th to update you on 2016 Mozilla Learning strategy work and one on June 17th as a final get together before we see each other in Whistler.

In the meantime, your manager will be reaching out to share team-specific plans and get your feedback. Please keep an eye out for that and don't hesitate to let us know if you have any questions.

See you in the mountains!