[DAO:3f6b89f] DAO Governance Squad 2H2023 Budget Renewal

Governance
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by 0x511a22cdd2c4ee8357bb02df2578037ffe8a4d8d (ginoct)

Should the following $187,504 grant in the Core Unit category be approved?

Abstract

Renew the budget to fund the DAO Governance Squad established in January 2022. This core unit’s mission is: Enable users to make better decisions by providing the information and technical infrastructure to do it quickly, easily, and delightfully and they are the team responsible for maintaining and improving the DAO Governance dApp and its ecosystem.

Previous Grants proposals here (1H 2022), here (2H 2022), and here (1H 2023)

Grant size

187,504 USD in DAI

Project duration

6 months

Beneficiary address

0x3bf800b6F5c987b3738432068f789b7d131F1698

Email address

gino@decentraland.org

Description

The DAO Governance Squad was created in January 2022 due to a Community Grant given by the Decentraland DAO. From its inception, it has grown into a fully-featured product development team working in an open and agile way, focused on improving the capabilities of the central governance platform of the Decentraland DAO, the Governance dApp, and its ecosystem.

This grant will set up a budget for the next 6 months to run this team. This grant could be extended upon a further decision of the DAO if the project succeeds in its objectives. The DAO Governance Squad has been set up as a Panama sole-purpose, Non-for-Profit Foundation. The costs associated with maintaining the foundation are included in this Grant. The same Grant conditions detailed in the original founding proposal still apply.

To see the previously shipped initiatives check the previous Grant request proposal here. You can also see the demos we recorded here. Check the changelog here and the last monthly project update with a recap of all things shipped in the previous 6 months here.

Check the Transparency Dashboard here and the Governance homepage to see some key metrics of the DAO operations and community engagement.

The team will follow agile development practices to ensure a lean implementation of DAO governance requirements and continuous improvement of such features. The team will update the community, gather feedback and answer questions at the open DAO Town Hall meetings and Discord server. Monthly Demo recordings will be provided as well.

The grant will be provided as a vesting contract of stablecoins assigned to 2-out-of-4 signatures wallet. The key holders are the same as the previous grant plus another member of the team: Andy E

Check our previous financial report here.

Roadmap and milestones

EXTENDED VERSION IN THE COMMENTS SECTION (Yes, I know, we need to extend the character limit in this field, it’s now in our backlog :stuck_out_tongue:)

Governance Enablement

  • Working on implementing Multi-Delegation Strategy in Polygon as approved by a binding Governance proposal.
  • Reworking the Grants page into a dashboard for ongoing projects including Grants, Tenders, and Bid proposals.

Engagement

  • Crafting a daily brief using AI technology to simplify DAO-related information digestion.
  • Implementing personalized notifications based on DAO activity.
  • Allowing community participation and questions in project updates.
  • Improving DAO Home Dashboard with activity ticker.

Community Building

  • Continuing implementation DAO Badges system to reward users based on activity and DAO contributions.
  • Developing identity-related features, linking Discord and other accounts to wallet-based DCL accounts.

Maintenance & Committee Tooling

  • Improving tools for Wearable Curations Committee.
  • Moving from Goerli to Sepolia test net for testing and development.
  • Updating Vesting Contract pages to reflect new features.

Vote on this proposal on the Decentraland DAO

View this proposal on Snapshot

1 Like
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Extended version of the Roadmap section

Governance Enablement

  • Multi-Delegation Strategy in Polygon: We have initiated the implementation of the Multi-Delegation Strategy in Polygon, which was approved through a binding Governance proposal. While progress has been made, there are still pending tasks related to the Snapshot implementation to ensure successful deployment in production.

  • Bidding & Tendering Dashboard: Following the complete release of the Bidding & Tendering (B&T) process, we plan to revamp the Grants section of the Governance dApp. This revamp will transform it into a comprehensive dashboard showcasing ongoing projects. The dashboard will encompass Grants, Tenders, and Bid proposals, providing a centralized hub for monitoring their progress and developments.

Engagement

  • Marvin Morning Brief: To enhance accessibility and simplify the consumption of DAO-related information, we will generate a daily brief consolidating the latest proposals, project updates, and discussions on the Discord server. This will enable community members to stay up to date with relevant DAO activities effortlessly.

  • Notifications: As part of our ongoing efforts to improve user experience, we are working on implementing a feature that allows users to link their Discord accounts with their wallet-based DCL accounts (Identity v2). Once this integration is completed, we will introduce a mechanism to deliver personalized notifications based on each user’s DAO activity. This will enable individuals to receive relevant updates and stay engaged with the DAO ecosystem.

  • Comments in Project Updates: We believe in fostering active community participation and collaboration. To facilitate this, we are developing a feature that enables community members to engage in project updates by posting comments and asking questions in context. This will create a more interactive and inclusive environment for both Grantees and the wider community.

  • DAO Home Dashboard Improvements: Enhancements to the Governance landing page, aimed at providing users with a comprehensive overview of DAO activities. A new activity ticker will be incorporated into the dashboard, offering a concise snapshot of ongoing proposals, updates, comments, and other important developments within the DAO. This will ensure that users can quickly grasp the pulse of the DAO ecosystem.

Community Building

  • Badges v2: Building upon the current DAO Badges system, we are continuing its development to introduce Badges v2. This upgraded system will automatically reward users based on their activity and contributions to the DAO. By recognizing and incentivizing community involvement, we aim to foster a vibrant and engaged ecosystem within the DAO.

  • Identity v2: With Identity v2, DAO members will have the ability to link their Discord accounts (and potentially other social media accounts) with their wallet-based DCL accounts. This integration will leverage a decentralized identifiers (DIDs) approach, empowering users to establish and manage their digital identities seamlessly.

Maintenance & Committee Tooling

  • Wearable Curations Committee Tooling: Collaborating closely with the Wearable Curations Committee (WCC), we will work to enhance their tooling infrastructure. This improvement aims to streamline the process of assigning curations, communicating changes requested to wearable submissions, and facilitating efficient approvals. By optimizing the committee’s workflow, we seek to ensure a smooth and effective curation process for wearables in the DAO.

  • Goerli to Sepolia Migration: In response to the Ethereum Foundation deprecating the Goerli test net, we are transitioning away from it. Instead, we are implementing the Sepolia test net for testing and development purposes. This migration will align us with the latest advancements in the Ethereum ecosystem and provide a more stable and reliable environment for testing DAO-related functionalities.

  • Vesting Contract page improvements: Following the launch of the new Vesting Contract format during the introduction of the new Grants program, we have identified areas for improvement in the Vesting Contract pages available at http://vesting.decentraland.org. These pages currently lack support for new features such as pausing and periodic release capabilities. We are committed to updating the user experience and ensuring that the Vesting Contract pages accurately reflect the latest functionalities available to users.

1 Like
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This looks very promising compared to LordLike’s DAO Strategic Unit proposal.
At least there is 32k allowance for him.

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Thanks for your comment akasya!
I would like to clarify that @web3nit proposal is tied to Q2 budget so it is not competing for funds with ours.

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There have been a lot of good updates in DAO Governance dApp during last grant period, looking forward to the new features! :slightly_smiling_face:

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Hello Gino, I hope you’re doing well. I’ve observed that there has been a reduction in the budget for DAO proposals and categories lately. I’m interested in knowing when we can anticipate a decrease in committee pay or salaries and improvements in the overall efficiency of the DAO. Specifically, I would like to understand the situation regarding individuals who are receiving compensation of $100 or more per hour. Could you kindly share some information about the number of people working in this unit and their corresponding hourly pay.

Also, @HPrivakos. I have a question regarding the annual expenditure on the different committees. Could you provide an estimate or breakdown of the funds being allocated to these committees without sharing direct links to their proposals? This would greatly enhance the community’s understanding of the financial dynamics at play Thank you.

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Id like to know how many people are on the current teams and if there has been anyone let go or fired and if so why do you all need the amount you all do. Why its also ok for people to be on multiple committees and teams that get money from the dao instead of bringing in outside community members. Makes you all look like leaches. Since your name is personally on Support Committee and your on a election for Dao committee. What makes you need to hold both instead of allowing another person the chance.

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It is absolutely insane to spend 400K a year on squads and committees for a platform that doesn’t see 1000 users at any given moment… I don’t see how this is affordable or sustainable.

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Hi hardtruth, I see the cost of the squads that take care of the operations of the DAO as fixed costs for running a business (In this case, an organization). Regarding salaries, all our operations are public (You can check the financial report, budgets, and team members) and the questions you’re asking are answered in the proposal.
Regarding salaries of ‘$100 or more’ as you state, if you do the math you’ll see our average pay is significantly lower. Still, I do believe in fair compensation for highly talented and experienced people working in the DAO, so if someone is earning that (Which by the way, for international tech-related salaries it’s not a crazy amount) is because that individual deserves it. In the end, the community vote on proposals and budgets and have the final say.
Finally, regarding Committee compensations, again, those are voted in open binding Governance proposals and the committee operations are public as well.

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Hi CryptoTengu, all the information you’re asking for is available in the proposal. I’d like to clarify that there is no Support Committee, so I’m not into that. I work as a grantee on this team (like any other grantee community member). The proposal for the DAO Committee was open, anyone could propose themselves and go through the auditing process. And is the community the one who will vote and finally decide.
Thanks for your comment!

11

Has the squad developed any tech they believe could be monetized? Surely some of the obstacles Decentraland has faced, and this team has solved, are not unique to Decentraland and could be something marketable to other DAOs and web3 communities.

Just a thought. Curious if you think there has been anything, or is the potential in the future, to monetize any of the squad’s work.

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I question the budget of this grant.

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Hi Cheddar, thank you for your comment!

Doing some rough calculations and taking into account the last three proposals published by existing Core units (I’m not considering the @web3nit proposal since it’s a new individual contributor team), here’s what I found:

The total team compensation budget for the three units over 6 months is $368,604. That amounts to $737,208 per year.

The total number of members across the three squads is 13. So, the average compensation per team member would be $56,708 per year or $4,725 per month.

Considering that most teams consist of professionals with over 10 years of experience in tech companies, NGOs, and governments, along with academic backgrounds, and that they have to cover their own expenses like health insurance and taxes, I don’t see how this can be considered “insane.” Additionally, it’s important to note that there are no benefits provided besides the monthly payment, and job security is not guaranteed as it depends on community voting every 6 months.

2 Likes
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Hi GoldGuy, feel free to ask any questions you might have.

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Hey jar0d, all the code we do is open source, we have seen other DAOs using our code for their Snapshot front ends, and it made us really proud. We do believe that there’s value in the product and that there is room for productizing it, but to be fair I’m not sure that the DAO should pay for that (Maybe on the accelerator category, but this grant is for servicing and continuing the development of the existing services for the community).

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I genuinely respect your team members’ commitment and value to DCL. We all invest significant personal time and resources into building this and don’t anticipate any current return. Many active members invested a lot and are still in the red; I feel taking a cut would make us all feel like we are all in this together as a community. Nevertheless, the prevailing monthly compensation of $4,725 seems somewhat high for the current state of the ecosystem. Would it be possible for anyone to agree to a salary reduction of 25%? I believe an adjusted rate of $3,543.75 per month is more justifiable, and I suspect it would resonate better with our community.

2 Likes
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Just voted Yes! Wishing you all the best!

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DAO Governance Squad 2H2023 Budget Renewal

This proposal is now in status: PASSED.

Voting Results:

  • Yes 98% 9,567,888 VP (166 votes)
  • No 1% 170,003 VP (3 votes)
  • Abstain 1% 21,939 VP (8 votes)
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Thank you @ginoct I agree that someone with your level of expertise and experience is worth every penny. My contention is not with the worth of your work. I think italian leather bags are worth their weight in gold but I don’t own any because I can’t afford them. I buy bags, that are not luxurious baby calf leather made by artisans, but they get the job done just the same, and at this moment in time, a better use of my money is to pay off my student loans. Similarly, it is unconscionable for us to be paying 3 quarters of a million for squads in which, most of the staff works part-time hours, in a bear market, when I can’t even get the people around me 24/7 to care anything about Decentraland… not even the gamers. I think we should be spending 700K a year on going mobile and ipad, picking up the younger generations which are growing up right before our eyes on Roblox killing the game. What does it matter if we have smiley and frowney faces on our voting page when zero of my nieces and nephews care about visiting genesis city, find it boring and hard to use the controls?

I too am a freelancer and I understand about taxes and insurance but I don’t believe the DAO has the room to cover those things to the tune of 56K a year for part time work. I believe that grants are meant to cover expenses for those who believe in this space, and give of themselves to grow and build Decentraland, but compensating contributors has turned into giving out full blown salaries.

Thinking independent of your amazing track record and customary salary requirements, it is my opinion that we are overspending on squads.

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Thanks for your comment, Cheddar, and thank you for taking the time to reply, even with the proposal finished. It shows commitment and that you really care.

I do agree with the core of what you say; in fact, I believe we had this conversation in real life when we discussed that if Decentraland as a project wasn’t relevant, there would be nothing to “govern.”

Where I differ is that I think as a community, we should not replicate the logic of not compensating contributors at a fair market price. If the community believes there is a need to have a dedicated team to maintain a governance platform, support grantees, or handle any other operational or strategic aspects of the DAO, the people working there should be compensated fairly. In my case, Decentraland is something that I dedicate my entire time to, whether it’s working on the squad, reading and understanding the community, talking with users, representing the project in talks and events, or anything else that I think is worth it.

Having said that, I believe and agree with you that we should allocate resources to things like going mobile, improving our VR capabilities, or investing in better growth and brand marketing. However, for that to happen, we need either to build teams within the DAO that can gather context and propose informed projects for the community (Grants) or other professional teams to execute on (Bidding & Tendering), or we could rely on the Foundation to do so. I believe that a healthy decentralized ecosystem should not depend on a single actor to make things happen. That’s why I think having core contributors fairly compensated is essential for the future of the project.

1 Like