[METIP #18] Season 5 Restructuring Proposal

MetricsDAO Governance
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Intro:

METIP #: 18

Title: Season 5 Restructuring Proposal

Author(s): Ananth (.naan), Raph (raphbaph), Aaron (imaaronlamphere), Marina (mar1na)

Type: Social

Dependencies: n/a

Replaces/Amends: n/a

Short Summary:

This proposal introduces a starting point for the DAO to begin as it transitions to its new state.

Motivation:

MetricsDAO is taking the next step in the process of decentralization. As season 4 winds down, Flipside will be stepping back to allow the community to begin owning the DAO together. This proposal allows us to transition to a state that keeps the DAO functioning in a self-sufficient manner.

Proposal Details:

Progress Made

In Season 4 (Q2 of 2023), MetricsDAO made major strides towards our mission. We continued working to empower analysts producing data-driven insights for web3. We further established MetricsDAO as a tool-agnostic nexus in the web3 data ecosystem, bringing together data providers and partners to create value. Here is a look at our Season 4 progress through the lens of our value centers:

  • Analysts: 300 analysts submitted their dashboards on our Notion stack and 231 analysts on the MetricsDAO app, solving 130 analytics challenges.
  • Protocol and app: New and improved v2 of Metrics App was developed during Season 4 and shipped in July 2023.
  • Data providers: MetricsDAO established relationships and collaborations with 50+ data partners.
  • Brand: MetricsDAO’s Twitter account gathered over 750,000 impressions in S4. Our video viewers came to the MetricsDAO YouTube channel more than 6,400 times. 500+ members a week stopped by our Discord to chat blockchain data and engage with the community. We continued making MetricsDAO a voice to be heard in the web3 data space.
  • Contributors: We wrapped the season with 26 active contributors building MetricsDAO’s operations, governance, business development, marketing, communications, education programs, and community.

Budget Proposal & Term:

MetricsDAO will be operating on a minimal budget for the foreseeable future. We are grateful for all who have contributed to DAO for the past 4 seasons, but limited resources mean we cannot compensate for as large a body of contributors as we have in the past. As of the time of writing this proposal, a set of contributors have agreed to work with no pay until the DAO has brought in additional funding. In the event that more resources are made available, a proposal will be put forward to approve how those funds might be used.

Governance Details:

MetricsDAO will move to the next iteration of the governance structures we’ve had in place for the past three seasons, though many parts will feel familiar.

To begin with, we want to reaffirm the importance of allowing members of a group to have the ability to influence its direction. We believe that voters are the heart and soul of MetricsDAOs governance. As such, being a voter also comes with responsibilities.

We also want to make clear that certain roles are legally required, but will be limited in capacity to the minimum needed to fulfill their legal functions. The full bylaws that govern MetricsDAO under Delaware law can be found here: Bylaws

Edited for clarity: The information about governance in this proposal is a slightly abridged version of text from this document which has a little more detail. There should not be any major differences, if any are found, please alert @lad9167, @mar1na, or @naan. MetricsDAO S5 Governance (Clean) - Google Docs

Members

Voters

Voters should be active members in the DAO and on the forums and act in any number of roles such as analysts, educators, governance researchers, treasury managers, moderators, content creators and community stewards, as well as being active participants in the governance system. They publish proposals, comment on RFCs, or at the very least participate in polls, so that governance is the most reflective of the will of the community at any time.

Voters are required to uphold the MetricsDAO Code of Conduct and should work towards furthering the mission of MetricsDAO. The foremost question at the heart of each new proposal should be if it makes processes easier and more efficient.

Voter badges can be revoked at any time should the Voter exhibit behavior that is in violation of the Code of Conduct. If three Voters file a complaint about a member, the issue will be brought up as a Snapshot poll on whether to retain the Voter or begin the offboarding process.

There will be two kinds of badges in the Voter group, one that is given to core contributors, who are working on the day to day operations of the DAO itself, and the other will be given to members providing value to the larger community. Holding one badge does not preclude someone from holding the other badge, but they will only have voting power for one of them.

Core Contributors

Core Contributors are the members who are working on day to day operations for the DAO, including in areas like business development, marketing, treasury management, etc. This group already exists, and have already had badges issued to them as part of MetricsDAO operations, while new contributors will get a badge issued to them as part of onboarding.

Stewards

A steward is a member of the larger MetricsDAO community, but is not involved in day to day operations to keep the DAO running. This can include roles such as analysts, content creators and community guides, as well as other active participants in the network.

A community member can become a steward through a process of application and attestation. An initial process is outlined below, but may change as needed.

Prospective Voters get appointed a Steward Badge after they:

  • Applied in a Discord channel with a short pitch for why they should be accepted
  • Have garnered seven affirmations by other Voters. Only Voters can react to messages in the designated Discord channel.
  • As the governance system gets implemented, an initial group of Stewards will be seeded by core contributors based on prior knowledge of community members.

Stewards will not be brought into the voter base at the start of Season 5, the process of applications and attestations will only begin once the current voter base has passed a proposal doing so.

Board Member

MetricsDAO as a Delaware non-stock, non-profit corporation is legally required to have appointed a board of directors. The Board is seen as conduit for the wishes of the Voters, and is appointed by the Voters through an election process requiring at least 67% Yes votes and less than 10% No with veto votes.

Board members can be recalled by a similar proposal at any time should the Voter feel that a Board Member is not aligned with the Voters or behaving in opposition to declared intent, especially if a Board Member is not following ratified proposals in intent and to the letter, or is violating the Code of Conduct.

Board members can resign at any time but are asked to serve out at least until a replacement can be found, ideally until the end of a Season.

Board members can veto proposals, if the board unanimously agrees that implementation would be unacceptable. They have to give a clear, understandable and timely rationale for each such veto. The Board cannot veto a successful proposal for replacement of a Board Member.

Outside of the veto, which should be used as a last resort, Board members do not carry any other governance powers that put them above a core contributor or steward. They may still participate in voting due to their status as a contributor or steward.

Officers

MetricsDAO is also legally required to have at least one Officer. The Officer will be appointed by the Board after a guiding vote by the community.

The officer shall have the power to execute all contracts, agreements, conveyances, deeds, guarantees, leases, obligations and other papers and instruments of the corporation that are authorized by the Voter Community and the Board, when required.

The Officer does not have the same veto rights as the board of directors.

Lead Badger

All badges are issued by a Lead Badger who has control over the MetricsDAO badge network.

The Lead Badger has other governance responsibilities besides issuing badges for governance and operation, namely:

  1. Checking if METIPs are correctly formatted, submitted in the right Forum category and are well-shaped, understandable and not in violation of the MetricsDAO Code of Conduct or Purpose
  2. Revoke Voter, Board or Officer Badges in the event of one of these roles leaving or in the case of a clear violation of the Code of Conduct, or if otherwise instructed by valid governance output.
  3. Answer questions about governance processes and aid proposal authors along the lifecycle of the proposal to make governance contributions easier.

The Lead Badger can be appointed by the Voter Community at the start of a new season. There can be multiple DAO members that perform this role, with the total maximum number being determined by the VC at the start of a season. For Season 5 there shall be no less than one and no more than three Lead Badgers.

Should one or more Lead Badgers behave in a manner that is contrary to the Code of Conduct they can be replaced by the Community via an emergency poll. If a proposal to replace a Lead Badger is supported by at least seven community members, as indicated by explicit consent via a reply to the proposal post, the Lead Badgers can not revoke any Voter Badges for the duration of the poll.

Proposals and Polls

Proposals:

Formal submission:

Anyone with a valid governance badge may submit a proposal. A proposal is deemed as formally submitted when it is entered into the Governance category of the MetricsDAO Forum.

Proposals have a three day (72 hr) feedback RFC period. Proposals that need the board to take action (anything requiring legal work or contractual obligations as well as changes to the governance structure or constitution) require a four day (96 hr) feedback RFC period.

Emergency proposals can shorten that period to at least one day (24 hrs).

Proposal authors should publish their METIPs so that the RFC period is not overlapping with Weekends, if possible. This ensures maximum participation by the community and respects off-time and family obligations.

Frozen Period:

After the RFC period the final proposal that incorporates any community feedback the author wishes to address has to remain visible on the MetricsDAO governance forum for one (24 hr) day, or for two (48 hr) days for proposals involving the board.

Emergency proposals do not have a frozen period.

The proposal author has to formally submit a proposal to a poll, should they desire to do so. This is done as a reply to the original proposal post on the Forums, with a simple declaration of intent. For example: “Submitting this proposal to a poll”.

Polls:

Anyone with a valid governance badge may submit a proposal.

Snapshot polls last for two (2) days and start every Monday 1200 UTC (8 AM EDT/EST). If the Frozen period ends later than that time the poll gets put up in the following week. Proposal authors should keep the governance cadence in mind when submitting a proposal to avoid undue delays.

Emergency polls can be triggered at any time after a valid proposal has been put up.

Each Snapshot poll must contain at least:

  • The title of the proposal as it is called on the forum, matching it exactly.
  • A sentence summary of the proposal
  • A longer summary of the proposal, ideally no longer than two paragraphs
  • A link back to the forum post for the proposal

Each Poll must have at least four options:

  1. Yes (In Favor of the Proposal passing)
  2. No (The Proposal shall not pass, and not be implemented in its current form)
  3. Abstain (The vote will not count towards the result)
  4. No with Veto (The Proposal shall not pass, and the Voter has strong objections)

Counting Votes

At the end of the two days of polling a proposal is deemed ratified and considered valid governance output, when:

  • A minimum of 33.1% of all Voter Badges holders have cast a vote (called quorum)
  • A minimum of 50.1% of all Voter Badges holders have voted YES (approval)
  • No more than 33.1% of all Voter Badges holder have voted NO with VETO (veto)

Polls to replace or appoint a board member have higher requirements, specifically:

  • A minimum of 50% of all Voter Badges holders have cast a vote
  • A minimum of 67% of all Voter Badges holders have voted YES to the proposal
  • No more than 25% of all Voter Badges holders have voted NO with VETO

Emergency polls pass as soon as they meet the following criteria, and do not have to run for the full 48 hours:

  • A minimum of 33.1% of all Voter Badges holders have cast a vote
  • A minimum of 67% of all Voter Badges holders have voted YES
  • No more than 33.1% of all Voter Badges holders have voted NO with VETO.

Implementation:

After a poll has successfully passed it is up to the respective pods to implement the proposal in a fashion that reflects the intent and the specific declaration of the proposal author as much as possible. The proposal author should be available to answer any questions.

Should any circumstances arise that would necessitate an implementation that is distinctly out of line with the original proposal, a new proposal has to be submitted that reflects the changes on the ground.

If a decision requires Board members to act, the Board must comply with the will of the DAO as expressed via valid governance output. Only if the board unanimously rejects a proposal and gives a specific, clear and understandable rationale in form of a Forum post referencing the original proposal, can the Board decide not to proceed with the implementation. It is the duty and responsibility of the Board to be a conduit for the development of the DAO as expressed by valid governance output.

Team Summary:

To start Season 5, we propose these members to fill the following roles.

Board Members:

We propose four members to be the initial board members for MetricsDAO going forward:

  1. Marina Ghosh
  2. Bhaumik Patel
  3. Chris Wessels
  4. Aaron Lamphere

Officers:

  1. Aaron Lamphere
  2. Ananth Nandakishore

Lead Badgers:

  1. Aaron Lamphere

Conclusion:

MetricsDAO has grown greatly since its inception and has produced immense value for analysts, data partners, and the greater ecosystem. Soon, the Metrics App will be fully decentralized and permissionless, and even more features are coming in the v2 update. As we transition the DAO to also be decentralized operationally, we have time and space for innovation and initiative. We cannot wait to see what amazing things this new season will bring. And we look forward to having you all along for the ride!

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[I am deleting my post because it was temporary, a copy and paste of mrwildcat’s post for them, while they were getting their account approved on this forum.]

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As an active MetricsDAO analyst with aspirations of becoming a voter, I have several points of concern I’d like to raise about the recent proposal and the future of our organization.

1. Budget, Contribution, and Compensation System:

Understanding the budget allocation is vital, including the total assets metricsDAO holds, the regular expenses we incur, and the system designed to make the organization self-sustainable or gain additional funding. Furthermore, we need a clear, transparent system that determines the work contributors do, what merits compensation, and visibility on any potential contributors leaving the organization.

2. MetricsDAO Development and Testing:

The rapid release of the MetricsDAO v2 app resulted in numerous bugs and user complaints, specifically concerning ‘claims wars.’ The organization could have benefited from a systematic approach, such as conducting a security audit and launching the app on a test network for community feedback and improvements. I am interested in the plans for enhancing the app’s development process and identifying who will lead these efforts.

3. Documentation and Transparency:

Currently, documentation exists across at least three different sources, causing potential confusion. A single, comprehensive, easily accessible source would serve as a definitive guide for all DAO participants. Additionally, regular transparency reports detailing the DAO’s activities, financial status, and progress on various initiatives would enhance accountability and foster trust within the community.

4. xMetric, rMetric, and Metric Tokens:

The removal of these tokens from our app, which represent significant community effort, requires clarification and justification.

5. Networks and MetricsDAO:

It’s essential for us to comprehend how networks and MetricsDAO will coexist and function independently. As we welcome new members into different networks, how can they earn if there is no easy access to network membership?

6. Multiple Roles for Single Members:

Why does one member occupy multiple roles, including that of a board member, officer, and lead badger?

These concerns, shared by many within the community, must be addressed. Doing so would bolster our foundation and propel MetricsDAO towards continued success.

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  1. anyone can see the state of the treasury high-level here: MetricsDAO: DAO Multisig | Address 0x4fafb87de15cff7448bd0658112f4e4b0d53332c | Etherscan

As for compensation for contributors at this time there is none. We have no paid contributors for Season 5 at this moment in time.

  1. This should be directed toward the dev community of the DAO

  2. Can you provide the 3 different sources you are referring to here?

  3. None of these tokens are tied to the app. Wondering what clarifcation and justification the community is looking for?

  4. Can chat more on this but networks that are self created set their own rules and standards on how individuals can gain access to the network. Its not on the DAO to define pathways for entering networks that are self generated. Networks can operate as stand alone entities that generate their own work and support sponsors of challenges with analysis and/or review. Its not on the DAO to define networks standards and pathways for joining. Ideally the DAO is not creating the networks but members of the DAO or outside members are and the DAO is just supporting the effort.

  5. Very typically for one member or more than one member to hold multiple roles (MetricsDAO has seen this with each season of the DAO). We are always open to others in the DAO making a case for holding a seat and recommend that those that are interested please step forth and make their case. If proposal 18 is passed it will be easier for us to add and remove members in seats as needed to continue to decentralized the DAO. Please check out the proposed governance structure: MetricsDAO S5 Governance (Clean) - Google Docs

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  1. The current state of the treasury is indeed accessible via Etherscan, but an internal, user-friendly dashboard would significantly enhance our understanding. It could provide clear insight into the treasury flows, expenditures, and holdings. There have been instances where contributors received substantial amounts up to 10k. For the sake of transparency, it would be helpful to understand the scope of their work. Also, is there any information available regarding any contributors who may be leaving the DAO?

  2. The three sources of documentation I was referring to are:

  1. Although xMetric, rMetric, and Metric tokens are not directly tied to the app, their sudden disappearance has raised questions within the community. We would appreciate clarity regarding their future use. Are there any plans to repurpose these tokens, or are they being phased out?

  2. While I understand that self-created networks set their own rules and standards independent of the DAO’s purview, I’m curious about the financial sustainability of the DAO. Is our operational model solely reliant on contributions, or are we considering a more sustainable approach, such as implementing a fee that contributes to the treasury?

  3. Though it’s common for one or more members to hold multiple roles within the DAO, I believe we would greatly benefit from increased transparency and accountability. It would be helpful if we could learn about the goals set for each pod in the new season: biz dev, challenge operations pod, community, development and product, education, and governance pod.

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It seems that MetricsDAO has succeeded in the fourth season, which is very encouraging. I hope that in the fifth season, this success will be repeated and better than that, MetricsDAO will draw new boundaries of success.

But about this structure introduced for the governance of the fifth chapter, there is a little ambiguity about voters for me. In MetricsDAO S5 Governance (Clean), it is written about who can be voters:

Voters are active members in the DAO and on the forums and act in any number of roles such as analysts, educators, governance researchers, treasury managers , moderators, content creators and community stewards, as well as being active participants in the governance system.

But it is written below that there are two badges for voters:

There will be two kinds of badges in the Voter group, one that is given to core contributors, who are working on the day to day operations of the DAO itself, and the other will be given to members providing value to the larger community.

I don’t know if I understood correctly or not, but it seems that only those who have these two badges can participate in the voting. If so, I’m curious if these badges will be for a specific type of analyst. What is the interpretation of “and the other will be given to members providing value to the larger community” and is there a specific parameter for creating value for a larger community?

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Hey! I can try to explain this a little.

So far, while anyone could post to this forum, voting rights were exclusively given to core contributors. Going forward, we’d like to try expanding this voter base to include people who are part of the larger MetricsDAO system, such as analysts, content creators, educators etc.

However, one concern that was voiced about this was the difference in context for these two groups. While a lot of the time they might overlap, there are some instances in which we felt allowing for two separate identifications could be useful.

An example is legal classifications, something that’s important for core contributors specifically to think about to make sure they’re in a position where they feel comfortable continuing to contribute in that capacity. We believe a decision that would affect that group like this should be limited to to core contributors, which having two badges would allow for.

If this proposal passes, we’ll be working closely with the community to identify pathways for members of the DAO to earn these badges, co-creating measures that people can use to judge whether someone should be given a badge or not.

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  1. This is something we can make a priority in season 5 for the DAO. All information has historically been shared with the core contributors of the DAO and covered in the weekly DAO meetings that took place within Season 3 and 4. A budget was also put forward and approved for Season 4, which you can find here: Season 4 Pod & Budget Proposal
    No, there is no current structured information on who may be leaving the DAO. We leave this up to each member to disclose their state with the DAO and the reason for why.

  2. The first links directly to the second, which is the current documentation for the Metrics App. The Metrics App functions independently from the DAO.

  3. We’ve been advised by legal counsel to wait and see how the recent Ripple ruling will change the regulatory environment and make decisions once there is more clarity. We are optimistic but want to take time to do it right. Once we have any updates, we’ll share them, but we are trying to navigate through the system just like most other web3 organizations are at the moment.

  4. Until recently, we were financially supported by Flipside, allowing us to take a nominal fee from partners we facilitated challenges. Going forward, we will continue to work with partners to issue challenges, and will adjust our fees as needed to keep the DAO sustainable. Again, the DAO currently has $0 in spend for contributors, minimal spend on tooling, and if resources do become available, we will be proposing a budget. Also, the Metrics App will remain functional regardless of the DAO’s status. In the case that a network would like to work with partners directly with alternative financial models, they’re free to do so.

  5. The goal of the organization layer of the DAO will remain as they always have, in general terms, while figuring out what capabilities we have with our current resources. Pods structures change season by season with the DAO and we are encouraging networks to form and take on work.

As a reminder, we have been actively discussing these matters during our community calls in Season 4, which has led us to develop this current proposal to establish a strong foundation for collaborative decision-making with the community. These calls have been open to the public, and we’re excited to kick them off again in August.

As we move forward, we aim to engage more members like yourself in these discussions and decision-making processes. We truly value everyone’s input and contribution in ensuring the success of the DAO. By fostering an inclusive and diverse community, we believe we can make well-informed decisions that reflect the collective vision and interests of our participants.

With the governance structure switch and a stronger push for decentralization, we are confident that we will be better equipped to address concerns related to financial stability, long-term vision and mission, token use cases, and more. However, we understand that this process may extend beyond the end of the year.

We hope to get more members like yourself involved in these discussions and decision-making processes. We truly value everyone’s contributions and believe that involving the community is key to ensuring the DAO’s success.