TRANSFORMATION OF FREE AND OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS: GOVERNANCE BETWEEN THE CATHEDRAL AND BAZAAR

ABSTRACT It is common for community-based free software projects to be associated with an organizational scenario that resembles “a bazaar more than a cathedral,” and to differ from the traditional, or ‘bureaucratic’ way of organizing work. This paper analyzes the governance of these organizations f...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Revista de administração de emprêsas 2022, Vol.62 (1), p.1-17
Main Authors: Ferraz, Isabela Neves, Santos, Carlos Denner dos
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bureaucracy
community
control
Development programs
free software projects
Freeware
Governance
Open source software
Resource allocation
Software development
structure
Transformation
Virtual communities
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Summary:ABSTRACT It is common for community-based free software projects to be associated with an organizational scenario that resembles “a bazaar more than a cathedral,” and to differ from the traditional, or ‘bureaucratic’ way of organizing work. This paper analyzes the governance of these organizations from the perspective of their structure and control, considering the development trajectory of three community-based free software projects in Brazil. Results show that the constant need to produce modern technologies gives rise to external pressures that promote change - albeit temporary - in the governance of these projects, making them resemble a cathedral more than a bazaar. Governance does not follow a cycle of sequential improvement; it changes depending on the external organizational actors present, such as sponsors. This suggests the need for strategic and flexible governance to deal with the acquisition and allocation of organizational resources. Governance of the projects described here varies along a spectrum of (in)formality that allows both production models - cathedral or bazaar - to exist in the same organization at different periods. RESUMEN Es común que los proyectos de software libre comunitario se asocien con un escenario organizacional que se asemeja “a un bazar más que a una catedral" y se diferencien de la forma tradicional o “burocrática” de organizar el trabajo. Este artículo analiza la gobernanza de estas organizaciones, desde la perspectiva de la estructura y el control, considerando la trayectoria de desarrollo de tres proyectos de software libre comunitario brasileños. Los resultados muestran que la necesidad constante de producir tecnología moderna genera presiones externas que promueven modificaciones, aunque temporales, en la gobernanza de estos proyectos, haciéndolos parecer más una catedral que un bazar. Además, la gobernanza no sigue un ciclo de mejora secuencial, cambia dependiendo de los actores organizacionales externos presentes, como los patrocinadores. Esto sugiere la necesidad de una gobernanza estratégica y flexible para hacer frente a la adquisición y asignación de recursos organizacionales. La gobernanza de los proyectos descritos aquí varía en un espectro de (in)formalidad que permite que ambos modelos de producción - bazar o catedral - existan en el mismo proyecto, en diferentes momentos. RESUMO Comumente, projetos de software livre comunitários são associados a um cenário organizacional que se assemelha mais “a um ba
ISSN:0034-7590
2178-938X
DOI:10.1590/s0034-759020220104