On April 15th 2022, OIP-91 Olympus Governance Council (OGC) passed via snapshot vote. We would like to take this chance to update the community on recent progress.
The OGC is initially composed of 7 active members with distinct roles & diverse capabilities reflecting the broad experience and capabilities of OlympusDAO members as detailed in the OIP. These members are Apollo, hOHMward, indigo, Jala, sh4dow, Wartull, and Zeus. The OGC exists in an advisory capacity to monitor the DAO’s off-chain processes.
In addition to day-to-day tasks, the OGC meets twice weekly to evaluate strategic vision and drive prioritization across the DAO’s departments and working groups. The OGC will continue to assess if the projects being worked on are in line financially with the broader economic picture, both in scope and in budget, and suggest adaptations as needed. We’ve worked alongside team leads to streamline the DAO and prioritize high impact contributors.
Background:
The need for the OGC became apparent as the DAO grew from 66 contributors with a monthly spend of around $260k in August, to 170 contributors with a monthly spend of around $1.3M in December. Departments were becoming siloed and efforts were not always aligned with the core mission of OlympusDAO. Since the DAO lacked clear leadership, there was little accountability for where time and funds were spent as long as they remained in line with an OIP.
OlympusDAO v1 favored decentralization and autonomy, but lacked organization. As a DAO, we needed to reign in our focus and re-evaluate the tasks at hand; what would help us on our mission, what was being worked on because it was a good idea at the time but market conditions had shifted, and what was being completed as a symptom of the bloat. Market conditions in the September/October time frame and the youthfulness of the DAO lead to unfocused growth. Being able to recognize when you’re headed in the wrong direction and to pivot (agility) are needed qualities as we traverse this new frontier.
Update:
OGC has assessed all ongoing efforts and projects. As a result of the advice given by OGC, departments have streamlined operations, increased operational runway, and broken down barriers so that it is more effective and efficient for contributors to coordinate efforts. The Partnerships team has reached out to our incubated partners and helped to improve communication where it was lacking. OGC + DAO contributors have been able to increase their presence in the community server, both on community calls and in everyday interactions: for example, engaging community members in discussion about policy.
Initially the OGC researched other protocols to benchmark the DAO’s size against. The DAO was overstaffed for the needs for growth, as well as for the declining market conditions. It’s easy to underestimate how difficult it is to manage 170+ contributors, and the DAO needs to ensure our choices make Olympus stronger instead of adding to administrative overhead. Growing for growth’s sake or having an open door policy are recipes for disaster.
As a result of the assessment + OGC advice the DAO has:
Downsized from around 175 contributors in February to roughly 60 contributors in May.
Reduced monthly DAO expenditure from roughly $1,100,000 to $350,000 for core departments.
Spun off Agora, Odyssey, and Sporos
While they are all great initiatives and play a part in the broader economy, they each have their own focus. Incubator has been folded in as a business development.
Simplified the organizational structure and increased ease of communication.
OlympusDAO is now able to “pour gas” on initiatives at the core of Olympus, which had been hurt by the lack of focus. Instead of getting ahead of ourselves, the DAO is setting up frameworks and following an agreed upon timeline. Members of each department are brought in early on to highlight complicating factors + weigh in on decision making.
In Conclusion:
Overall, friction is reduced. We are back on a sustainable path of growth as a protocol.
The DAO’s responsibility is to hold the Council accountable, as OGC is here to support the DAO. Previously, contributors didn’t know who to address about problems. Now the DAO has a clear leadership structure, and problems are brought up to the Council when they arise. The DAO recently had its first DAO to Council sync and as a result of feedback on the call OGC set up a Council-feedback channel internally for contributors to comment whenever needed. OGC DMs are also always open.
Going forward, OGC remains focused on aligning the DAO on a singular vision for the protocol and driving execution. In the coming months, OCG is working on assisting with the furthering decentralization of the Olympus protocol and implementation of onchain governance in a way that streamlines the processes from community decision to execution, while protecting the treasury. For avoidance of doubt, the Council does not have control over the treasury, and it is important to emphasize that the ultimate authority of the protocol and its functions are Olympus token holders.
The OGC is assisting with the creation of a quarterly report that builds on the Olympus12 plan, and looks forward to providing further updates!