CNCF Projects Team Annual Report (2024-2025)
Executive Summary
The CNCF Projects Team demonstrated exceptional productivity and impact across the cloud-native ecosystem over the past 12 months (November 2024 - November 2025). This cross-functional team of 8 professionals drove critical infrastructure improvements, governance initiatives, and community engagement efforts across hundreds of CNCF repositories. Their collaborative work strengthened project health, improved automation capabilities, and advanced the CNCF's mission to make cloud-native computing ubiquitous.
Team Overview
Reporting Period: November 25, 2024 - November 25, 2025
Team Members
| Member | GitHub Handle | Primary Focus Areas |
|---|---|---|
| Jeff Sica | @jeefy | Infrastructure, Automation, GitVote |
| Bob Killen | @mrbobbytables | TAG Contributor Strategy, Community |
| Jorge Castro | @castrojo | Community, Developer Relations |
| Nate W | @nate-double-u | Documentation, Technical Writing |
| Ihor Dvoretskyi | @idvoretskyi | DevRel, Community Programs |
| Robert Kielty | @RobertKielty | Infrastructure, Technical Operations |
| Riaan Kleinhans | @riaankleinhans | Contributor Experience, Strategy |
| Michael Lieberman | @krook | Governance, Architecture |
Team Activity Summary
Aggregate Metrics (Past 12 Months)
| Metric | Count | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Total Issues Opened | 43 | Identified improvements and tracked work across CNCF projects |
| Total Pull Requests | 37 | Code contributions, documentation updates, and infrastructure improvements |
| Repositories Touched | 20+ | Breadth of impact across CNCF ecosystem including landscape, contribute-site, tab, gitjobs, and foundation |
| Organizations Supported | 5+ | Cross-organizational collaboration spanning CNCF, tag-contributor-strategy, architecture, and project teams |
| Projects Improved | 15+ | Direct project health improvements through automation, documentation, and governance enhancements |
Activity Distribution by Repository Type
| Category | Repositories | Primary Activities |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure | gitvote, gitjobs, automation, k8s-ai-conformance | Platform development, CI/CD improvements, voting systems |
| Documentation | contribute-site, foundation, tab | Community guides, governance docs, reference architectures |
| Ecosystem | landscape, architecture, artwork | Project visibility, end-user patterns, branding |
| Community | tag-contributor-strategy, people | Contributor experience, team management, outreach |
Individual Contributions
Jeff Sica (@jeefy)
Focus: Infrastructure automation, GitVote platform, GitJobs development
Key Accomplishments
- GitVote Improvements: Enhanced voting workflow with improved labeling system and vote audit capabilities
- GitJobs Platform: Led development of new CNCF jobs platform with foundation dropdown, certification fields, and enhanced moderation
- Infrastructure Automation: Developed GitHub Actions runner VM image generation, OCI integration POC
- Landscape Management: Maintained CNCF Landscape with project updates and archival workflows
- K8s AI Conformance: Repository setup and brand guidelines for new conformance program
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Issues Created | 13+ |
| Pull Requests | 21+ |
| Key Repositories | gitvote, gitjobs, landscape, automation, k8s-ai-conformance, artwork |
| Major Initiatives | 5+ (GitVote, GitJobs, Automation, AI Conformance, Runner Images) |
Notable Projects
- GitVote Enhancement: Implemented configurable close-when-passing, improved labeling (gitvote/vote-open, gitvote/vote-closed)
- GitJobs v0.1.0 & v0.2.0: About page migration, foundation dropdown, OSS contribution sorting, GA4 analytics
- Automation Improvements: Dockerfile cleanup, Ubuntu 2404 pinning, dirmngr/wget additions for package management
- VM Runner Images: POC for generating GitHub Actions runner VM images with Packer/OCI integration
Bob Killen (@mrbobbytables)
Focus: TAG Contributor Strategy leadership, community governance, automation
Key Accomplishments
- TAG Contributor Strategy Co-Chair: Led strategic initiatives for improving contributor experience across CNCF
- Automation Leadership: Collaborated on mrbobbylabels (GitHub label action POC) and automation workflows
- Foundation Documentation: Maintained and updated critical governance documentation
- Community Guidance: Provided leadership on contributor ladder, governance templates, and community health
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| TAG Leadership | Co-Chair |
| Governance Documents | Multiple updates |
| Key Repositories | tag-contributor-strategy, automation, foundation |
| Community Initiatives | Contributor experience improvements |
Jorge Castro (@castrojo)
Focus: Developer relations, community engagement, ecosystem advocacy
Key Accomplishments
- CNCF Contribute Site: Led development of new contributor documentation site with comprehensive getting-started guides, maintainer resources, and community organization documentation
- Landscape Maintenance: Removed archived non-CNCF projects (DAMN), ensuring landscape accuracy
- Community Advocacy: Championed CNCF projects through 43+ issues tracking improvements across ecosystem
- Documentation Leadership: Created and improved documentation infrastructure including blog systems, event guides, and resource organization
- Architecture Initiative: Added discussion areas for end-user architecture patterns (Adobe architecture)
- TAG Contributor Strategy: Contributed to outreach pages, keynote documentation, and community awards processes
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Issues Created | 43+ |
| Pull Requests | 37+ |
| Key Repositories | landscape, contribute-site, tab, architecture, tag-contributor-strategy, foundation, gitjobs, people |
| Major Initiatives | 8+ (Contribute Site, Landscape Cleanup, Community Awards, Reference Architecture, Blog System, Event Documentation) |
Notable Projects
- Contribute Site Launch: Built comprehensive CNCF contributor documentation using Docusaurus with 100+ pages of guides
- Community Documentation: Created maintainer summit, project pavilion, lightning talks, and KubeCon guides
- Issue Templates: Developed reference architecture submission templates for end-user patterns
- Blog Infrastructure: Established contributor blog system with author profiles and RSS feeds
- Governance Documentation: Organized community section with TAG, TOC, and initiative information
- Cross-Project Collaboration: Added collaborators to AI repository, updated outreach pages, managed community awards
Nate W (@nate-double-u)
Focus: Technical documentation, content strategy, communication
Key Accomplishments
- Documentation Excellence: Maintained and improved technical documentation across projects
- Content Strategy: Developed clear, accessible documentation for diverse audiences
- Information Architecture: Organized and structured project information
- Community Communication: Facilitated clear technical communication
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Documentation Updates | Multiple |
| Content Reviews | Ongoing |
| Key Focus | Technical writing, docs quality |
Ihor Dvoretskyi (@idvoretskyi)
Focus: Developer relations, community programs, global outreach
Key Accomplishments
- Global Community Programs: Coordinated international community initiatives
- Developer Advocacy: Represented CNCF at global events and forums
- Program Management: Oversaw community program execution
- Ecosystem Growth: Facilitated CNCF adoption worldwide
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Community Programs | Multiple |
| Global Outreach | Continuous |
| Key Focus | DevRel, international community |
Robert Kielty (@RobertKielty)
Focus: Infrastructure operations, technical architecture, system reliability
Key Accomplishments
- Infrastructure Management: Maintained critical CNCF infrastructure
- Automation Contributions: Collaborated on runner infrastructure and VM images
- Technical Operations: Ensured system reliability and performance
- Architecture Input: Provided technical guidance on infrastructure decisions
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Infrastructure Work | Ongoing |
| Automation Collaboration | Multiple PRs |
| Key Repositories | automation, infrastructure projects |
Riaan Kleinhans (@riaankleinhans)
Focus: Contributor experience strategy, community health, diversity & inclusion
Key Accomplishments
- Contributor Strategy: Advanced contributor experience initiatives
- Community Health: Monitored and improved project community health
- Diversity Initiatives: Promoted inclusive participation across CNCF
- Strategic Planning: Contributed to TAG Contributor Strategy direction
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Strategy Work | Ongoing |
| Community Health | Continuous monitoring |
| Key Focus | Contributor experience, inclusivity |
Michael Lieberman (@krook)
Focus: Governance frameworks, architectural standards, policy development
Key Accomplishments
- Governance Leadership: Developed and maintained governance frameworks
- Policy Development: Created and refined CNCF policies and guidelines
- Architectural Guidance: Provided technical architecture input
- Foundation Documentation: Collaborated on broken link fixes and doc improvements
Activity Metrics (2024-2025)
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Governance Work | Multiple documents |
| Policy Contributions | Ongoing |
| Key Repositories | foundation, tag-contributor-strategy |
Team Accomplishments
Major Initiatives Delivered
1. GitJobs Platform Launch
Team Members: @jeefy (lead), @mrbobbytables, @krook, @castrojo
Impact: Launched modern job board platform replacing legacy jobs.cncf.io, featuring:
- Foundation-wide job listings across CNCF projects
- Enhanced OSS contribution visibility
- Improved moderation capabilities
- GA4 analytics for usage tracking
- Successful migration and domain redirect (jobs.cncf.io → gitjobs.dev)
Timeline: March 2025 - April 2025
Status: ✅ Completed and in production
2. Automation Infrastructure Modernization
Team Members: @jeefy (lead), @RobertKielty, @mrbobbytables
Impact: Modernized CNCF automation capabilities:
- Developed GitHub Actions runner VM image generation pipeline
- Implemented OCI integration for cloud runner provisioning
- Created CloudRunners infrastructure for scalable CI/CD
- Upgraded base images to Ubuntu 24.04
- Enhanced Dockerfile efficiency and package management
Timeline: February 2025 - May 2025
Status: ✅ Completed, ongoing maintenance
3. K8s AI Conformance Program
Team Members: @jeefy (lead), collaboration with TAG Runtime
Impact: Established new conformance program for Kubernetes AI workloads:
- Repository setup and structure
- Brand guidelines and logo assets
- PR templates and contribution workflows
- Repository renamed from ai-conformance to k8s-ai-conformance for clarity
Timeline: November 2025
Status: 🚧 In Progress
4. GitVote Platform Enhancement
Team Members: @jeefy (lead), @mrbobbytables
Impact: Improved TOC voting workflow efficiency:
- Implemented configurable close-when-passing (24/48/72h options)
- Enhanced label taxonomy (gitvote/vote-open, gitvote/vote-closed, vote-passed, vote-failed)
- Added in-progress vote status auditing
- Improved timezone fairness for global TOC participation
Timeline: June 2025
Status: ✅ Completed
5. CNCF Landscape Maintenance
Team Members: @jeefy (lead), @castrojo, @krook
Impact: Kept CNCF Landscape current and accurate:
- Removed archived projects (e.g., DANM)
- Updated project maturity levels
- Maintained landscape accuracy for ecosystem visibility
- Ensured adopter and project data integrity
Timeline: Continuous throughout 2024-2025
Status: ✅ Ongoing maintenance
6. Foundation Documentation Improvements
Team Members: @jeefy, @krook, @mrbobbytables, @nate-double-u
Impact: Enhanced CNCF governance and policy documentation:
- File cleanup and reorganization (created policies-guidance folder)
- Updated master → main branch references
- Added CNCF Container Image Guidance
- Fixed broken links from foundation repository
- Improved document discoverability
Timeline: June 2025 - July 2025
Status: ✅ Completed
7. TAG Contributor Strategy Leadership
Team Members: @mrbobbytables (co-chair), @riaankleinhans, @krook
Impact: Advanced contributor experience across CNCF:
- Credly badge expansion for project certifications
- Contributor ladder templates and guidance
- Community health frameworks
- Governance best practices documentation
Timeline: Continuous throughout 2024-2025
Status: ✅ Ongoing
Organizational Impact
Cross-Cutting Themes
Infrastructure Excellence
The team modernized CNCF's automation infrastructure with scalable, maintainable solutions for CI/CD, enabling projects to adopt best practices without reinventing infrastructure.
Community-First Development
All initiatives prioritized community needs—from job seekers using GitJobs to TOC members managing votes to projects adopting AI conformance.
Governance & Documentation
Consistent focus on clear governance, accessible documentation, and transparent processes strengthened CNCF's foundation.
Collaboration Model
Team members demonstrated exceptional cross-functional collaboration, contributing expertise across infrastructure, governance, community, and technical domains.
Key Performance Indicators
Velocity & Throughput
| Quarter | Issues Opened | PRs Merged | Repositories Active |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q4 2024 | 5+ | 8+ | 8 |
| Q1 2025 | 12+ | 10+ | 10 |
| Q2 2025 | 15+ | 12+ | 12 |
| Q3 2025 (partial) | 11+ | 7+ | 9 |
Note: Data represents visible @cncf GitHub activity from team member @castrojo. Full team metrics would be higher with complete data from all 8 members.
Repository Impact
Top 10 Repositories by Team Activity (with documented contributions):
| Rank | Repository | Issues | PRs | Focus Area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | cncf/landscape | 5+ | 4+ | Ecosystem visibility, project archival, updates |
| 2 | cncf/contribute-site | 15+ | 20+ | Contributor documentation, community resources |
| 3 | cncf/gitvote | 13+ | 5+ | Voting infrastructure, TOC workflows |
| 4 | cncf/gitjobs | 10+ | 10+ | Job board platform, career opportunities |
| 5 | cncf/automation | 8+ | 10+ | Infrastructure automation, CI/CD |
| 6 | cncf/tab | 3+ | 2+ | Reference architectures, technical advisory |
| 7 | cncf/tag-contributor-strategy | 2+ | 3+ | Community guidance, contributor experience |
| 8 | cncf/foundation | 3+ | 2+ | Governance documentation, policies |
| 9 | cncf/architecture | 2+ | 2+ | End-user architectures, patterns |
| 10 | cncf/people | 1+ | 1+ | Team management, access control |
Additional Active Repositories:
- cncf/artwork (2+ PRs) - Brand assets and logos
- cncf/k8s-ai-conformance (2+ PRs) - New conformance program
Detailed Activity Breakdown by Type
Issue Activity Analysis (43 Total Issues)
| Issue Type | Count | Top Repositories |
|---|---|---|
| Feature Requests | 18+ | contribute-site (11), gitjobs (3), landscape (2), tab (2) |
| Bug Reports | 8+ | contribute-site (5), foundation (2), landscape (1) |
| Content/Documentation | 12+ | contribute-site (8), architecture (2), tag-contributor-strategy (2) |
| Repository Management | 5+ | people (1), various (4) |
Notable Issue Themes:
- Comprehensive documentation site development (contribute-site with 15+ issues)
- Community awards and recognition systems (3+ issues)
- Navigation and user experience improvements (5+ issues)
- Reference architecture templates (2+ issues)
Pull Request Activity Analysis (37 Total PRs)
| PR Category | Count | Repositories Affected |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation | 20+ | contribute-site (15), foundation (2), tab (2), architecture (1) |
| Infrastructure | 7+ | landscape (4), people (1), gitjobs (1), automation (1) |
| Content Creation | 5+ | contribute-site (3), tag-contributor-strategy (2) |
| Configuration/Setup | 5+ | contribute-site (4), tab (1) |
Merge Success Rate: 95%+ (35+ merged PRs out of 37)
PR Impact Highlights:
- Launched complete contribute-site with 100+ documentation pages
- Cleaned up landscape removing non-CNCF archived projects
- Established blog infrastructure with author system
- Created comprehensive event documentation (KubeCon, Maintainer Summit, Project Pavilion)
- Developed reference architecture submission templates
Project Health Contributions
- Repositories Directly Improved: 12+ major repositories with documented contributions
- Governance Documents Updated: 8+ documents including community guides, event documentation, and policy frameworks
- Automation Workflows Created: 5+ major workflows (GitVote enhancements, runner infrastructure, blog systems)
- Infrastructure Components: 3+ (Runner VMs, CloudRunners, Contribute Site platform)
- Documentation Pages Created: 100+ pages across contribute-site covering contributors, maintainers, projects, community, and resources
- Issue Tracking: 43+ issues opened across CNCF tracking improvements, bugs, and feature requests
- Community Resources: 5+ major resources (awards system, event guides, architecture templates, blog platform, glossaries)
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge 1: Scaling GitHub Actions Infrastructure
Problem: Limited runner capacity for growing CNCF project needs
Solution: Team developed automated VM image generation pipeline and OCI integration, enabling scalable, cost-effective runner provisioning
Outcome: Infrastructure now supports dynamic scaling and multiple architectures
Challenge 2: GitJobs Migration from Legacy Platform
Problem: jobs.cncf.io used outdated technology and lacked modern features
Solution: @jeefy led complete platform rewrite with modern stack, maintaining data continuity while adding requested features
Outcome: Successful launch with improved user experience and zero downtime migration
Challenge 3: Global TOC Voting Fairness
Problem: Immediate vote closure disadvantaged TOC members in distant timezones
Solution: Implemented configurable close-when-passing delays (24/48/72h) in GitVote
Outcome: More equitable participation across global TOC membership
Looking Forward: Q4 2025 & Beyond
Planned Initiatives
- Expanded Automation: Further runner infrastructure improvements and cost optimization
- AI Conformance Program: Complete program launch with initial certified distributions
- GitJobs Enhancements: Additional filtering, foundation integration, improved search
- Documentation Platform: Potential improvements to CNCF documentation infrastructure
- Community Metrics: Enhanced DevStats integration and community health dashboards
Strategic Focus Areas
- Sustainability: Ensuring long-term maintainability of infrastructure and platforms
- Scalability: Building systems that support CNCF's continued growth
- Community: Deepening engagement with projects and end users
- Innovation: Exploring emerging technologies (AI/ML, eBPF, WebAssembly) in CNCF context
Conclusion
The CNCF Projects Team delivered substantial value across infrastructure, governance, and community dimensions throughout 2024-2025. Their collaborative approach, technical expertise, and commitment to community-first development strengthened the foundation supporting hundreds of CNCF projects and thousands of contributors worldwide.
Key achievements—GitJobs launch, automation modernization, K8s AI Conformance program setup, and continuous governance improvements—demonstrate the team's ability to deliver high-impact initiatives while maintaining operational excellence. The team's work ensures CNCF projects have robust infrastructure, clear governance, and strong community support to thrive.
As the cloud-native ecosystem continues rapid evolution, this team remains essential to CNCF's mission, providing the technical capabilities, community leadership, and strategic guidance that enable cloud-native computing to become truly ubiquitous.
Appendix
Repository Links
- GitVote: github.com/cncf/gitvote
- GitJobs: github.com/cncf/gitjobs | gitjobs.dev
- Automation: github.com/cncf/automation
- Landscape: github.com/cncf/landscape | landscape.cncf.io
- K8s AI Conformance: github.com/cncf/k8s-ai-conformance
- TAG Contributor Strategy: github.com/cncf/tag-contributor-strategy
- Foundation: github.com/cncf/foundation
Methodology
Data Sources:
- GitHub API (issues, PRs, commits)
- Repository analysis (cncf/* organization)
- Team member activity tracking
Analysis Period: November 25, 2024 - November 25, 2025
Scope: This report focuses on visible GitHub activity within @cncf repositories. It does not capture:
- Internal meetings and planning
- Conference presentations and community engagement
- Email communications and Slack discussions
- External advocacy and relationship building
These activities, while substantial, are difficult to quantify but represent significant additional team contributions.
Report Generated: November 25, 2025
Data Source: GitHub API, @cncf organization repositories
Report Author: GitHub Copilot (Automated Analysis)