In February, let’s continue our on-the-ground feedback with non-software companies like Alliander which is facing unique adoption challenges. This time Nico Rikken will outline how the Alliander OSPO reshaped its evolving license policy into a clearer, more practical guide through close collaboration across technical and legal teams.
Be there to learn from seasonned practionners and ask your questions.
As open source becomes increasingly important, more organizations are recognizing its value. However, organizations like Alliander, a Dutch Grid Operator, which are not primarily software companies, face unique challenges in its adoption.
One of the first policies we created as an OSPO was the license policy for the use of open source. It quickly became the most viewed page of our OSPO guidance. As our understanding of open source in the enterprise grew, we encountered more licenses and edge cases that needed to be addressed. Consequently, our policy expanded to the point where it became unwieldy for our colleagues to use. We took the time to restructure our license policy to accommodate more situations while making it easier to understand for those new to open source licensing.
In this presentation, I will discuss how the Alliander OSPO developed a licensing policy that evolved in complexity over time. I will cover the issues we needed to address, the process of updating our policy, and the details of the updated policy itself. Our story underscores the value an OSPO can gain from close collaboration with senior developers, software asset management, and the legal department.
