InnerSource Commons Vision
The InnerSource Commons is a thriving community that empowers organisations and people worldwide to apply and gain the benefits of open collaboration in their internal work.
Founded in 2015, the InnerSource Commons is now supporting and connecting over 3000 individuals from over 800 companies, academic institutions, and government agencies. The InnerSource Commons Foundation was incorporated on February 19th, 2020 and is now a 501(c)(3) public charity.
InnerSource Commons Mission
We empower developers and organisations to apply open collaboration principles in their daily work.
We are the neutral hub and central collaboration space for InnerSource knowledge. As such, we maintain our independence and operate on a lean budget.
We build a strong, inclusive community and industry partnerships. Together, we apply open collaboration principles to drive the conversation about InnerSource and steward the InnerSource body of knowledge.
RISE - Our Goals for 2025
Our goals for 2025 are encapsulated in RISE, which stands for Reach out, Implement Documentation, Summit Success, and Establishing Brand - We’re at a pivotal moment in the InnerSource journey, poised to make a significant impact across industries and regions.
RISE is not just about growth; it’s about nurturing a vibrant ecosystem where everyone, from enthusiasts to experts, can find value and contribute. Whether you’re here to explore, learn, or lead, RISE offers opportunities for all. Together, we’ll elevate InnerSource, making its benefits accessible and impactful for organizations worldwide. Let’s RISE together and shape the future of collaborative development.
In 2025, we have two principal goals and two adjacent goals. The two principal goals flow nearly directly from our strategy
1.Reach New Industries and Regions: Establish organized, purposeful outreach programs to specific industry subgroups.
We will create, fill, and grow a structure and program for how to integrate InnerSource among existing industry practice areas (e.g. open source, agile, devops, developer experience, platform). Goals in these areas could be things like ensuring that we show up at relevant conferences, connect with key influences in the industry practice, publishing on how the practice area relates to InnerSource, etc.
We will similarly support and organize around InnerSource in specific regional and/or language groups (e.g. Japan, China, Brazil, Africa, etc). Goals for these areas could include hosting local, in-person gatherings, translating InnerSource Commons materials, ensuring that InnerSource shows up at regional and language conferences, etc.
2. Implement: Specific documentation on InnerSource
We will publish more-detailed, quality documentation on specific challenges or confusions that we see on InnerSource in the industry. In this effort, we move past high-level guides and directional pieces but get specific as to how InnerSource can actually work in real situations. Whitepapers, blog articles, and guides cover topics such as: definition of InnerSource, qualitative benefits of InnerSource, ROI of InnerSource, AI and InnerSource, transfer pricing, governance, maturity model, pitch deck, etc.
Two adjacent goals support these principal goals and the InnerSource Commons in general.
3. Summit: Global, In-Person InnerSource Summit 2025
In the year of the 10th anniversary of the formation of the InnerSource Commons, we will hold an in-person summit instead of the virtual event that we’ve seen post-pandemic. Organizations will be invited to apply to host the summit.
4. Establish: Brand Consistency through the Brand Guide
We will create, document, and share visual and stylistic branding guidelines for the InnerSource Commons. We will bring all current assets in-line with the guidelines and plan so that future publishing follows them.
How We Work
The InnerSource Commons utilizes open source methods to provide organizations practicing InnerSource a forum for discussing and improving the practice of InnerSource through the sharing of experiences (under the Chatham House Rule), creation and review of InnerSource patterns, and the open exchange of ideas.
Interested individuals and companies are welcome to participate and contribute content to the ISC. In general, contributed content will be made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License attributed to InnerSourceCommons.org. No fees are required to participate.
Check out how we work
InnerSource Commons Members
The InnerSource Commons community is open to all. Some community participants go above and beyond, and may be invited to become an ISC Member. The InnerSource Commons is a membership corporation, so ISC Members serve a similar role as shareholders in publicly traded corporations.
Members have particular rights in the ISC; for example, they may vote in board elections. To be eligible for Membership, a person must be nominated by a current Member. Membership is purely merit-based, free of any cost, and restricted to individuals.
All InnerSource Commons MembersBoard & Governance
InnerSource Commons is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization governed by a set of corporate bylaws. The Board of Directors sets the policy and appoints officers that set and execute policy. The Board is elected by the Membership on a yearly basis.
Learn more about the ISC Board