---
title: Technical Contributor Training for Staff
---

**SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTORS AND DEVELOPERS**

## 1. INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE

### 1.1. Purpose and Technical Context

This training provides comprehensive guidance for Team members serving as Technical Contributors within our community ecosystem. Technical Contributors play a crucial role in maintaining, developing, and improving the technological infrastructure that supports our community platforms and services.

### 1.2. Technical Contributor Responsibilities

**Primary Areas of Focus:**
- **Platform Development**: Development and maintenance of community platforms and applications
- **Infrastructure Management**: Supporting technical infrastructure and deployment systems
- **Code Review and Quality Assurance**: Ensuring high-quality code standards across all projects
- **Community Technical Support**: Providing technical assistance to community members and other staff
- **Open Source Leadership**: Leading and contributing to open source projects and community contributions
- **Innovation and Development**: Researching and implementing new technologies to improve community services

### 1.3. Integration with Community Values

**Technical Excellence with Social Purpose:**
- **Accessibility-First Development**: Building technology that is accessible to users with diverse abilities
- **Inclusive Design**: Creating technology that serves marginalised and underrepresented communities
- **Environmental Sustainability**: Implementing eco-friendly technology choices and carbon offset initiatives
- **Privacy Protection**: Building technology that protects user privacy and data rights
- **Community Empowerment**: Developing tools that empower community members and democratic participation

## 2. TECHNICAL STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES

### 2.1. Code Quality and Standards

#### 2.1.1. Development Standards

**Code Quality Requirements:**
- **Clean Code Principles**: Readable, maintainable, and well-documented code
- **Testing Standards**: Comprehensive test coverage including unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests
- **Security Standards**: Implementation of security best practices and vulnerability prevention
- **Performance Standards**: Optimized code that performs efficiently under expected load conditions
- **Documentation Standards**: Complete technical documentation for all code and systems

**Version Control and Collaboration:**
- **Git Best Practices**: Proper use of Git for version control, branching strategies, and collaboration
- **Code Review Process**: Thorough code review processes that ensure quality and knowledge sharing
- **Issue Tracking**: Effective use of issue tracking systems for bug reports and feature requests
- **Project Management**: Integration with project management tools and agile development processes

#### 2.1.2. Technology Stack and Architecture

**Approved Technology Stacks:**
- **Frontend Development**: TypeScript, React, Astro, modern CSS frameworks
- **Backend Development**: Node.js, TypeScript, Fastify, modern API development practices
- **Database Technologies**: Appropriate database selection and management practices
- **Infrastructure**: Cloud services, containerization, CI/CD pipelines, monitoring systems
- **Security Tools**: Security scanning, dependency management, vulnerability monitoring

**Architecture Principles:**
- **Scalability**: Design systems that can scale with community growth
- **Maintainability**: Build systems that are easy to maintain and modify over time
- **Security by Design**: Integrate security considerations into all architectural decisions
- **Accessibility Integration**: Build accessibility considerations into system architecture
- **Environmental Efficiency**: Optimise systems for energy efficiency and reduced environmental impact

### 2.2. Development Workflows and Processes

#### 2.2.1. Contribution Workflows

**Development Process:**
1. **Issue Creation**: Proper documentation of bugs, features, or improvements needed
2. **Branch Creation**: Following established branching conventions and naming standards
3. **Development**: Writing code that meets all established standards and requirements
4. **Testing**: Comprehensive testing of all changes before submission
5. **Code Review**: Participating in thorough code review processes
6. **Deployment**: Following established deployment procedures and monitoring

**Quality Assurance Integration:**
- **Automated Testing**: Implementation of comprehensive automated testing suites
- **Continuous Integration**: CI/CD pipelines that ensure code quality and deployment reliability
- **Security Scanning**: Automated security scanning and vulnerability assessment
- **Performance Monitoring**: Ongoing monitoring of application performance and resource usage

#### 2.2.2. Documentation and Knowledge Management

**Technical Documentation Requirements:**
- **API Documentation**: Complete, up-to-date API documentation for all services
- **Architecture Documentation**: Clear documentation of system architecture and design decisions
- **Deployment Guides**: Comprehensive guides for system deployment and maintenance
- **Troubleshooting Resources**: Documentation of common issues and their solutions
- **Onboarding Materials**: Resources for new technical contributors and community developers

**Knowledge Sharing:**
- **Code Comments**: Clear, helpful comments within code to explain complex logic
- **Design Decision Documentation**: Documentation of why specific technical choices were made
- **Learning Resources**: Creation of educational materials for community technical development
- **Best Practice Guides**: Documentation of established best practices and standards

## 3. COMMUNITY-FOCUSED TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT

### 3.1. Accessibility-First Development

#### 3.1.1. Universal Design Principles

**Core Accessibility Standards:**
- **WCAG 2.1 AA Compliance**: All applications must meet or exceed WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards
- **Keyboard Navigation**: Complete functionality available through keyboard navigation
- **Screen Reader Compatibility**: All content and functionality accessible through screen readers
- **Colour Contrast**: Appropriate colour contrast ratios for all visual elements
- **Responsive Design**: Applications that work across all device types and screen sizes

**Inclusive Development Practices:**
- **User Testing**: Regular testing with users who have disabilities
- **Assistive Technology**: Testing with various assistive technologies and tools
- **Progressive Enhancement**: Building applications that work without JavaScript and enhance with it
- **Multiple Input Methods**: Support for various input methods including voice, touch, and adaptive devices

#### 3.1.2. Implementation Strategies

**Development Integration:**
- **Accessibility Auditing**: Regular automated and manual accessibility audits
- **Semantic HTML**: Proper use of semantic HTML elements and ARIA attributes
- **Focus Management**: Proper management of focus for keyboard and screen reader users
- **Error Prevention**: Clear error messages and validation that helps prevent user mistakes

**Testing and Validation:**
- **Automated Testing**: Integration of automated accessibility testing into CI/CD pipelines
- **Manual Testing**: Regular manual testing of accessibility features and user flows
- **User Feedback**: Systems for collecting and responding to accessibility feedback
- **Continuous Improvement**: Ongoing improvement of accessibility features and standards

### 3.2. Privacy-Protective Development

#### 3.2.1. Privacy by Design

**Privacy Principles Integration:**
- **Data Minimization**: Collect only the data necessary for stated purposes
- **Purpose Limitation**: Use data only for the purposes for which it was collected
- **Storage Limitation**: Store data only for as long as necessary
- **Transparency**: Clear communication about data collection, use, and storage practices

**Technical Privacy Protection:**
- **Encryption**: Appropriate encryption for data in transit and at rest
- **Access Controls**: Strict access controls and authentication for sensitive data
- **Audit Trails**: Comprehensive logging and audit trails for data access and modifications
- **Anonymization**: Proper anonymization techniques for analytics and reporting

#### 3.2.2. GDPR and Privacy Compliance

**Legal Compliance Implementation:**
- **Consent Management**: Technical systems for managing user consent and preferences
- **Right to Access**: Technical implementation of user rights to access their data
- **Right to Deletion**: Systems for securely deleting user data upon request
- **Data Portability**: Technical capability to export user data in standard formats

### 3.3. Environmental Sustainability in Technology

#### 3.3.1. Green Computing Practices

**Energy Efficiency:**
- **Code Optimization**: Write efficient code that minimises computational resource usage
- **Database Optimization**: Optimise database queries and structures for efficiency
- **Caching Strategies**: Implement effective caching to reduce server load and energy usage
- **Resource Management**: Efficient management of server resources and capacity planning

**Infrastructure Sustainability:**
- **Green Hosting**: Choose hosting providers that use renewable energy
- **Carbon Measurement**: Monitor and measure the carbon footprint of our technical infrastructure
- **Optimization Strategies**: Regular optimisation to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact
- **Offset Integration**: Integration with Tree-Nation carbon offset programmes

#### 3.3.2. Sustainable Development Lifecycles

**Development Process Integration:**
- **Performance Budgets**: Set and maintain performance budgets that reduce environmental impact
- **Sustainable Architecture**: Design systems with environmental sustainability as a core consideration
- **Lifecycle Assessment**: Consider environmental impact throughout the software development lifecycle
- **Continuous Monitoring**: Ongoing monitoring of environmental impact and optimisation opportunities

## 4. OPEN SOURCE LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

### 4.1. Open Source Best Practices

#### 4.1.1. Project Management

**Open Source Project Leadership:**
- **Community Building**: Building inclusive, welcoming communities around open source projects
- **Contributor Onboarding**: Comprehensive onboarding processes for new open source contributors
- **Code Review Excellence**: High-quality code review processes that educate and improve code quality
- **Issue Management**: Effective management of bug reports, feature requests, and community feedback

**License and Legal Compliance:**
- **License Selection**: Appropriate selection of open source licenses for different projects
- **Contribution Licensing**: Clear contributor license agreements and intellectual property management
- **Dependency Management**: Careful management of third-party dependencies and their licenses
- **Security Compliance**: Proper handling of security vulnerabilities in open source projects

#### 4.1.2. Community Contribution

**External Contributions:**
- **Industry Participation**: Active participation in relevant open source communities and projects
- **Knowledge Sharing**: Sharing knowledge and expertise with broader technical communities
- **Standards Development**: Participation in development of industry standards and best practices
- **Mentorship**: Mentoring new developers and contributors in open source communities

**Internal Community Development:**
- **Skill Development**: Supporting skill development for community members interested in technical contributions
- **Educational Resources**: Creating educational resources and tutorials for community technical development
- **Contribution Facilitation**: Making it easy for community members to contribute to technical projects
- **Recognition Programmes**: Recognising and celebrating technical contributions from community members

### 4.2. Technical Community Support

#### 4.2.1. User Support and Education

**Technical Support Responsibilities:**
- **Issue Resolution**: Helping community members resolve technical issues with platforms and applications
- **Documentation Creation**: Creating user-friendly documentation and troubleshooting guides
- **Educational Content**: Developing educational content about technical topics relevant to the community
- **Platform Training**: Providing training on how to use community platforms and tools effectively

**Developer Relations:**
- **API Support**: Supporting developers who want to build applications using community APIs
- **Integration Assistance**: Helping integrate community services with external applications and services
- **Technical Consultation**: Providing technical consultation for community projects and initiatives
- **Innovation Support**: Supporting innovative projects and technical experiments within the community

#### 4.2.2. Quality Assurance and Testing

**Testing Responsibilities:**
- **Feature Testing**: Comprehensive testing of new features and functionality before release
- **User Acceptance Testing**: Coordinating user acceptance testing with community members
- **Performance Testing**: Regular performance testing and optimisation of community applications
- **Security Testing**: Regular security testing and vulnerability assessment

**Quality Assurance Leadership:**
- **Testing Standards**: Establishing and maintaining testing standards and procedures
- **Automation Development**: Developing automated testing systems and continuous integration
- **Quality Metrics**: Tracking and reporting on quality metrics and improvement opportunities
- **Process Improvement**: Continuously improving testing and quality assurance processes

## 5. PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP

### 5.1. Technical Project Leadership

#### 5.1.1. Project Planning and Execution

**Strategic Planning:**
- **Technical Roadmap**: Development of long-term technical roadmap aligned with community needs
- **Resource Planning**: Effective planning and allocation of technical resources and talent
- **Risk Management**: Identification and mitigation of technical risks and challenges
- **Innovation Integration**: Integration of new technologies and approaches into existing systems

**Team Coordination:**
- **Cross-Functional Collaboration**: Effective collaboration with non-technical staff and community leadership
- **Technical Mentorship**: Mentoring other technical staff and community contributors
- **Knowledge Transfer**: Ensuring knowledge transfer and documentation for project continuity
- **Communication**: Clear communication of technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders

#### 5.1.2. Technical Decision Making

**Architecture Decisions:**
- **Technology Selection**: Making informed decisions about technology choices and trade-offs
- **Scalability Planning**: Planning for future growth and scalability requirements
- **Security Assessment**: Evaluating security implications of technical decisions
- **Performance Optimization**: Making decisions that optimise performance and user experience

**Community Impact Assessment:**
- **User Experience**: Considering user experience implications of technical decisions
- **Accessibility Impact**: Evaluating how technical changes affect accessibility and inclusion
- **Community Needs**: Aligning technical decisions with community needs and priorities
- **Resource Impact**: Understanding resource and sustainability implications of technical choices

### 5.2. Innovation and Continuous Improvement

#### 5.2.1. Technology Research and Development

**Emerging Technology Evaluation:**
- **Trend Analysis**: Monitoring and analysing emerging technology trends relevant to community needs
- **Proof of Concept Development**: Developing proof of concepts for promising new technologies
- **Impact Assessment**: Evaluating potential impact of new technologies on community services
- **Implementation Planning**: Planning for integration of beneficial new technologies

**Research and Development:**
- **Experimental Projects**: Leading experimental projects that could benefit the community
- **Partnership Opportunities**: Identifying opportunities for technical partnerships and collaboration
- **Innovation Integration**: Integrating innovative solutions into existing community infrastructure
- **Future Planning**: Planning for future technical needs and capabilities

#### 5.2.2. Continuous Improvement Processes

**Performance Monitoring:**
- **Metrics Collection**: Comprehensive collection and analysis of technical performance metrics
- **User Experience Monitoring**: Monitoring user experience and satisfaction with technical services
- **System Health Monitoring**: Ongoing monitoring of system health, reliability, and availability
- **Optimization Opportunities**: Identification and implementation of optimisation opportunities

**Process Enhancement:**
- **Workflow Improvement**: Continuous improvement of development workflows and processes
- **Tool Evaluation**: Regular evaluation and adoption of improved development tools and practices
- **Best Practice Evolution**: Evolution of best practices based on experience and industry developments
- **Training and Development**: Ongoing training and development for technical staff and contributors

## 6. CRISIS MANAGEMENT AND INCIDENT RESPONSE

### 6.1. Technical Crisis Response

#### 6.1.1. Incident Classification and Response

**Incident Severity Levels:**
- **Critical**: Complete service outages or major security breaches requiring immediate response
- **High**: Significant functionality impairment or security concerns requiring urgent response
- **Medium**: Limited functionality issues or minor security concerns requiring timely response
- **Low**: Minor issues or improvement opportunities that can be addressed in regular workflow

**Response Protocols:**
- **Immediate Assessment**: Rapid assessment of incident scope, impact, and required response
- **Team Mobilization**: Quick mobilization of appropriate technical staff and resources
- **Communication**: Clear communication with affected users and community leadership
- **Resolution Implementation**: Swift implementation of solutions or temporary workarounds

#### 6.1.2. Security Incident Management

**Security Response Procedures:**
- **Threat Assessment**: Quick assessment of security threats and potential impact
- **Containment**: Immediate containment of security incidents to prevent further damage
- **Investigation**: Thorough investigation of security incidents and attack vectors
- **Recovery**: Complete recovery and restoration of affected systems and data

**Post-Incident Procedures:**
- **Security Review**: Comprehensive review of security practices and improvements needed
- **Documentation**: Complete documentation of security incidents and response actions
- **Community Communication**: Appropriate communication with community about security incidents
- **Prevention Planning**: Implementation of measures to prevent similar future incidents

### 6.2. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

#### 6.2.1. Backup and Recovery Systems

**Data Protection:**
- **Backup Systems**: Comprehensive backup systems for all critical data and systems
- **Recovery Testing**: Regular testing of backup and recovery procedures
- **Disaster Recovery**: Comprehensive disaster recovery plans and procedures
- **Business Continuity**: Plans for maintaining critical services during various types of disruptions

**Infrastructure Resilience:**
- **Redundancy**: Implementation of appropriate redundancy for critical systems
- **Monitoring**: Comprehensive monitoring systems for early detection of potential issues
- **Failover Procedures**: Automated and manual failover procedures for critical services
- **Communication Plans**: Clear communication plans for service disruptions and recovery

#### 6.2.2. Risk Management

**Risk Assessment:**
- **Technical Risk Identification**: Regular identification and assessment of technical risks
- **Mitigation Strategies**: Development and implementation of risk mitigation strategies
- **Contingency Planning**: Comprehensive contingency planning for various risk scenarios
- **Regular Review**: Regular review and updating of risk assessments and mitigation plans

## 7. PRACTICE SCENARIOS AND TRAINING EXERCISES

### 7.1. Scenario 1: Accessibility Implementation

**Situation**: You're developing a new feature for the community platform. The feature is functionally complete but isn't accessible to users with disabilities. Community members are requesting accessibility improvements, and you need to retrofit accessibility into existing code.

**Your Response:**
1. How do you prioritize accessibility improvements?
2. How do you implement accessibility retroactively?
3. How do you test with assistive technologies?
4. How do you involve disabled community members in testing?
5. How do you ensure comprehensive accessibility?
6. How do you prevent future accessibility issues?

**Correct Answer**: Prioritize accessibility as high priority, implement accessibility improvements systematically, test with assistive technologies, involve disabled community members in testing, ensure comprehensive accessibility, implement accessibility testing in development process, prevent future issues through accessibility-first development.

### 7.2. Scenario 2: Security Vulnerability Discovery

**Situation**: You discover a security vulnerability in the platform that could expose user data. The vulnerability affects a feature used by many community members. You need to fix it quickly while minimising disruption.

**Your Response:**
1. How do you respond immediately to the vulnerability?
2. How do you assess the severity and impact?
3. How do you coordinate the fix?
4. How do you communicate with community members?
5. How do you prevent data exposure?
6. How do you prevent future vulnerabilities?

**Correct Answer**: Respond immediately, assess severity and impact, coordinate fix quickly, communicate transparently with community members about issue and fix, prevent data exposure through immediate mitigation, implement security improvements, prevent future vulnerabilities through security practices.

### 7.3. Scenario 3: Performance Optimization Request

**Situation**: Community members report that the platform is slow and unresponsive, particularly affecting members with slower internet connections or older devices. Performance issues are creating barriers to participation.

**Your Response:**
1. How do you identify performance bottlenecks?
2. How do you prioritize performance improvements?
3. How do you optimize for diverse connection speeds?
4. How do you ensure performance doesn't compromise accessibility?
5. How do you test performance improvements?
6. How do you monitor ongoing performance?

**Correct Answer**: Identify bottlenecks through performance analysis, prioritize improvements that affect most users, optimize for diverse connection speeds and devices, ensure performance improvements don't compromise accessibility, test improvements comprehensively, monitor performance ongoing, ensure equitable access.

### 8.1. Training and Professional Development

#### 8.1.1. Ongoing Education Requirements

**Technical Skills Development:**
- **Technology Updates**: Stay current with developments in relevant technologies and frameworks
- **Security Training**: Regular training on security best practices and threat prevention
- **Accessibility Training**: Ongoing education about accessibility standards and inclusive design
- **Performance Optimization**: Continuous learning about performance optimisation techniques

**Community-Focused Development:**
- **Inclusive Technology**: Training on developing technology that serves marginalised communities
- **Environmental Sustainability**: Education about sustainable computing and green technology practices
- **Privacy Protection**: Ongoing education about privacy laws, regulations, and technical implementation
- **Community Needs**: Understanding of how technology can better serve community needs and values

#### 8.1.2. Leadership Development

**Technical Leadership:**
- **Project Management**: Skills in technical project management and team leadership
- **Mentorship**: Development of mentoring skills for supporting other technical contributors
- **Communication**: Effective communication of technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
- **Decision Making**: Skills in making technical decisions that align with community values and needs

**Innovation Leadership:**
- **Research and Development**: Skills in leading research and development projects
- **Technology Evaluation**: Ability to evaluate and integrate new technologies effectively
- **Strategic Planning**: Skills in long-term technical planning and roadmap development
- **Change Management**: Ability to manage technical changes and transitions effectively

## 8. TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

This training document is part of the comprehensive mandatory training curriculum. For complete information about initial onboarding requirements, annual review requirements, training confirmation submission, and compliance policies, see [Mandatory Training Requirements](/staff/handbook#81-mandatory-training-requirements) in the Staff Handbook.

**Key Points:**
- This document must be reviewed during initial onboarding and annually thereafter
- Training confirmation must be submitted at [forms.nhcarrigan.com](https://forms.nhcarrigan.com)
- Failure to complete annual training review will result in dismissal from staff positions
- All training completions are documented in staff records for accountability, legal compliance, and quality assurance

---

*This Technical Contributor Training document is part of our comprehensive staff development programme designed to ensure technical excellence in service of community values and social justice. For questions about technical contribution standards or to report training completion, please contact the Technical Manager or designated technical leadership through staff channels.*

