Helping communities grow and open source thrive.
I'm Daniel Holbach. I help technology companies build and grow developer communities and open source programs — combining strategy with hands-on execution where it matters.
About
I spent 18 years building developer communities — Ubuntu, then Flux and others in the CNCF ecosystem. Since 2017 I've been training and working as a body psychotherapist, which, it turns out, is excellent preparation for working with communities. I'm now taking on a small number of open source engagements again.
How I help
Community program build & audit
Stand up or course-correct a developer community: governance, onboarding, developer experience, events, and the metrics that matter.
OSS strategy & ecosystem navigation
From first release to CNCF graduation — licensing, governance, security audits, adopter base, ecosystem positioning.
Senior DevRel on demand
Senior developer relations applied to one specific challenge — without the cost of a full-time hire.
Selected work
Weaveworks
2018–2023Led Flux through full CNCF graduation — governance, OSS license review, security audits, adopter base. Owned DevRel across Flux, Cortex, Scope, and Kured.
Canonical
2005–2016Nearly a decade growing the Ubuntu developer community — one of the largest in open source. Onboarding, developer experience, team leadership, global events.
A computer scientist by training, I started out as a software engineer before moving into community and developer relations — so I speak the language of the people I help you reach.
How I work
Roughly two days a week, a few engagements at a time.
Probably not the right fit if you need a full-time hire — but a good fit if you need senior experience applied to a specific challenge: building a program, defining OSS strategy, navigating an ecosystem process, or improving developer experience.
Let's talk.
Away from the keyboard — diving (see the photos), records, and running a practice for Body Psychotherapy and Somatic Experiencing® in Berlin.