Open Source Leadership with Bruce Momjian

What does it take to lead a global open source project like Postgres? In Episode 26 of Talking Postgres with Claire Giordano, we sit down with Bruce Momjian—co-founder and core team member of the PostgreSQL Global Development Group—to explore the art of leadership in a volunteer-run open source community. Bruce shares what “servant leadership” really means; how saying I’m sorry can help make problems go away; and how letting go of who-gets-the-credit can fuel collaboration. We also dive into Bruce’s origin story, from shaping Postgres’s early days to mastering the art of public speaking. Pro tip: if you see a man in a bow tie at a Postgres conference, be sure to say hello—it’s probably Bruce Momjian!Links mentioned in this episode:Open source project website: postgresql.orgWebsite: Bruce MomjianVideo of talk: Building Open Source Teams at FOSDEM 2023Slides: FOSDEM talk on Building Open Source TeamsWikipedia: John C. MaxwellHarry Truman quote: It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the creditThe New Stack: How to Generate AI From a DatabaseEDB Blog: Bruce Momjian’s Insights from PGConf India 2025Conference schedule: PGConf India 2025Book: Why We Sleep by Matthew WalkerVideo of talk: Why Database Teams Need Crew Resource Management by Chris TraversWikipedia: Anna Karenina principleTalking Postgres podcast: Why mentor Postgres developers with Robert HaasDiscord invite: PostgreSQL Hacking serverMailing lists: PostgreSQL mailing listsConference: PostgreSQL Conference Nepal 2025 happening May 5-6Conference: PostgreSQL Conference Germany 2025 on May 8-9Conference: POSETTE: An Event for Postgres 2025 on Jun 10-12Upcoming POSETTE 2025 keynote: Databases in the AI Trenches by Bruce Momjian Conference: SouthEast | LinuxFest on Jun 13-15 in Charlotte NC Conference: Swiss PGDay 2025 happening Jun 26-27 Conference: PGDay Austria 2025 happening in Vienna on Sep 4Conference: PGDay UK 2025 happening in London on Sep 9Conference: PGDay Lowlands 2025 happening in Rotterdam on Sep 12Video from PGConf.dev 2024: Making PostgreSQL Hacking More InclusiveTalking Postgres podcast: How I got started as a developer (& in Postgres) with David RowleyWikipedia: O'Reilly Open Source Convention (OSCON)Calendar invite: LIVE recording of Ep27 of Talking Postgres to happen on Wed May 07 with guest Peter Farkas. The topic: “How I got started with FerretDB (& why we chose Postgres)”