CONTRIBUTING.md: Clarify contribution ladder

Signed-off-by: Naadir Jeewa <[email protected]>

Author: Naadir Jeewa

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -17,3 +17,62 @@ Kubernetes projects require that you sign a Contributor License Agreement (CLA)
         * 🐛 (:bug:, patch and bugfixes)
         * 📖 (:book:, documentation or proposals)
         * 🌱 (:seedling:, minor or other)
+
+### Contributer Ladder
+
+We broadly follow the requirements from the [Kubernetes Community Membership](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/community-membership.md).
+
+> When making changes to **OWNER_ALIASES** please check that the **sig-cluster-lifecycle-leads**, **cluster-api-admins** and **cluster-api-maintainers** are correct.
+
+#### Becoming a reviewer
+
+If you would like to become a reviewer, then please ask one of the current maintainers.
+
+We generally try to follow the [requirements for a reviewer](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/community-membership.md#reviewer) from upstream Kubernetes. But if you feel that you don't fully meet the requirements then reach out to us, they are not set in stone.
+
+A reviewer can get PRs automatically assigned for review, and can `/lgtm` PRs.
+
+To become a reviewer, ensure you are a member of the **kubernetes-sigs** Github organisation
+following [kubernetes/org/issues/new/choose](https://github.com/kubernetes/org/issues/new/choose).
+
+The steps to add someone as a reviewer are:
+
+* Add the GitHub alias to the **cluster-api-vsphere-reviewers** section of [OWNERS_ALIASES](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api-provider-vsphere/blob/main/OWNERS_ALIASES)
+* Create a PR with the change that is held (i.e. by using `/hold`)
+* Announce the change within the CAPV slack channel and as a PSA in the next CAPV office hours
+* After 7 days of lazy consensus or after the next CAPV office hours (whichever is longer) the PR can be merged
+
+#### Becoming a maintainer
+
+If you have made significant contributions to Cluster API Provider vSphere, a maintainer may nominate you to become a maintainer for the project.
+
+We generally follow the [requirements for a approver](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/community-membership.md#approver) from upstream Kubernetes. However, if you don't fully meet the requirements then a quorum of maintainers may still propose you if they feel you will make significant contributions.
+
+Maintainers are able to approve PRs, as well as participate in release processes and have write access to the repo. **As a maintainer you will be expected to run the office hours, especially if no one else wants to**.
+
+Maintainers require membership of the **Kubernetes** Github organisation via
+[kubernetes/org/issues/new/choose](https://github.com/kubernetes/org/issues/new/choose)
+
+The steps to add someone as a maintainer are:
+
+* Add the GitHub alias to the **cluster-api-vsphere-maintainers** and remove them from **cluster-api-vsphere-reviewers** sections of [OWNERS_ALIASES](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api-provider-vsphere/blob/main/OWNERS_ALIASES)
+* Create a PR with the change that is held (i.e. by using `/hold`)
+* Announce the change within the CAPV slack channel and as a PSA in the next CAPV office hours
+* After 7 days of lazy consensus or after the next CAPV office hours (whichever is longer) the PR can be merged
+* Open PR to add Github username to **cluster-api-provider-vsphere-maintainers**
+to [kubernetes/org/config/kubernetes-sigs/sig-cluster-lifecycle/teams.yaml](https://github.com/kubernetes/org/blob/main/config/kubernetes-sigs/sig-cluster-lifecycle/teams.yaml)
+* Open PR to add Github username to [kubernetes/test-infra/config/jobs/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api-provider-vsphere/OWNERS](https://github.com/kubernetes/test-infra/blob/master/config/jobs/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api-provider-vsphere/OWNERS)
+* Open PR to add Google ID to the [email protected] and [email protected] Google groups in [kubernetes/k8s.io/groups/sig-cluster-lifecycle/groups.yaml](https://github.com/kubernetes/k8s.io/blob/main/groups/sig-cluster-lifecycle/groups.yaml)
+* Open PR to add approvers/reviewers to [CAPV image promotion](https://github.com/kubernetes/k8s.io/blob/main/registry.k8s.io/images/k8s-staging-cluster-api-vsphere/OWNERS).
+* Open PR to image-builder to modify `cluster-api-vsphere-maintainers` in [OWNERS_ALIASES](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/image-builder/blob/main/OWNERS_ALIASES)
+
+#### Becoming a admin
+
+After a period of time one of the existing CAPV or CAPI admins may propose you to become an admin of the CAPV project.
+
+Admins have GitHub **admin** access to perform tasks on the repo.
+
+The steps to add someone as an admin are:
+
+* Open PR to add Github username to **cluster-api-provider-vsphere-admins**
+to [kubernetes/org/config/kubernetes-sigs/sig-cluster-lifecycle/teams.yaml](https://github.com/kubernetes/org/blob/main/config/kubernetes-sigs/sig-cluster-lifecycle/teams.yaml)