(doc) update CONTRIBUTING.md to clarify roles/expectations

[isc-tleavitt]

Our intent here is to clarify the roles/expectations for InterSystems and community contributors.

[isc-tleavitt]

@AshokThangavel I'd appreciate your feedback on this too - I'd like to be able to set proper expectations. We appreciate your ideas and contributions and having clearer guidelines should help us stay on the same page. (And will also help in the event we're fortunate enough to have more community contributors come along.)

Also to that end, I'd like to start up a weekly office hours / community discussion meeting around IPM. Feel free to drop me an email at tleavitt@intersystems.com and I can include you.

[AshokThangavel]

Hello @isc-tleavitt
Thank you for sharing this; I truly appreciate it. These clarifications are very clear and helpful, especially the target timelines for reviews and the 'spec first' approach for new features. It shows that you value the community's time and effort by ensuring we don’t work on things that might not align with the roadmap. The 'help wanted' label is also a great addition to help us identify where we can provide the most value

From a contributor’s perspective, I have a few suggestions to make this process even smoother:

1. Feature Spec Template: Could we add a standardized "Feature Spec Template" to the repository? Providing a simple structure—including sections for Description, Proposed Changes, Usage Examples, and Initial Suggestions/Thoughts—would help community members provide the exact technical details you need upfront.
2. Dedicated Style Guide: It would be very helpful to have a STYLE_GUIDE.md or a specific section for coding standards. Since code styling is also a common focus during PR reviews, having a clear reference for naming conventions and formatting would help contributors align with your expectations before submitting. This would significantly speed up the review cycle for everyone.
3. Initial Response Target: While I respect the team's busy schedule, it would be encouraging to have a general target for an initial response to "Needs Spec" discussions. Even a brief acknowledgement lets contributors know their proposal is on the radar and keeps the momentum going.

Thanks again for the invitation to provide feedback and for setting up the office hours! I’d love to participate and will send you an email shortly so you can include me in the meeting invite.

Thank you!