Re: [lac-discuss-en] [ALAC] Some thoughts on ALS Criteria & Expectations Taskforce
Thanks Beran
I don’t think any of us started our life with ALAC knowing what was going on.
And I think your suggestion is a very good one - having those with experience
of ALAC mentor the new comers. Because, yes, it is a challenge all of have
faced, and the more we can do to help out, the better
Holly
On 9 Aug 2015, at 6:05 pm, Beran Dondeh <berandondeh@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> As an ICANN fellow coming into AT large and eventually ALAC within a space of
> year it was a big challenge for me. I struggled for the first six months and
> played catch up a lot. Missing my inaugural ALAC meeting didn't help matters
> as well.
>
> I coped by identifying an ALAC member (Tijani) and attaching myself as a
> Mentee. This really helped me get up to speed and stay involved as well as
> contribute where I could.
>
> I believe ALAC members as well as ALSs are expected to hit the ground running
> once they enter the fold but not enough is done to perhaps help them stay in
> the fold.
>
> My mentorship with Tijani helped immensely and I think it's an approach worth
> considering.
>
> Regards
>
> Beran
> "There is nothing more difficult to arrange and more dangerous to carry
> through than initiating change..." Machiavelli
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On 9 Aug 2015, at 00:18, Carlton Samuels <carlton.samuels@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> Alan,
>> I hear you. I can also agree we could indeed categorise and I have no
>> problem with the ones you have defined. We can also agree that a variety of
>> motivations to serve will bring varying performance.
>>
>> Like you, the thrill from air travel is long gone for me as well. I do what
>> I must. These days after 4 days elapsed time, I'm usually ready to go home.
>> I have only two pleasure trips left in me; taking that Trans Siberian
>> Express train from Moscow to the Russian Far East and Vladivostok, a trek
>> thru Mongolia. Anyone wants to hand me a travel benefit then those are the
>> only ones that will count!
>>
>> As to that 3rd group you staked out, it is indeed irksome they show up,
>> short on even intention to assist in the heavy lifting. I paraphrase that
>> eminent philosopher Forrest Gump; 'representatives are like a box of
>> chocolate, you never know what you will get'. A few ne'er-do-wells will get
>> thru our processes time and again. I see this as a price you pay for
>> voluntarism; what I call uneven results and performance.
>>
>> Its like the ICANN Fellowship programme. I can't tell you how many Fellows
>> - some of whom I have recommended - we have tried to engage after the
>> fellowship trip that simply ignore us. For some the fellowship week
>> experience was overwhelming; too much packed in days that are too long. They
>> wonder how I find the time to do ICANN with all my other commitments and
>> interests they know about. A few have even asked me directly if I'm getting
>> paid 'under the table'! But we harvest a few for the long haul. Again,
>> let's manage expectations. We must expect uneven results and performance.
>>
>> -Carlton
>>
>>
>> ==============================
>> Carlton A Samuels
>> Mobile: 876-818-1799
>> Strategy, Planning, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround
>> =============================
>>
>> On Fri, Aug 7, 2015 at 5:58 PM, Alan Greenberg <alan.greenberg@xxxxxxxxx>
>> wrote:
>> Carlton, I think that there are three distinct categories of people here,
>> and we are merging them together.
>>
>> 1. There are the dedicated hard workers for whom the travel may or may not
>> be a "perk" at some level. I put you and me in that category. I have logged
>> close to 2 million flying miles (that is, actual flown miles, not frequent
>> flyer miles), and to quote an old song I am fond of "The thrill is a long
>> time gone". I find it hard to consider a trip half-way across the world,
>> where I may get 6 hours sleep, put in a grueling 7-10 days, and fly out
>> again without seeing anything other than a hotel, perhaps 1 or 2 restaurants
>> and the airport a perk or reward.
>>
>> On the other hand, on rare occasions, I do tag some vacation onto an ICANN
>> trip and from that perspective, it does add a bit of a personal benefit -
>> generally giving me an opportunity to see a place that I might not have done
>> on my own.
>>
>> 2. There are volunteers who are not among among our heavy lifters (really
>> dedicated workers), but want to get involved. They are the ones that our GAs
>> and summits should be targeted at. They are at the meetings to learn, and
>> try to stay involved after.
>>
>> 3. The latter ones come to meetings, perhaps attend some meetings, enjoy the
>> local offerings, and go home and forget about us until the next trip. THOSE
>> are the ones that I have a real problem with.
>>
>> Of course, there are also some who straddle several categories. BUt when
>> they go into option 3, I have a problem.
>>
>> Alan
>>
>>
>> At 07/08/2015 01:55 PM, Carlton Samuels wrote:
>>> I participated in this morning's call and wanted to level the playing field
>>> by enunciating some principles and a framework for our discussions.
>>>
>>> Let's start with some principles.
>>>
>>> 1) The At-Large is a volunteer-led and fueled organisation and whatever we
>>> do MUST be informed by unassailable facts we know of voluntary
>>> organisations plus the psychology of voluntarism.
>>>
>>> 2) Individuals make the worthwhile contributions, not organisations.
>>>
>>> 3) There is a wide range of motivations for voluntarily contributing and
>>> these must be fed for sustaining worthwhile contributions
>>>
>>> 4) Results matter but volunteer contributions across the board shall always
>>> be uneven
>>>
>>> So now, the framework for discussions. There are structural issues as well
>>> as political issues that must be embraced for any viable solution to
>>> emerge. The ICANN/RALO MOU is the source of the first
>>> structurally-generated challenge.
>>>
>>> While it recognizes individuals as the providers of policy advice, it
>>> locates individual actions in organisations called ALS. And by so doing
>>> suggests that value be given to the organisation. Some RALOs, like NARALO,
>>> have developed rules that recognize individual contributions but have
>>> shoehorned valuation for contribution into an ALS structure. I'm not now
>>> sure what the answer should be but I know what we now have is not fit to
>>> purpose and objective.
>>>
>>> Another structural issue. An individual coming to the ICANN policy
>>> development ecosystem is going to become a worthwhile contributor by virtue
>>> of mental acumen, penchant for hard work and time in place. Time in place
>>> is the common criteria for success. So current arrangements give extra
>>> value to experienced volunteers.
>>>
>>> At the same time, new blood is required to sustain the flow of worthwhile
>>> contributors. Here's the thing. Face-to-Face (f2f) ICANN meetings are the
>>> best platforms to learn and to become familiarized with this complex beast
>>> called the ICANN ecosystem.
>>>
>>> The effectiveness of a volunteer in policy development is directly related
>>> to serial opportunity to participate in ICANN f2f meetings. It is no
>>> accident that the most impactful groups in ICANN are a) those that get to
>>> f2f meetings as 'volunteers' engaged in compensated work b) Those who have
>>> the wherewithal to self-fund attendance at ICANN f2f meetings.
>>>
>>> The task is to develop a framework that strikes a balance which takes into
>>> account the need for experienced volunteers with capacity to deliver
>>> worthwhile contributions even as we build capacity in newer
>>> less-experienced volunteers to sustain the At-Large participation agenda.
>>>
>>> The current funding model for attendance of At-Large volunteers to ICANN
>>> f2f meetings assist ALAC representatives, liaisons from ALAC to qualified
>>> SOs/ACs plus named RALO leadership. This construct seemingly presumes a
>>> direct line of inheritance from RALO leadership thru ALAC representation.
>>> We know it is a presumption without merit, especially if worthwhile
>>> contributions to policy discussions is the objective for the At-Large in
>>> ICANN.
>>>
>>> It is always wrong to think of travel funding to ICANN f2f meeting as a
>>> benefit to a volunteer! It is not and cannot be!
>>>
>>> ALAC representation compels attending three (3) f2f meetings per annum.
>>> They are coincident with the ICANN meetings. In this context, travel
>>> funding is purely part of the infrastructural cost to fulfill an
>>> obligation. Otherwise it is like working for a company that has business
>>> far removed from my place of domicile and expect performance without
>>> provisioning the tools that enable that performance.
>>>
>>> It rankles me personally when my contributions in both time and treasure to
>>> the ICANN enterprise is neither accounted or valorized. Then insult is
>>> added to my injury when some goof equates a trip sitting in steerage for
>>> upwards of 17+ hours [the flight time from Chicago to New Delhi] as a
>>> benefit!
>>>
>>> I travel by air a lot for work; the miles are now counted in millions. In
>>> the years I sat as an ALAC member + the incumbent Secretariat for LACRALO
>>> and as a senior staffer at The University of the West Indies, I contributed
>>> my vacation time of 3 weeks to ICANN for attending f2f meetings. This does
>>> not count the average 20+ hours per week I normally dedicate to ICANN
>>> matters. Nor my personal spend of a minimum of US$500 to attend said
>>> meetings! These all contribute to ICANN having a real opportunity to
>>> record it is indeed multi-stakeholder, is fulfilling its AoC obligations
>>> and has contributions from end user representatives to its policy
>>> development.
>>>
>>> Back in time, I was roundly criticised by some of my At-Large colleagues
>>> for my position in dealing with so-called ALAC 'tourists'. This matter
>>> came to the top in India; LACRALO representatives to ALAC were accused of
>>> abandoning ALAC business for a tour of Indian tourist sites. This still
>>> haunts the At-Large in ICANN circles. My firm stand against any sanctions
>>> or additional criteria applied for travel support funding was interpreted
>>> as 'protecting' the members accused from sanctions for inattention to duty.
>>> That was never my objective and it still is not the case today. I just
>>> cannot accept the notion that travel funding is a benefit to the volunteer.
>>> I shall, on principle, oppose any such notion, howsoever derived or
>>> configured.
>>>
>>> Finally, in the chat we heard talk of a 'reviewer' being appointed. While
>>> the roles and responsibilities of such a person/actor is not yet outlined,
>>> let us be clear to ring fence and give specific instructions as to what we
>>> are trying to achieve here. We must recognize from principles that
>>> volunteers give as much as they can to the cause. The contributions in
>>> time and treasure of a Olivier Crepin-Leblond or Cheryl Langdon Orr cannot
>>> be used as a benchmark for either engagement or indeed, worthwhile
>>> contributions.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>> -Carlton
>>>
>>> ==============================
>>> Carlton A Samuels
>>> Mobile: 876-818-1799
>>> Strategy, Planning, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround
>>> =============================
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>>> )
>>
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