[council] Joint Meeting Topics for Brussels

[Stéphane Van Gelder]

Good to know that the majority of the Board remains in favour of the dinners.

Thanks Rita.

Stéphane

Le 21 mai 2010 à 16:34, Rodin Johnston, Rita a écrit :

> Stephane and all -
> 
> I very much agree with this sentiment and believe the majority of the board does as well.  I'm not sure where this notion began, but bruce and I are in dublin and can discuss with peter. I would not be in favor of discontinuing dinner unless a better option for informal discussions was substituted. Thanks
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: owner-council at gnso.icann.org <owner-council at gnso.icann.org>
> To: Bruce Tonkin <Bruce.Tonkin at melbourneit.com.au>
> Cc: GNSO Council <council at gnso.icann.org>
> Sent: Fri May 21 10:09:27 2010
> Subject: Re: [council] Joint Meeting Topics for Brussels
> 
> 
> We are talking about the interaction between 2 of ICANN's major decision-making bodies.
> 
> I think it's important to keep sight of the usefulness of getting the people from each body talking to each other.
> 
> Even when there's no formal agenda, this type of interaction helps make organisations work.
> 
> Yes we can keep it formal, but when it's a social event it's often easier for people to meet and get to know each other. That then translates into real benefits for the organisation when it comes to formal work sessions.
> 
> As a new councillor, I found the first Board dinner I attended helped take away a lot of the awe and stress I felt at both learning the Council and working with the Board. From informal conversations with Board members, I found them to be much more approachable and in tune with the everyday problems ICANN faces than I had thought. I would never have gotten that in a more formal setting.
> 
> I think our joint dinner are an investment we all make to help oil the internal workings of the organisation.
> 
> Stéphane
> 
> Le 21 mai 2010 à 15:11, Bruce Tonkin a écrit :
> 
>> 
>> Hello All,
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>>> I think the approach you suggest for the Board dinner is excellent.
>> To me, these dinners are crucial for us and the opportunity for
>> interaction with Board members they bring. I would hate to see them
>> disappear, but would like to understand why some on the Board feel they
>> should go.
>> 
>> 
>> Well here are some issues that get raised:
>> 
>> - the dinners are at the end of a long day of workshops/meetings - so
>> some members are too tired to give important matters appropriate
>> attention
>> 
>> - it is not always clear what the objective is - a general discussion
>> about topics, a social event, discussion about a specific issues that
>> the Board will be making a decision on that week?
>> 
>> - if the process is working properly - the Board will simply be
>> endorsing the recommendations from the Council that have consensus
>> support and should not be getting into the detail of particular policy
>> matters.  If there is disagreement amongst the parties in the GNSO - the
>> GNSO should work it out together - not try to get the Board to take
>> sides.
>> 
>> There are some that would prefer a more formal meeting - not
>> aligned with a breakfast/lunch or dinner - where there are materials
>> provided in advance and the Board members can ask questions about the
>> particular issue.
>> 
>> 
>> Personally I think a mixture of formal and informal can work.  e.g A
>> period of time for a structured discussion with documents provided in
>> advance, and the ability for the Board to ask questions on the
>> documents.   An informal eating occasion can then follow that is perhaps
>> optional for the participants to attend to get a better understanding of
>> the issues.    This structure used to work quite well when we were doing
>> the new gTLD policy development - the days were spent on policy
>> discussions, and the dinners were an opportunity to break down some
>> barriers in the discussions with no formal agenda, that often led to
>> better results the following day.
>> 
>> Regards,
>> Bruce Tonkin
>> 
>> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ****************************************************
> 
> To ensure compliance with Treasury Department regulations, we advise you that, unless otherwise expressly indicated, any federal tax advice contained in this message was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state or local tax law provisions or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters addressed herein.
> ****************************************************
> ****************************************************
> 
> This email (and any attachments thereto) is intended only for use by the addressee(s) named herein and may contain legally privileged and/or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email (and any attachments thereto) is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error please immediately notify me at (212) 735-3000 and permanently delete the original email (and any copy of any email) and any printout thereof.
> 
> Further information about the firm, a list of the Partners and their professional qualifications will be provided upon request.
> ****************************************************
> ==============================================================================