Hi Cathrin,

Many thanks – this is to confirm receipt of the final list of questions. These will be sent to subject matter experts shortly along with the request that these be answered on a call next week (interview format).

Thanks

Kind regards

Alice

From: RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority <rds-whois2-stratpriority-bounces@icann.org> on behalf of "Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu" <Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu>
Date: Thursday 29 March 2018 at 11:09
To: "rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org" <rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org>
Subject: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] FW: [Ext] RE: Clarifying questions: Request for written materials

Dear strategic priority subgroup,

Many thanks to Carlton for his input. In the absence of input from Volker, we do need to move ahead in view of looming deadlines. I have made the necessary additions to Volker's group of questions and confirm the full set of written questions are ready to go. Alice, I'd be grateful if you could forward them to the SMEs. Here they are:

Has ICANN Org made WHOIS a strategic priority from a formal perspective, by putting into place the appropriate resources and procedures?

• How has WHOIS been implemented in staff incentivization including for the CEO? Are there specific clauses in staff contracts, including the CEO’s, that link compensation to WHOIS implementation or management outcomes? Were KPIs adduced/developed? Were these part of the at-risk compensation portion or the general compensation? What percentage of the overall compensation, at-risk or otherwise, could be connected to WHOIS matters?
• How has WHOIS been integrated into the organizational objectives? Did the ICANN 5-year Operating Plan contain any specific references to WHOIS and what year were they incorporated in that Plan? If it was and is no longer included in the ICANN operational plan, what year did it roll away? Were metrics developed that are connected to any WHOIS activity or outcomes?  Are there specific measurable outcomes connected to contracted parties for WHOIS outcomes?
• What aspects of the WHOIS are serving as incentive[s] or part of the organizational objectives? Is[are] this[these] aspect[s] amenable to measurement? And if so, what were the measurement criteria adopted?  Can the outcomes be shared?
• Has the Board created a committee including the CEO that is responsible for the WHOIS and for key actions?  If yes, has the committee met?  And are the activities of the committee recorded and archived? Are the documents available for viewing or sharing?
• How has the CEO complied with the instruction from the Board to oversee improvements to the contractual conditions relating to gTLD WHOIS data in the gTLD Registry and Registrar agreements? What concrete actions has he taken himself, or staff at his direction, to facilitate improvements to the conditions (e.g. meetings, outreach, suggestions for improvement, facilitation of community dialogue aimed at improvements)? Are there any documents (meeting minutes, internal or external memos, etc.) that can demonstrate these actions?
• How has the CEO complied with the instruction from the Board to create appropriate reporting of these improvements and to implement staff incentivisation? Are there standard clauses in relevant employee contracts reflecting such incentivisation, and how is the incentivisation structured? Have any other measures been taken to incentivize staff to implement the strategic priority recommendation? How often does staff report to the CEO or the Board on Whois improvements and what form does that take? Are there any documents (internal reporting, meeting minutes, memos etc.) that can demonstrate compliance?
  
  
  

Has ICANN Org made WHOIS a strategic priority from a substantive perspective?

• Has ICANN Org taken any other actions reflecting the strategic priority given to the WHOIS, beyond those specifically recommended by the WHOIS RT in its final report?  If yes, which actions has it taken? Are there any written traces of these actions?
• How was this priority reflected in the transition from the AoC to the Bylaws? What efforts has ICANN made to ensure that the priority was preserved during the transition, and what other actions did ICANN take related to this?
• What defects in WHOIS contractual obligations were identified? Has there been any analysis within the organization of the functioning of the contractual Whois obligations? If so, what outcomes have there been? Has ICANN taken any action to review or improve contractual obligations or their implementation?
• How have WHOIS obligations in contracts improved including in the 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) and the base new gTLD Registry Agreement? (as compared to previous obligations)

• Is there evidence to show that the definition as a strategic priority has had a positive impact on the WHOIS in view of the objectives that it serves?

I also include in attachment the finalized strategic planning document containing this updated list of questions, the request for written briefings (already launched and input received) and our planned approach.

Best regards

Cathrin

From: "Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu" <Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu>
Date: Monday 26 March 2018 at 13:41
To: Alice Jansen <alice.jansen@icann.org>
Cc: Jean-Baptiste Deroulez <jean-baptiste.deroulez@icann.org>, "lisa@corecom.com" <lisa@corecom.com>
Subject: [Ext] RE: Clarifying questions: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] Request for written materials

Dear Alice,

For the first one the recommendation from the first Whois RT was to set up a Board/CEO committee to keep tabs on the Whois as a strategic priority. We would like the written record of the creation and existence of that committee, i.e. when it was created, what it does, how often it met and what it discussed.

For the questions that Volker was in charge of, indeed, let us go ahead without waiting for his input. I will send a message to the list.

For the third one I think we will have to see what we get in terms of written materials and feedback from the SMEs – so perhaps we take it in steps and first review the additional written input and the SME interviews and then decide whether we need additional persons identified. Of course, always presuming we can stick with our looming deadline…

All best
Cathrin

From: Alice Jansen [mailto:alice.jansen@icann.org]
Sent: Monday, March 26, 2018 12:08 PM
To: BAUER-BULST Cathrin (HOME)
Cc: Jean-Baptiste Deroulez; Lisa Phifer
Subject: Clarifying questions: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] Request for written materials

Hi Cathrin,

I hope this message finds you well. I have a couple of questions for you, see below:

· With respect to written materials, I hope to receive a due date today but have a question with respect to  “Records of Board/CEO Committee on WHOIS including Terms of Reference/Charter, minutes of meetings, work plan, objectives and outputs”. Could you clarify which Committee the subgroup is referring to? Is it the Expert Working Group on gTLD Directory Services (EWG) - https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/gtld-directory-services-2013-02-14-en[icann.org]?

· In absence of Volker’s input, may we announce the questions you prepared as an official request to SMEs? If you agree, could you send a note to the list? Is the objective to hold a discussion or will you be asking for a written briefing instead? If a discussion, it would be great if you could provide a timeframe for when the call should be scheduled so we may confirm with SMEs and launch a doodle poll accordingly.

· Finally, I wanted to seek your guidance on the following ask “Identify potential interview candidate(s) for a Q&A on the Board's action plan”. Given the above requests and the progress the subgroup has made in formulating questions for ICANN org, I wanted to make sure that through the questions and written materials you are getting all the information you are seeking.

Many thanks for your feedback,

Kind regards and have a great week,

Alice

From: RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority <rds-whois2-stratpriority-bounces@icann.org> on behalf of "Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu" <Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu>
Date: Thursday 15 March 2018 at 23:27
To: "rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org" <rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org>
Subject: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] Request for written materials

Dear all,

while we await Volker's input on the briefing questions, could I ask staff to already launch the request for the written materials based on the list that is contained in that same document and that has already been finalised? this will allow us to make some headway in time for our next deadlines which are coming up with lightning speed...

Many thanks

Cathrin

---

From: Carlton Samuels [carlton.samuels@gmail.com]
Sent: 12 March 2018 17:48
To: BAUER-BULST Cathrin (HOME)
Cc: rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org
Subject: Re: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] New Doc and TO DO

Dear All:

I have made emends to the document by adding further details to questions for my attention.  See attached.

-Carlton 

==============================
Carlton A Samuels
Mobile: 876-818-1799
Strategy, Planning, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround
=============================

On Wed, Mar 7, 2018 at 3:50 AM, <Cathrin.BAUER-BULST@ec.europa.eu> wrote:

Dear all,

Thanks again for the productive call yesterday. I include the updated document with the agreed changes to questions 2-5 and my additional precisions added to the four bullets I was in charge of. Clean and TC version attached for ease of reference. Dear Carlton and Volker, if you could use this document as a basis for your changes, that'd be great. Deadline end of day next Monday 12 March, as agreed. Volker, if you have questions, don't hesitate to reach out.

All best and thanks again

Cathrin

From: RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority [mailto:rds-whois2-stratpriority-bounces@icann.org] On Behalf Of Jean-Baptiste Deroulez
Sent: Tuesday, March 06, 2018 3:40 PM
To: rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org
Subject: Re: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] RDS-WHOIS1 Rec 1: Strategic Priority Subgroup | 6 March | 12:30 UTC

Dear subgroup members,

Please find below the identified action items and decision reached following today’s subgroup call #1[community.icann.org]:

DECISION REACHED

Subgroup to conduct interviews to seek additional detail, rather than requesting additional written briefings.

ACTION ITEMS

· Cathrin, Carlton and Volker to clarify the details requested in question 1 to avoid duplication of work. Reflect whether questions are complete of if others are needed. Deadline: 12 March

· Cathrin: Bullets 1-4

· Cartlon: Bullets 5-8

· Volker: Bullets 9-12

· ICANN Org to identify potential interview candidate(s) for a Q&A on the Board's action plan

· Cathrin to update answers to questions 2-5 after call (by 6 March)

Kind regards,

Jean-Baptiste

From: RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority <rds-whois2-stratpriority-bounces@icann.org> on behalf of Jean-Baptiste Deroulez <jean-baptiste.deroulez@icann.org>
Date: Monday, March 5, 2018 at 7:51 PM
To: "rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org" <rds-whois2-stratpriority@icann.org>
Subject: [RDS-WHOIS2-StratPriority] RDS-WHOIS1 Rec 1: Strategic Priority Subgroup | 6 March | 12:30 UTC

Dear Strategic Priority subgroup members,

We would like to confirm your first subgroup call is scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday 6 March at 12:30 UTC.

Kind regards,

Jean-Baptiste

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