I think that an overview comprised of our subteam structure and progress is sufficient background. Beyond that, we need to engage in a discussion of how we plan to go forward. I’ll point out that almost any ICANN effort I have been part of has participants who don’t care enough to be very involved. We need to focus on our critics by focusing on substance of their concerns. Any attempt to explain why we have done certain things, or not done them, will be pointless. To be trite, there is no point in trying to unring a bell.
The core issue as I see it, and I know from posts here that others share the view, is that we have gone beyond our remit and capabilities. Whether true from our standpoint or not, we have heard about it from the Board and then SSAC, but fundamentally have done nothing to say that we are listening. The problems go both ways. We asked for clarifications when the Board first raised concerns in Johannesburg but didn’t receive specifics quntil the message that focused on Subteam 2.
We need to show that we are listening. Discuss the concerns about the ToR directly. Be prepared to edit our tasks or be specific if we have concerns about why we are being told that we have exceeded our remit. One example: the letter about Subteam 2 shows an assumption the we plan to conduct an audit. As a veteran of 27001 projects and instructor in other regimes, I will say that we don’t have the time or professional capabilities to do that. What we can is do is isolate items for further study by contracted specialists, which is what I thought was the case when the groups prepared the tasks. When discussing issues, we also should focus on ones that we can do something about. A major SSAC concern is that processes for choosing RT2 members were not followed correctly.
One additional item to consider in any response, written or in a meeting, is that we can’t separate entirely the Board and SSAC with respect to the RT2. SSAC includes the Board Chair and probably the most active Board liaison. Another Board member has been a semi-regular Observer on calls. Some bleed through is inevitable, even if not expressed.
I hope that this message is useful in getting all parties heading in the same direction quickly. It’s about time to wrap up in EDT. Naturally, I will address any follow up in my morning.
Don