Each year, I seek to focus the ICANN organization on strategic opportunities for improvement. A key element of this process is working with the ICANN Board to set my goals for the next fiscal year. As part of our commitment to accountability and transparency, I am sharing my CEO goals for the 2020 fiscal year (FY20).
My goals include looking at challenges and new proposals with fresh eyes, as well as executing on existing projects. Together with the ICANN org Executive Team, I will prioritize the steps toward these goals and measure our progress. Our objective is for the entire ICANN org to be aligned, allowing us to work together in the public interest and fulfill ICANN’s important mission.
FY20 Annual Goals - Set by the President & CEO
Note: ICANN's FY20 runs from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020. The President & CEO’s FY20 goals will be set for a 12-month period, with a performance review after 31 January 2020.
Domain Name System (DNS) Ecosystem Security Risk Management
Create a facilitation center for DNS ecosystem security risks. This center should establish and promote best practices, facilitate communication between ecosystem participants, and implement processes to help the community handle threats. In addition, it should provide DNS ecosystem security-related exercises and studies. Top-level domain operators and relevant parts of ICANN, such as SSAC and RSSAC, should be involved.
Five-Year Strategic Plan
Many of the goals and initiatives in the strategic plan will be an expansion of the work we conduct without an increase in resources. This creates a need and opportunity to evaluate the work we conduct today, assess the need and the value of the result, and reprioritize our efforts. Communication with the community will be essential for us to prioritize successfully. We will engage with different subgroups in the community to follow up the implementation of the Five-Year Strategic Plan. Internally we will appoint an executive to act as the bridge. A very important part of this effort is to work out the financial reporting and activity reporting measurements with the community subgroups.
Sub Pro
Set up a Sub Pro Steering Committee consisting of relevant members of the Executive Team. This group is responsible for management of the overall budget and strategic decision-making. The Steering Committee Chair is the Global Domains Division (GDD), and the Head Project Manager will report into the Steering Committee. Under the Head Project Manager, there will be several different subprojects, each led by a separate project manager. The Head Project Manager will be chosen by the Steering Committee. Subproject managers will be proposed by the Head Project Manager but must be accepted by the Steering Committee. Each subproject manager will be responsible for their part of the project and budget. All subprojects must operate according to the same project principles and using the same tools.
Government Engagement
- To look over internal working processes for government engagement. This involves the work in engagement globally with governments and IGOs. It also involves subject matter work with the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) as well as the legislative and regulatory tracking initiative.
- To suggest to community leaders a feedback mechanism that takes the form of a lightweight consultation group. This group will be generally based on concepts from the proposed Uniform Framework of Principles for Cross-Community Working Groups (CCWGs) developed jointly by the ccNSO and GNSO councils in September 2016, and with the current Cross-Community Engagement Group on Internet Governance (CCEG-IG), potentially rescoped as a possible home for this effort.
Reduction of Systems
Achieve the transformation from the Information Transparency Initiative (ITI) to the Information Transparency Platform (ITP), moving from an initiative to a platform. This transition will be very important for aligning many of the existing systems we have, as well as “bringing in” many of the web services we support that exist outside of https://icann.org.
Project Management at ICANN Org
Set up “networks” within ICANN org for certain defined roles, such as project managers. To give an example of how this would work, the “network” would be given the assignment to write a project management handbook, identify the tools we should use for project management across the org, and develop a framework for the project management process.
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
Continue to work toward obtaining legal guidance from the Data Protection Agencies as to whether a Unified Access Model is permissible and compliant with GDPR.
Enhancing the Effectiveness of Review Recommendations and Implementation
Continue to support the Board in its dialogue with the community about the prioritization and affordability of review recommendations, as well as the effectiveness of implementation.
Independent Review Process (IRP) Implementation Oversight Team (IOT)
- Support the Board in engaging with the community to restructure the IOT in order to enable it to complete its work in a timely manner.
- Recommend to the Board a finalized process for identifying members of the IRP Standing Panel.
Name Collision Analysis Project
- Study 1 – Ensure that the project is adequately resourced and funded to execute on ICANN org responsibilities for procurement and project management deliverables.
- Decision – Take steps to ensure a timely decision on whether to continue with Study 2.
Evolution of DNS Root Services and its Governance (RSSAC037 /RSSAC038)
- Public Comment – Present the report of the Public Comment proceeding for evolving the Root Server System (RSS) governance to the ICANN Board and begin call for volunteers for the Governance Working Group (GWG).
- Cost Estimates – Working with the ICANN Board Finance Committee, produce cost estimates as outlined in Recommendation 2 of RSSAC038.
- Board Recommendations – Working with CWG, RSSAC, and the Board Technical Committee, propose to the Board:
- An RSS governance model
- Risk mitigation strategies for RSS
- A plan for continued work in FY21 on the Evolution of DNS Root Services and its Governance (RSSAC37/38).