Dear Colleagues, This message contains a call for nominations but will first provide an update and background on the state of the selection of an RFC Series Editor. On 8 June 2009, the IAB announced a call for nominations for the position of RFC Series Editor (RSE) [1] based on the procurement process and job description previously discussed with the community [2] and the RFC Editor Model now published as RFC 5620. Despite the extended discussion of those documents and descriptions, both within the IAB and with the community, the combination of the job description, the relevant elements of the model, and the selection process failed to produce any candidates who where a good match, in terms of mutual expectations, to the position as defined. Based on the feedback from the interviews and a recommendation from the ACEF the IAB concluded that its approach to finding RSE candidates needed changing, while still maintaining the continuity of the series, and taking into account the current understanding of the community consensus. At least part of the difficulty in finding appropriate nominees appears to have been due to uncertainties about how things would work out with the new arrangements for the Publisher and Production Center, arrangements for which the RSE would have to assume responsibility. Another element of the difficulties we encountered appears to have been the disclosure of names of applicants. As community members who have been the subject of job searches will no doubt appreciate, we have concluded that such disclosures are inappropriate for a salaried position for a senior person who might not want their interest in the position disclosed unless and until it is actually offered. Rather than repeat the call for candidates and hope for a different result, it became clear to the IAB (as advised by the ACEF) that by focusing the responsibilities of the first RSE to drive the implementation of the model ---with an explicit responsibility to refine the role an RSE after initial transition and possibly propose modifications to the RFC Editor Model--- might give us a higher chance of a long term success. We came to call that role a transitional RSE. A transitional RSE will be appointed for a shorter term and with a job description that includes the original elements but that concentrates on formulating the position in practice (analogies to "running code" come to mind) and advising the IAB and the community on a longer-term job description and candidate search process. The IAB believes this approach is sufficiently in line with the community consensus on RFC5620 and previous community feedback, that we can proceed along this path by starting a nomination process based on a revised statement of work while also allowing, and taking into account, any input the community might have. The IAB expects that the scope of community input is such that it can be taken into account during an interviewing/negotiation stage. Finally, since the contractor for the production center (AMS) has recruited Sandy Ginoza and Alice Hagens (see [3]) the IAB does not believe there will be any immediate problems with continuity of RFC publications. In addition we are exploring other possibilities to maintain continuity if an RSE cannot start on or before Jan 1, 2010. The open nomination process for this revised position, described in [4], will begin on November 5. Please submit your nominations in txt format to RSE-Nom@ietf.org. The IAB will begin evaluations on November 23 and may fill the position as soon thereafter as a satisfactory candidate is found. For the IAB, --Olaf Kolkman Chair [1] http://www.ietf.org/mail-archive/web/ietf-announce/current/msg06167.html [2] http://iaoc.ietf.org/rfced-procurement.html [3] http://iaoc.ietf.org/announcements/ann18.html [4] http://www.iab.org/documents/correspondence/2009-11-04-Transitional-RSE-SOW.pdf _______________________________________________ IETF-Announce mailing list IETF-Announce@ietf.org https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf-announce
